I want my Tablet PC!
Three years ago I was attended a small seminar course that outfitted its attendees with Tablet PCs for the class. The models provided came from Motion Computing and were awesome! They were true 9 inch tablets with exterior wireless keyboards, Wi-Fi, docking stations and pen input. They were equipped with the best note taking and brainstorming program that I have ever seen, Microsoft OneNote. If I remember they were available at retail for about $1700 as outfitted like we were given.
They made us use the Tablets for the entire time frame of the class for every digital thing that we had to do. Partially, the goal was to make us use computers for every task, partially it was to introduce a new technology, and partially it was to make us think about where computing was going in the information age.
I loved that machine. I took to it like a fish does to water. I found myself feeling completely liberated from all the confines of a laptop. I was doodling on downloaded Acrobat documents, circling items on web pages, processing email with my fingers, and reading eBooks like they were made to be consumed. At the end of the two weeks they had to pry it out of my hands. I left saving my pennies to get one of my own and completely convinced that I had seen the future of personal computing.
I waited for the prices to fall.
I waited for the big vendors like Dell to move into the market space.
I waited for Apple to produce their tablet to make the aesthetic match the functionality.
As you probably concluded by now. I AM STILL WAITING!
I want to know what happened. Where did the tablet market go? We have seen the prices of laptops plummet by 65% since that week. Netbooks have driven the creation of small, low power x86 compatible CPUs. Amazon Kindles rule the commuter book segment. The Apple iPhone has perfected the capacitive touch screen and multi-touch interface. By my thinking, the world should be inundated with sub $500 tablets running OS X and MS Windows XP Tablet Edition right now and you should be able to replace the pens at any Office Depot. I expected everyone to have one. I thought that they would replace their desktops with docking stations. I thought that data would be inputted in offices via wireless keyboards.
Reality. There is only one OS X Tablet available..for $2000. You have to go to enterprise vendors to get a Tablet PC and they will cost you $1700 plus and only run the same OS that I used three years ago. The entire Tablet PC market froze the day after I used it, has not progressed an inch since then, and no one that I know even owns one today. You cannot even play with them at Best Buy stores.
I want to know why. I looked online. I asked my contemporaries. I have asked people online. I uncovered some theories that I am not satisfied with. So I ask you all. where did the Tablet PCs go? Why did they die? I still think fondly of them and would be motivated to purchase a modern, sleek, functional tablet tomorrow.
Do you think that they will make a comeback? Do you believe the rumors that Apple will replace one that is really a big iPhone soon? What are your theories for where they went?
That is my Information Technology Thought of the Day (ITTOD) for June 18, 2009 ©Scott Coughlin .
Photo credit: Wikipedia
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Its interesting how netbooks are the latest rage and still no great tablet PC’s. I really don’t think its a tech issue, especially with the newest touchscreen capabilities of the iPhone and Pre.