Will Tablet PC’s or Slates Catch On?

Written By: Frostedblue On: 20/03/2010Time(04:39:14)

It seems that technology is here to stay for the long haul anyway. As mobile phones become useable computing devices that we, the consumer, just cannot live without. As our cars now rely more on their ECU’s & electronics instead of their raw mechanics and engineering. As even our children now require laptops for schools replacing the good ol’ text book with the back pages all scribbled to death with who loves who & inane doodles of boredom.

Technology is a constantly evolving creature, thats never standing still and is always being pushed beyond its limits. One such technology that has recently (within the last couple of years anyway) reached its way into the mainstream is multi-touch. This multi-touch technology requires the use of one or more fingers one a glass screen, such as a computer or phone, and acts as a direct point and click device giving control similar to that of a computer mouse or track pad. This method is very direct and incredibly flexible, especially when more than one finger is introduced. Not only that, because most of the modern touch screens only require a light touch and not a stylus, it makes them brilliant to use for any age (2 year old nieces for example).

It has now come the time, once again, when a new class of gadget is about to be unleashed on the market that, if you believe the corporate hype, will change the course of computing forever. This device will be forever known as the Tablet or Slate PC. One of the first devices to hit the market is the Apple iPad. A device smaller than an A4 piece of paper with a multi touch glass screen, a slick UI and a powerful custom silicone chip all wrapped in gorgeous Aluminum (you can probably tell that i want one). This device will have an excellent battery life and will be very portable, weighing less than a book of similar size. It seems that Apple are not the only ones that are releasing devices like these, pretty much all of the major PC and consumer electronics companies are following suit, but what does this mean for the already overly saturated market PC?

These devices will all be able to browse the internet, retrieve emails, play games, play music, play movies, run applications and more. Basically perform all the functions of a PC or Mac. So, could i buy a Tablet or Slate instead of a PC or Mac? Realistically No! Take the Apple iPad for instance; to upload music, photos and other documents you would need to connect it to a PC or Mac running iTunes and allow it to sync / transfer files (Similar to the iPod Touch & iPhone devices). Dell will be offering similar Tablets running Googles Android platform, again will probably require some form of syncing with a main PC. Even the Tablets running Windows 7 , HP have demoed, will require some form interaction between device and PC (would you have all your important documents, personal photos and expensive iTunes collection on a device so small that it could be easily dropped or nicked?didn't think so...)

Will Tablets replace Laptops? Probably not! Considering that Laptops outsell Desktop PCs by quite a margin, the synchronization needs for these Tablet devices, as mentioned earlier, applies more to the people that own a Laptop than a Desktop PC. Why would you buy a new portable device if you already owned an existing portable device with far more processing power and capability.

This really only leaves Netbooks. Will Tablets replace Netbooks? Well, this is probably the hardest one to call. Yes!!! I hear your say, its obvious, these devices use similar hardware, use similar operating systems and can be used in similar ways! Hear me out while i explain my reasonings. The reason i think that this is a hard one to call is this: If the hardware companies decide to stop making Netbooks altogether and put their remaining resources into these new multi-touch screen devices, thus making them better, faster and more cost effective, then i believe Tablet popularity would thrive. Lets face it, using your finger directly on a screen is far better than using those pathetic square Netbook trackpads. If you’ve used an Apple iPhone then i’m sure you would agree. If Laptops, Netbooks, Tablets and Mobile Phones are left to compete with each other, i strongly feel Tablets might lose out. Tablets would be of similar specification to Netbooks, but with prices ranging from £450+ compared to the cost of a Netbook £250, would seem an expensive option. Only people that wanted a Tablet just to own a Tablet would really consider this as a serious purchase. Unfortunately most of us live in a budget conscious world these days and would probably buy a Laptop instead. Not only that, but products such as these, Tablets, Slates or iPads, would probably be classed as products that you would REALLY WANT as opposed to REALLY NEED.

Don't get me wrong though, i REALLY want Tablets to become a mainstream, everyday product (will probably be getting an Apple iPad myself eventually - hopefully!). I just hope the Consumer Electronics industry feel the same way. It may become a passing fad that could be looked back on in years to come and laughed at :(

Begone with cheap, puny imitation Laptops i say and stop further saturating an overly saturated market already. Start revolutionizing the way we do computing!!! To the future! AJ