the tablet war is heating up
- Thread starter falcarrion
- Start date
IronWolf
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falcarrion
First Post
I have tried a spongy tip stylus and didn't like it to write with. They work fine for most things like typing etc. A firmer tip for writing is what I would suggest.
John Crichton
First Post
I picked up this one from amazon: Acase Stylus
[ame="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004ES74WQ"]Amazon.com: Acase 2 in 1 Stylus + Pen for Apple iPad 16GB, 32GB, 64GB WiFi + 3G, iPad 2, iPhone, iPod, Motorola Xoom, Samsung Galaxy, BlackBerry Playbook (Black): Electronics[/ame]
[ame="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004ES74WQ"]Amazon.com: Acase 2 in 1 Stylus + Pen for Apple iPad 16GB, 32GB, 64GB WiFi + 3G, iPad 2, iPhone, iPod, Motorola Xoom, Samsung Galaxy, BlackBerry Playbook (Black): Electronics[/ame]
falcarrion
First Post
I disagree. With about 7 different tablets coming out or are out it.
John Crichton
First Post
I can't agree with you. We've known for a long while more tablets were on the way. Nothing is lighting the lamp in terms of being able to truly compete with the iPad yet. That's when the war will really start.
The war's already on. Alternative tablets are out there already, more are on the way.
I see this as being no different than the smartphone wars. Apple makes the iPhone. Yes, it's probably the best selling *individual* phone....but if you took all Android phones, for instance, they'd add up to very strong opposition, even if none of them were individually selling the iPhone. And I don't think it's realistic to expect otherwise. I mean......how many different Android phones are there? How many different Blackberries are there? I'm sure if Apple manufactured multiple models of smartphone, the iPhone wouldn't be nearly as individually dominant as it is now.
Same for tablets. In terms of consumer devices (given that Apple didn't invent the tablet computer), the iPad hit first and has become very popular, in the absence of competition initially. However, there have been increasing numbers of other tablets coming out. There'll be a bunch of Android tablets. There's the RiM Playbook. And there are even Windows based tablets.
It's going to be death by a thousand cuts. The Apple product may or may not stay on top. Simply by virtue of how many have been sold, it could very well stay on top. It'll be a few more years to know for sure. But if there are a bunch of competitors, they'll make a difference in time.
And, as to sales numbers? I don't think anyone is expecting iPad like sales numbers initially. I've read the Xoom sold something like 75,000 copies in a month. For a $600-800 device, that's a fair chunk of revenue. Maybe only 6% of the sales of iPads in a similar time period....but if you start combining Xoom, Galaxy Tab, EEE tab, Playbook etc. they'll all add up.
Incidentally, I've tested out the Playbook in the last several days, and it's quite a nice device. Faster than the iPad, nicer interface, proper multitasking, better browser, Flash support etc. No, it doesn't have the app store..but if you have Flash support, that's less necessary. As an example, on the iPhone, I need to install the SpeedTest app, to run tests through SpeedTest.net, because Flash isn't supported. With the Playbook you just use your browser and go to Speedtest.net - The Global Broadband Speed Test and it works flawlessly. And it's going to run both Playbook apps and Android apps. The power button is a pain as it's rather small, and it's currently lacking an e-mail client and calendar app, but those are coming in a few months. RiM has excellent longterm support for their products, with regular software updates.
Banshee
John Crichton
First Post
Just because there is competition where there was once zero doesn't mean that it's of any real significance. Now, the tablets coming out later this year will have a real shot at turning this thing into a real competition. Until the non-iPad units are actually available for sale and people are actually using them it's all just speculation and not anything resembling a war.
It's probably best to not equate the two as much as you are. They are really different animals despite some of their similarities such as apps and the companies involved in creating them. Especially because as much as a smartphone is somewhat of a luxury item for some people it's not nearly the luxury item any tablet is at this point. For many, their smartphone is a critical part of their life. The same cannot be said for tablet PCs.
It still holds a massive lead despite the only game in town last year. There is no true competition right now to the iPad even though there are a few pretenders. It just happened to be first which is helpful. However, if there was a device out there that could really hold up it would be selling. But there isn't such a device. So much so that not even the combined non-iPad offerings have made much of a dent.
I completely agree and that's when there will actually be a competition. Because right now there isn't one. As I mentioned earlier in the thread I have no doubt that Android tablets will be excellent once they get their act together. But that has yet to be seen and even now they are still scrambling.
Right now they don't even add up to 1/4 of the market that the iPad has. That's barely a skirmish considering all the effort being poured in.
