Tablets: A Prescription for Confusion

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Tablets: A Prescription for Confusion

By Chris Davies on Sun Oct 24th, 2010 26 Comments

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“It appears to be just a handful of credible entrants” said Apple CEO Steve Jobs on iPad rivals, “not exactly an avalanche.” It’s certainly been a shaky few weeks for tablets in general; while Apple’s slate can apparently do little wrong, contributing nicely to another record financial quarter for the Cupertino company, the rest of the market is looking deeply troubled. Qualms over platforms, sizes, pricing and usability have all come to a head over the past seven days, leaving manufacturers looking almost as confused as the would-be consumers.

Jobs laid into Android as a “fragmented” platform and 7-inch displays as “too big to compete with a smartphone, and too small to compete with an iPad.” Nonetheless, Android appears to be the horse on which most Apple rivals are betting. Reviews of the first new batch of Windows 7 slates proved less than positive, with models like the Tega v2 criticized for shortfalls in usability. While Microsoft’s latest version is certainly stronger than Windows XP Tablet Edition ever was, gauged against finger-centric platforms like iOS and Android it lacks the immediacy and intuitiveness users have come to expect.

In response, we’ve seen a gradual distancing of manufacturers from Windows 7, fleshing out vague rumors of reluctance over Wintel slates reported for the past few months among OEMs. MSI has apparently frozen its Windows 7 tablet development, and Lenovo has dismissed the platform as too tied to the keyboard/mouse paradigm as to be suited to pure slates. The question now is not so much whether Android, but which Android, and that’s a thick vein of confusion which even Google itself seems mired in. “What does it mean when your software supplier says not to use their software in your tablet?” Jobs asked, referring to Google’s apparent guidance to manufacturers to wait until at least the next Gingerbread release of Android for tablet use. The first Gingerbread models are expected to arrive at CES 2011 next January – including the new Android model that MSI is supposedly focusing on in favor of Windows 7 – but other manufacturers are even more wary. Lenovo, while eschewing Microsoft’s OS, has said it intends to wait until Honeycomb, the version of Android beyond Gingerbread, before making its play.

On the flip side, Android 2.2 Froyo models are reaching store shelves now, or are expected to in the next few weeks. Samsung’s Galaxy Tab is perhaps the best known, already on sale in some mainland European markets and hitting the UK on November 1st and the US through that month. As well as being one of the 7-inch models Jobs was so eager to dismiss, the Galaxy Tab has found itself mired in controversy over the apparent premium price Samsung – and its carrier distributors – is charging. In the UK, pre-orders have currently settled at around £530 ($830), the same local price as a 16GB iPad WiFi + 3G; in the US, meanwhile, Verizon has been the only network to announce solid numbers, prompting an outbreak of surprise by asking $599.99 for the unsubsidized slate.

Leaked figures from T-Mobile USA, meanwhile, have previously suggested the GSM carrier will be offering the Galaxy Tab at $399 with a two-year data plan, still an expensive option. It seems a risky strategy on Samsung’s part (though carriers set the final subsidized numbers, they’re obviously dependent on the manufacturer’s RRP and wholesale cost), when many had hoped they would significantly undercut the iPad in an attempt to secure market share (and for what is a significantly smaller device).

What must be remembered is that Samsung doesn’t intend to echo Apple’s market approach: a single model with what will probably be a yearly refresh cycle. Instead, as we’ve seen with their Galaxy S family of Android smartphones, the company is planning numerous more Galaxy Tab family slates, both with smaller and larger touchscreens than the 7-inch original. The likelihood is that we can expect the middle-ground between 4-inch Galaxy S and 7-inch Galaxy Tab to also occupy the middle-ground in pricing, to avoid stepping on the toes of either. Samsung’s play is to capitalize on the inherently niche nature of tablets, offering more targeted models built around a core platform and, presumably, hoping the combined sales are enough to sustain the project.

At the other end of the scale there are cheaper slates such as the Advent Vega, a 10-inch Tegra 2 based Froyo tablet headed to the UK market at the start of November, and priced at a mere £250 ($390). In return there’s a barely tweaked version of Android, rather than the custom apps Samsung has worked on, and the assumption that the target audience will prioritize affordability above all else. The company tells us they’re looking to put Gingerbread on the slate when it becomes available, potentially making the Vega both a cost-effective and functional option, though we’ll need to wait until the reviews filter through before knowing for sure.

Android isn’t the only platform; RIM has been gradually drip-feeding us with more information on their BlackBerry PlayBook tablet, expected to reach the market in early 2011. Earlier this week the Canadian company confirmed they would be matching the iPad’s 16GB, 32GB and 64GB SKUs, while co-CEO Jim Basillie took time to rail against Steve Jobs’ tablet commentary. “7-inch tablets will actually be a big portion of the market” he insisted, suggesting that was common knowledge “for those of us who live outside of Apple’s distortion field.” Still, the PlayBook will likely reach the market around the time Apple’s second-gen iPad does, something we can guess will answer most of the criticisms of the first model while at the same time biting away at the BlackBerry slate’s impressive feature set. RIM’s play will be the enterprise market so traditionally enamored with their smartphone line though, as we’ve seen with the iPhone, Apple has proved itself adept at taking an initially consumer-focused device and adding enterprise functionality. Anecdotal evidence has already suggested that business users are eyeing the iPad and finding ways to integrate it into their workday, leaving Cupertino a primed audience.

There are, of course, a few outliers. The HP Slate 500, for instance, finally made its official debut this week, stubbornly sticking with Windows 7 (HP’s webOS slates aren’t expected until 2011). The company has refined its targeting for the 8.9-inch tablet, no longer positioning it as a device for everyone but instead playing on its corporate skills. There’s also a significant advantage in its touchscreen technology, pairing the capacitive touch layer which the iPhone/iPad has made popular with an active digitizer for more precise stylus use. As we know from previous Windows 7 tablets, it’s something business users come to expect as well as something which significantly improves the OS experience. HP’s pricing is also strong – $799 including a desktop dock – perhaps not in comparison with consumer models, but against other Windows 7 slates (like Onkyo’s three model range, now available in the US via importers) and convertible notebooks with hybrid touchscreen displays. As ever, the target is vertical markets like healthcare, though HP will need to prove the Slate 500′s battery life first and then convince corporations that consistency in platforms is worthwhile.

Sharp, meanwhile, has taken a more unusual step and abandoned its traditional PC business in favor of chasing the tablet ereader market with its Galapagos range, though beyond talk of a carrier partnership with Verizon the US details are still scarce. Barnes & Noble are tipped to be augmenting their NOOK range of ereaders with a low-cost tablet – believed to be around the $249 mark – again predominantly focused on ebooks but with the addition of internet browsing. Both companies have turned to Android for the OS.

With his reputation for guiding the tech industry by Apple’s example, it’s easy to overlook that Steve Jobs is preaching one single vision of how tablet computing might pan out. To assume that his sole justification for bypassing 7-inch or similar models is usability, however, is naive. His job is to sell users on the Apple/iOS/iTunes/App Store ecosystem, and to put into place the best range of high-profile devices to suit; keeping that range tightly focused is in the best interest of the Cupertino company’s cachet. That needn’t mean another company shouldn’t carve its own niche; 7-inch slates have portability benefits, for instance, while Android’s arguably fragmentary nature – as evidenced by the variety of approaches manufacturers have taken with it – could potentially be reframed as a positive sign of the OS’ flexibility. Unfortunately, with manufacturer confusion seemingly at an all-time high, it’s unsurprising that consumers are similarly bewildered by the products they see hitting the market today and in tomorrow’s pipeline.

Author Bio

Writing for R3 Media since 2006, Chris Davies is currently executive editor for SlashGear, PhoneMag and the other network sites. Based in London, UK, he's responsible for SlashGear's editorial decisions and covers all forms of consumer technology. You can follow him on Twitter.

26 Responses to “Tablets: A Prescription for Confusion”

BMK Oct 24th, 2010

Good column. Personally, I am waiting for a webOS tablet that can (hopefully) work in conjunction with a next gen H/Palm smartphone; ie: webOS 2.0. However it will need to have some sort of productivity suite on it so that I can accomplish real work. A keyboard dock would be stellar.

I am intrigued by the Samsung Galaxy Tab especially because it has Swype text input which I think is the best solution yet for on-the-go text input. It has a decent productivity suite and a keyboard/dock solution would make it quite powerful. The device is small enough that I can hold it with one hand and comfortably Swype with the other. However, I think that Android is quite fragmented and the marketplace is often restricted or limited for these devices, which is worrying.

Apple’s ecosystem is not for me, therefore the iPad is not a product that I am considering. However, I think that it is pushed the market nicely along and forced other manufacturers to up their game which is good for everybody.

It’ll be interesting to see how this plays out…I’m still half convinced that this whole niche will dry up in the next two years or so.
+4 Reply
- Vincent Nguyen Oct 24th, 2010
  
  Swype works well on smaller display. It’ll be interesting to experience it’s usefulness on larger display considering much more travel time between letters.
  +4 Reply
iPad user Oct 24th, 2010

Apples ecosystem is awesome. Everything is there already and it works and is stable. Why wait untold years for an inferior product? Your logic eludes me. You have probably never used an apple product, you know what they say “once you go Mac, you never go back’. Come on over from the dark side.
-9 Reply
- morphoyle Oct 24th, 2010
  
  Can you site examples on how/why the Apple ecosystem is “awesome”? I tried coming over from the “dark side” before, and I just don’t see how the Apple ecosystem is superior. It’s flashier, but I don’t really care about the polished surfaces or mirror effects. Of course, I’m also very technologically literate and can use a linux or windows based computer with out breaking it every five seconds….
  +8 Reply
  - chuckh Oct 24th, 2010
    
    When I use a machine I want it to make the task easier not more complicated. If one machine breaks often while being used and another machine does not break when used equally the latter is the better machine. I use a Windows computer and a Mac at work. Using Windows is like balancing a rock on a stick. The Mac is like setting a rock on the ground. I have work to do I no time to be constantly f***ing with poorly designed tools.
    -4 Reply
- Bobbity Oct 24th, 2010
  
  It may be awesome FOR YOU, but not all.
  
  What frustrates me:
  - Non removeable battery.
  - non-standard port
  - REQUIRES iTunes. Which I think is by far the silliest thing ever. The damn iPhone/iPad require host computers for music and what not. How infantile.
  
  Why would you consider something that can’t update itself or download media (from non-itunes sources) a “smart”?
  +4 Reply
  - Marcos El Malo Oct 24th, 2010
    
    More power to you, Bobbity. One side does not fit all, and there is nothing wrong with choosing what you think will work best for you. I wish more people would just use what works for them instead of acting like companies are sports teams.
    
    That said, I’m a Mac user (and will probably get an iPad at some point). I’m not going to list a hundred reasons why to try and convince anyone that the Mac is best. I use Macs for a totally subjective reason: I like them better. I’m not threatened by anyone liking another OS better for whatever reason they have. (I do find most android evangelists to be jerks, though. :) )
    -1 Reply
Vincent Nguyen Oct 24th, 2010

Back in the early iPhone days, Jobs was and still is against a physical keyboard on the iPhone (which I agree 100%). Now, he’s clearly stated that using touch at an angle on a notebook isn’t ideal. It appears to me that 1) we’ll never see a macbook touch or 2) it’ll be some time in the distant future (MacBook Air 4th or 5th-gen?) where the MacBook Air can be twisted/folded into a tablet tablet — is that what we’re expecting?
Neutral Reply
- Chris Davies Oct 25th, 2010
  
  Part of the problem with convertible tablets is the physical hardware: you have to have a hinge that is sturdy enough to cope with frequent rotations. I’m not sure what sort of material Apple would be able to turn to in order to fulfil that as well as keep the notebook suitably waifish.
  Neutral Reply
Fill Oct 24th, 2010

It is interesting to see how Apple’s iPod business is driving innovation back to the Mac. For example, I don’t think there would have been an iPhone if there weren’t iPods, and there wouldn’t be an iPad without an iPhone, and there wouldn’t be a Macbook Air (current model) without the iPad, and you wouldn’t have the (coming) Mac app store without an iPhone/iPad app store, etc. Other manufacturers just don’t have that history to build upon. The best they can do is try to jump on the band wagon after Apple shows them that a market exists. But a tablet without an app store or an OS tailored for it is going to be a hard sell. And I’m disappointed with the specs. For example, HP’s Slate is smaller (just as heavy, though), half the battery life at best, no sensors that I could tell (accelerometer, ambient light, magnetic compass, etc.), no 3G and more expensive. And, as a developer, I know what you mean by Android’s fragmentation problems. Getting apps to work consistently across Android platforms is a pain.
Neutral Reply
- Chris Davies Oct 25th, 2010
  
  On the flip side, the HP Slate 500 has a dual-mode touchscreen, and responds not only to finger-taps but to an active stylus. That means you can write into forms, take advantage of Windows’ (surprisingly accurate) handwriting recognition and use apps like OneNote that allow you to search handwritten notes without needing to convert them to text first.
  
  Is that something every tablet user will want, or use? No, of course not, but there’s nonetheless a market for it. I agree that battery life is still an issue for Wintel slates, but that’s not to say they don’t have advantages for different audiences.
  Neutral Reply
  - Adam Oct 25th, 2010
    
    That’s exactly why I have a tablet, and the only reason. I’m a software architect and having a tablet without a pen just doesn’t make sense with what I do. I need to do precise charts and sketches and write on the screen. I have a Windows 7 convertible tablet PC, and I simply couldn’t see a better way of working.
    
    I agree that it’s each to their own..
    +1 Reply
Bobbity Oct 24th, 2010

I’m waiting for the Archos 70. It’s just the right size for me, has (standard) USB ports with host functionality, decent specs and HDMI out, capacitive screen…

At $275 that’s not a bad deal at all.
+1 Reply
Dinidu Oct 24th, 2010

Although I’m not a apple fan, with a 7″ tablet it is pretty hard to browse and videos look small.You won’t be carrying a tablet and a phone with you; it is too bulky.iPad is definitely home use only, but on the other hand 7″ tablets offer portability but not the screen real estate.
+1 Reply
- Chris Davies Oct 25th, 2010
  
  I’d disagree with your browsing comment; I find browsing on a 3.7″ to 4.3″ smartphone pretty comfortable, so 7″ would be positively spacious in comparison. The issue is navigation and control – that’s down to the precision of multitouch gestures like pinch-zoom, and whether things like text-reflow work as well as they can.
  Neutral Reply
pneStarman Oct 24th, 2010

Tablets are best seen as an ADDITION to Traditional Keyboard/Mouse PCs. Windows7 Tablets are too bulky-expensive-power hungry and the iPad is also too expensive for casual use by most people. However, Android Tablets are already available from China on ebay for $99 for 7 inch models $199 for 10 inch models and a new 8 inch model that has 512mb of ram, a camera and Android 2.2 that will be able to be upgraded to 3.0 when it comes out. This is the kind of Tablet that will replace Textbooks, Magazines and Newspapers and be useful for Video, Flash Games, email and social network interaction.
+2 Reply
AppsforiPads Oct 24th, 2010

I think the whole brouhaha will come down to APPS. Apple’s iPad has over 30,000 iPad apps available to their users, and hundreds more are released each week! There is NO way that another tablet is going to come back from that kind of deficit. Its simple business logistics… they missed the boat. Unless they introduce a pad or tablet that runs rings around the iPad they simply came late to the party.
-6 Reply
- Chris Davies Oct 25th, 2010
  
  It’s certainly an easy way to gauge market penetration, but the issue with apps is that sheer number doesn’t necessarily indicate quality or range. If the App Store doesn’t have the one or two titles I particularly want, but the Android Market does, then I’ll opt for an Android-based tablet.
  
  What I don’t think any app store manages to do well yet is help people find the best apps for their needs. That’s, ironically, even more significant on iOS because of the quantity of titles out there.
  +2 Reply
micrapple Oct 24th, 2010

The market is certainly a bit confused on these tablet trend. Company has been looking at Android for quite some time now and no-one really step up on the plate after all this time and that only the super cheap and small company are making cr@py Android tablet. It’s a risk for big manufacturer but a risk that these big company must take in order to profit. Samsung is the first big company to ball out and take this risk. I think it will work out for Samsung but a price adjustment is a must for the Galaxy S in order for it to enter the consumer friendly market.
+1 Reply
zwinga Oct 24th, 2010

It’s really very simple. The Windows ecosystem is dying and the many millions of Windows developers are in denial. After all…they stand to lose their livelyhood.

The Apple ecosystem is victorious (at least for the next decade or whatever) and the Apple developers, like me, are laughing all the way to the bank, and making bit bucks.

Corporate IT, after so many years in a parasitic relationship with Microsoft, is being forced to change. Guys like me are going to take over and kick all the Microsofties out to the unemployment line.

THAT is why people refuse to consider the iPad.
-5 Reply
gman Oct 25th, 2010

Nice long winded article.

iPad is the tablet market. The others are so far behind, it’s beyond bad. They come out with 1st gen, then Apple will show us 2nd gen. I’m no apple fanboy that’s for sure, but I can call a spade a spade. The “others” are guessing that there is a tablet market beyond the iPad. It’s totally unproven. It’s guessing. It’s wishful thinking. Personally? I would cry if I got a tablet for Christmas. Not tears of joy. It’s a useless platform for my uses. Could I use an eReader? Sure. With that, I want battery, not a web surfing device.
-2 Reply
- Byron Oct 25th, 2010
  
  Yet Apple is advancing at a snail’s pace. If they do with the iPad what they’ve done with the iPhone (and by all indications they will), the iPad will be left in the dust in a year. The iPad 2 will be received with a big sigh of, “What, that’s it?”
  
  The iPhone has already been blown away by many Android 2.2 devices (both hardware and software). The only thing that keeps its sales high at this point is a bit of momentum, but that won’t last forever. There’s no reason to believe the iPad won’t get similarly blown away by Android tablets.
  
  Apple will continue to grow for about another year, but I wouldn’t hold onto any Apple stock much longer then that.
  +1 Reply
sola Oct 25th, 2010

Currently I have 3 contenders for my Christmas Tegra2 tablet:
- Notion Ink Adam (worst price, best specs)
- Advent Vega (best price, medium/low specs)
- Toshiba Folio (medium price, medium specs)

Vega should start selling in Novemeber 1 in Dixons (UK). Adam should start selling in November (US), Folio should be selling in November (EU).
Neutral Reply
AC Oct 25th, 2010

“What must be remembered is that Samsung doesn’t intend to echo Apple’s market approach: a single model with what will probably be a yearly refresh cycle.”

How can we remember something that may not be true? That is, how do you know that Apple’s market approach will be a single model (already there are two models: one with Wifi and one without)? Had you said the same thing about the iPod seven months after its release, you’d be equally wrong. Moreover, given that the product’s been out for just over six months how can we “remember” that Apple’s using a yearly refresh cycle? That’s not to say you won’t be right, but no one can remember something that hasn’t had the opportunity to happen yet.
Neutral Reply
- Chris Davies Oct 25th, 2010
  
  Very true, and I suppose I am basing my comments on assumptions rather than definitive intentions from Apple itself. Still, I think the yearly replacement cycle of the current iPod/iPhone ranges suggest Apple is most likely looking at a 12mo refresh on the iPad, and I would maintain that the WiFi-only/3G+WiFi variants are different SKUs of a single model.
  
  Samsung, in contrast, are looking to different sizes, etc, which would – again, in my opinion – be different models of tablet. Now, if Apple announce a 7-inch iPad in a few months time, I’m quite happy to be proved wrong (though Steve Jobs comments would seem to indicate that’s not their intention); however my “market approach” comment wasn’t limited to just the iPad but a general summary of the state of the company’s refresh cycle across their CE lines.
  Neutral Reply
KenZ Oct 25th, 2010

I like that there’s going to be competition here. I actually had a chance to use the iPad for some extended time this weekend. It works as advertized. However, it’s heavy and uncomfortable to hold. Unlike a netbook, you have to hold it up. The screen resolution is disappointing (although I expect the next gen to fix this). A 7 inch tablet with the same screen resolution would be better on both issues. Apple is saying they won’t, but luckily, the market will give me a choice!
Neutral Reply

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Tablets: A Prescription for Confusion

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