Tech-Junkie Reader Feedback: Apple's Tablet
CUPERTINO, Calif. -
Apple
(AAPL) - Get Report
doesn't flub many products, so when we predicted the upcoming Tablet would be
, readers responded.
Lois J, like many readers, strongly disagreed with the notion that Apple's much conjectured-upon 10-inch touchscreen device would fail to catch on with consumers.
"The Apple netbook will do just great," wrote Lois J. "I have been waiting for just such a device and it will be great. It will not be a flop.
"You," she added, "are a flop."
Lois J. could be on to something there. Laurence is similarly confident, saying Apple turns everything it touches to gold.
"You are so wrong, are you serious?" asks Laurence. "If Apple actually goes into Netbooks, they will dominate the market and take the lead as they did with MP3 players (iPod), laptops, and cell phones."
Apple Shelves Tablet Until 2010
Others, including Ronald B., say it may be too early to pass judgment on the iTablet.
"How can you possibly criticize something you've never seen?" he asks. "In order to criticize it, you have to have an idea of its specs and of its form and function. You know nothing about this fictional product."
Similarly, Terry & Eileen R. wrote to say you can't know the unknown.
"How can you call something a flop that doesn't exist yet," asks Terry&Eileen R. "And if it does exist you have no idea what market it's designed for."
Good point -- and it highlights the very reason the Tablet's potential success or failure is such a tough call. To date, there's been little to no market for big tablets. The flop camp points to the nearly nonexistent demand for tablet notebooks from
Hewlett-Packard
(HPQ) - Get Report
and
Toshiba
as a sign that Apple is in treacherous waters.
"The reason tablet computers have not been successful is because they are heavy, thick, unattractive and expensive, not to mention the lack of touch software support," writes Dominic. These are "things that Apple excels at."
And clearly, Apple hopes the popularity of the iPod Touch, and to some degree
Amazon's
(AMZN) - Get Report
Kindle, signal that the mass market is ready for a sleek, pricy, book-sized device designed to play videos and handle messages.
Marvin P. writes that we are looking at the Tablet all wrong.
"I was just reading your article over the phone to a buddy who also found it quite funny," writes Marvin P. "You really don't get the whole Apple difference do you?
"You are attempting to analyze Apple through the general mediocrity of the industry they're part of, and this is just not the way to look at Apple," Marvin P wrote.
Steve Jobs'
intensive and exacting focus on the tablet project suggests to Apple observers that the product is getting the special touch.
And no doubt, Apple will deliver the finest tablet the world has ever seen. The question is whether people, other than Apple enthusiasts, will see the tablet as a good fit between their phones and their laptops.
Hayward T. says he'd be a buyer. "It would be totally useful for travel and for use in coffee shops instead of a laptop. I rarely use my laptop on trips anymore since the iPhone is perfect for email and the Internet," writes Hayward T.
That is valuable insight. The iTablet could be a fun niche device for coffee shops and airport waiting areas. The problem is that it would compete not just with laptops but with Apple's own iPhone and iPod Touch.
Steven S. says it's the right gizmo at the right time.
"About the size of a book with complete communication capabilities? I think you under estimate the potential market," Steven writes.
And finally, Dale writes to say that Apple's track record speaks quite loudly.
"I remember people poo-poohing the iPhone, record execs questioning iTunes and people arguing that the
Microsoft
(MSFT) - Get Report
Zune was going to kill the iPod," Dale writes. "I own Apple stock, I'm typing this on a Mac, and I have an iPhone, and an iPod, so maybe I'm not objective, but I wouldn't short these guys."
Written by Scott Moritz in New York.
