The Apple Tablet

Apple’s new tablet has garnered much of the buzz around their upcoming event on Wednesday. While tablet pc’s have been around for a little while, the consuming populace is anticipating a beautiful, functional, industry-changing product. While I have faith in Apple to provide a product with all these aspects, and while I trust Apple has done their market research, I don’t see where the market will be. At an expected starting price of $999, this is a niche item. This is an ancillary device, which limits it’s potential sales. Plus There is no way you’d buy one over a MacBook or other competing laptop or computer. A large part of their target market is Apple lovers. But these consumers likely already own an Apple computer (iMac, MacBook, MacBook Pro) and an Apple handheld (iPod, iPod Touch, iPhone). I can’t see people forking over the money for another product that doesn’t do a whole lot more than what they already have. That last sentence is a huge one. If Apple’s tablet has capabilities beyond MacBook’s and iPhone’s, it does have a chance to be a revolutionary product. Without it, I can’t see it being more successful that the MacBook Air.

I don’t see it as a big gaming advice. Developers may have the incentive to write games for it, but I can’t see consumers paying the normal $40+ for a game for the tablet. It’s not like the tablet is a big upgrade over a gaming system.

I think battery life is a big issue. The tablet will likely be appealing to watch movies on, but with Apple’s already shoddy record of poor battery life, I can’t see this one bucking the trend.

It’s not appealing to the e-reader market, mainly for the price reason. Also, many people don’t like reading words on a screen; that’s why many of the current e-readers have new technology that’s easier on the eyes.

For some people (I can see designers, architects, artists, etc), it will be an awesome device. Transportable, loads of applications, sync-able with existing Apple devices, large touch-sensitive screen.

Sales may be buoyed if it can somehow take hold in the academic community. But again, the price will drive away consumers.

In conclusion, if Apple surprises up with something like 6-hour battery life during maximum use, drastically reduced price tag ($600), or deals with game makers for reduced price video games, the tablet can succeed. Without a headline stealing improvement on rumors, it will not meet expectations.