Last Minute Tablet Thoughts
Jan/1011
Steve Jobs at home, 1982
My Apple pre-product-release excitement is at an all time high. Three nights ago I actually dreamt of playing with the as-yet-aetheric Apple Tablet. Can the product launch event possibly live up to my uber-high expectations? We’ll find out in just over 24 hours.
Until then, here’s my final batch of thoughts on the Tablet.
1) Naming
Several Apple products will be refined and/or renamed at the event, namely: iMac, iTunes, and the tablet.
- Currently, all OSX+Mouse products begin with the word “Mac” (mac pro, macbook, mac mini), except for iMac. All OSX+Touch products begin with the prefix “i” (iPhone, iPod, iPod touch), but so does the iMac, which is not touch-enabled. This inconsistency is very un-Apple-like, and should be resolved somehow.
- The last time Apple updated its MacBooks, it switched them from plastic to aluminum. This struck me as odd, because previously, aluminum had been reserved for Pro products. Ever since it was called the iBook, the consumer laptop was plastic. Now I’m wondering if laptops will all be repositioned as Pro products. That is, MacBook will be the pro line, where iBook will be the consumer line. Part of Apple’s positioning of the Tablet may include it being a “computer for casual users”. The iMac is a MacPro without the tower. The iBook is a MacBook without the keyboard. Recall that the “i” used to stand for “internet”, which is exactly what this tablet is optimized for. As you can see, this somewhat resolves the iMac naming issue mentioned above, and provides a name for the tablet.
- iTunes is no longer primarily about Tunes, and adding eBooks to the mix will only further confuse things. They might separate the music player from the store. The player would continue to be iTunes, while the store & syncing app could be called iMedia, iGuide, or Apple Media Store.
2) Publishing
- The tablet will herald the mass exodus of “news content” from the web into the Appiverse. The new model is essentially a pay-per-feed model. New York Times & Wall Street Journal will be among the first to adopt it. Check out this MacWorld article for a more in-depth look at this theory. As the article says, “As long as free thrives, the press can’t do its job correctly. . . . it’s bad for society.” (For what it’s worth, I’m glad this is happening now that I’m no longer a starving student)
- May also allow anyone to sell their own books online. Students, scholars, and people who write in their spare time all have something valuable to contribute, but no relationship with an existing publisher. Apple is already a software publisher (AppStore). Now they’re going to become an eBook publisher, and possibly a physical book publisher similar to Lulu.com (see Software below for details on how)
3) Software
- The tablet will run a variant of iPhone OS (touch), not OSX+Mouse, primarily because that gives Apple a cut of every app or subscription sold, whereas Apple sees exactly 0% of OSX app sales.
- Unlike with the iPhone & iPod Touch, the Tablet will not require you to own another computer that runs iTunes. It will run full-blown iTunes natively. As “TheDude” said: Here’s the scenario at Best Buy: “OK, you’re saying that if I dont own a computer,..and I want to buy this tablet device thingy,…I need to buy another computer to ‘manage it’ ??”.
- Free MobileMe accounts provide “account portability”. Necessary to support using anyone’s tablet as if it were your own. Super-handy for home, classroom, & hospital use.
- Books will require a new way to organize “apps”. The current model of “1 icon per book or issue” is not scalable. Maybe each Magazine will have its own app, with its own directory of issues? It won’t be folder-based, because part of the elegance of iPhone OS is in how it hides the file system. Maybe there will be a new Library/ZineRack app?
- A new iLibrary program will help you organize AND create printed books. It’s iPhoto for written content, and will be optimized for a combination of text & photos, not just photos. Could integrate with Pages.
- Reading will become social. Genius for books, recommendations to friends, etc.
- If you want or need to run full OSX apps, you’ll be able to use the new BackToMyMac Remote Desktop App, and run them on your MacPro/MacBook via the Tablet. That way they’ll run perfectly (using your MacPro’s RAM & CPU & HDD) and not kill your Tablet’s battery. Very handy for using Photoshop with the tablet’s superb stylus-compatible screen. It’s possible that there’s a magic feature that lets you run remote apps as if they were local, but I dreamt that up (see my 2 previous blog posts: My Apple Tablet Predictions, and Apple Tablet Event Invitation Insights).
4) Hardware
- I’m willing to bet there will be ZERO dock connectors, not 1 or 2. Because the tablet will be some people’s only computer, it won’t need to dock with anything. It’ll run full iTunes natively. If it does need to sync with something, it’ll do so over Wi-Fi (similar to the way the Remote App works with the Airport Express). This also means it can stream music directly to an Airport Express.
- Because it will serve as some people’s primary computer, and because it won’t have ethernet, I’m willing to bet it will have 802.11N, not just b/g.
- Facial recognition via the front-facing webcam. Your face will automatically log you into your MobileMe account / Tablet profile. This is especially important when the Tablet will be used by multiple people (in homes, in classrooms, in hospitals). This is another reason your profile needs to be in a cloud, not on the device. 90 students could share 30 devices, but it’s impossible if you always need to find “the device you had yesterday”, when they all look the same. This technique could easily be used on any Mac that has a webcam.
- The position of the webcam will define the top of the device; what is considered “up”. The Apple logo will be located below it, on the reverse side.
- If it has an aluminum casing/back, it can’t have a multi-touch back. I think pages will be turned by multi-touch on the back, because this will allow you to flip pages without changing the position of your hands. For this reason, I believe the Tablet will have a plastic case, similar to the iPhone’s.
5) Extras
- The Tablet will either come with a travel case, OR a very nice one will be available at launch. Plus, it’ll easily fit in any existing laptop bag/sleeve/manilla envelope.
- I like the idea of the Tablet having an integrated kickstand, but that would introduce moving parts that could break, increasing warranty use, so it’s unlikely.
- Keyboard support, though desired by many, is unlikely simply because Apple wants people to get used to 100% touch interfaces. A dock is unlikely for the very same reason.
- Would love to see them release Airport Express A/V, and it may happen.
- Would love to see them release a Wi-Fi enabled X10 home automation gadget/app, but it won’t happen.
6) iPhone OS (3.2 or 4.0)
- new system preference to always let certain (or all) apps know your location
- Maps adds driving directions with VoiceOver support both for input & audio guidance
- Maps switches to Apple’s own mapping solution (they acquired PlaceBase last year), and stop using Google Maps (which now has built-in ads that Apple abhors)
- Multi-tasking arrives. I see it going one of two ways, or a combination of both:
a) my friend “Interesting Monkey” suggested that Apple will provide the ability to tap into background processes that Apple already uses (e.g. ipod can continue to play music, nike plus can keep timing you, etc). This could result in Skype releasing an app that can ring your phone like a real call. Could also allow apps like Loops/Latitude to tap into your location at any time.
b) I think Apple might use something like Expose, but limit the # of apps you’re allowed to run at once. Tap a button or corner of the screen, and see all the apps currently running, the same way you can see iPhone Safari’s “browser pages”… a metaphor which many understand intuitively. Come to think of it, this is also like desktop Safari’s page thumbnails feature.
7) Pricing
- Amazon gives away free a 3G cellular data connection with every Kindle. Did you ever wonder how? The publisher pays for the bandwidth required for you to download their book, no matter where you are. It’s possible that Apple could (somehow) subsidize each Tablet in a similar way. A tablet that includes 24 months worth of WIRED, The NewYorkTimes & WallStreetJournal could be provided for as little as $200 up front, plus $20/mth via the AppStore. Or perhaps “Agree to spend over $200 on books published by McGraw Hill in the next 12 months, and get $100 off”. This is kind of like Google’s revenue model. More people using the net = more revenue for Google. By the same token, more people reading on the iTablet = more revenue for publishers.
- Alternately, Apple could self-subsidize the tablet based on its vast knowledge about AppStore purchasing habits. Apple knows the average user spends $4.37/mth, they can calculate what amount of subsidy is feasible. Magazine subscriptions will definitely help increase the average monthly spend. So maybe they can afford to sell these tablets at a loss, just to drive App Store use. They do have enough cash on hand nowadays to pull this off. (according to Gigaom, Apple is currently making $76 million per month from the AppStore, before expenses)
- Because the AppStore and its apps are so easy to use, the Tablet will appeal to many people who don’t currently use computers (the same way the Kindle does). Apple would be wise to attract these people with low prices, only to make it back through the AppStore within a short time.
- In other words, I expect it to cost *much* less than $1000 USD. It will be available, somehow, for $499 or less.
Usability
- Slate says the Tablet will not be aimed at geeks, nerds & technology people. They say it’s the first “computer for the rest of us”, designed for people who have no interest whatsoever in learning how to use a computer. It’s for people who don’t want to configure, customize, or tweak. It has no directories, no mice, and no keyboards. It will never make you feel dumb. You control it with your fingers, and your voice. Using it is fun. It “just works”. The future isn’t “mobile computing”, it’s “casual computing”. For many people, the Apple Tablet will be their only computer.
- Think I’m kidding about how easy it is to use? Watch this 1 year old use his Dad’s iPhone! The Tablet will be very similar, but a bit bigger.
9) One More Thing…
- It just occurred to me – what if Apple calls the tablet, simply, a “Mac”. It could put ALL of its existing brand-power behind the Tablet. Makes sense if the tablet is truly meant to be a “computer for the people”. This IS the consumer Mac (not the MacPro). It would be glorious to have everyone start referring to their computer as a Mac instead of a PC. This has the makings of a revolution.
Ok, now for my Prediction Scorecard: (make your own here)
- Tablet Announced: Y
- Priced $800-1000: N (some saying lower & i say subsidized)
- Sized 10-11 inch: Y
- Has Cell Connect: Y (pro model only)
- Tablet SDK: Y
- AppStore Only: Y
- Runs iPhone Apps: Y
- Cocoa Touch API: Y
- New OS: Y (iphone os with some custom tweaks for the tablet)
- Book/Paper/ZIne: Y
- Plays Video: Y
- Plays Music: Y
- Has TV content: Y
- Has Camera: Y
- Has Docking: N (no, unless via Wi-Fi)
- Tactile Keybord: N (it’s just asking too much)
- Hardware Keybord: N (pushing multi-touch)
- Indie Content: Y (huuge – iLibrary does books like iPhoto does)
- Flash support: N
- Has Textbooks: Y
- Ships March 2010: Y
- Name Appl Tablet: N
- Name iTablet: N
- Name iSlate: N
- Name iGuide: N
- Name iBook: N
- Name iPad: N
- Name Canvas: Y (most aligned with ‘creation’ on invite)
- AT&T Excl Ends: Y
- Paint App: Y
- Bing Search: Y
- Verizon Deal: Y (map for that was bad PR)
- T-Mobile deal: N
- iTunes Web App: Y (part of the mobileme cloud)
- Macs do touch: N (not by display anyway, maybe by kbd/pad thing)
- new iLife/iWork: Y (optimized for tablet)
- Next iPhone OS: Y (could be 3.2, not 4)
Aspects of the New York Times’ Apple Tablet Bingo that I agree with:
- There is a tablet
- Screen size is: 10″
- It will not fold like a Tablet PC
- You can interact via stylus (but it doesn’t come with one)
- The price is $699 unsubsidized (but can be lowered with subsidies)
- It will not be fully flexible
- It is colour, not greyscale
- It has a low-power display mode
- The wireless carrier is: Wi-Fi plus Verizon or AT&T
- Memory: 64 gig SSD (or less, but includes free cloud-based storage / music sideloading)
- It will run a modified iPhone OS (3.2 or 4.0)
- It will have an on-screen keyboard
- It will be a full PC, but will also redefine what it means to be a PC
Remember to come back Thursday to see how I did!
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Apple Tablet Event Invitation Insights
Jan/104
Apple Tablet Invite
Apple has now sent out its official invitations to the January 27th event.
Facts:
- The invites are spray-paint themed.
- The caption reads “come see our latest creation”.
- The event is scheduled to be 2 hours long.
Insights:
- “Our latest creation” seems to focus on a single product.
- Steve Jobs can cover a LOT of ground in 2 hours, so expect something huge – a whole new Operating System or interaction paradigm.
- The colour goes “outside the lines” of the border, like “thinking outside the box”. Makes me think new paradigm.
- The colours of paint are the same as the iPod Nano. Will the tablet be available in these same colours? This would appeal to artsy people, and those who wish the Kindle were a bit more stylish.
- Spray paint at all suggests art / creativity, as does the word “creation” on the invite.
- Spray paint could indicate the presence of a stylus (i.e. not finger painting)
- Drips of paint could indicate that the tablet can be used in a vertical or tilted orientation, like a canvas
- Drips of paint could indicate a kind of gravity/physics/liquid model, like paint dripping on a canvas sitting on a tilted easel
- Use of paint could indicate a new drawing/painting app.
Apple has long catered to “creative people”, but has so far ignored that particular demographic. I think they avoided it because to get it right, you need to be able to work directly ON the canvas, not on something that represents the canvas (i.e. mousepad/trackpad). This would be “pen-on-screen” technology, similar to what’s used in the Wacom Cintiq. The Apple Tablet will be Cintiq for Everyone, plus a web tablet, plus document editor, plus eBook. As I mentioned in my other tablet predictions post, I think use of a stylus will be optional, but particularly useful for art and annotation. - The paint app could debut as part of a new version of iLife, or as a free (killer) app that comes with every Tablet
- This device/app will be to artists as Final Cut Pro is to video editors
- The new device could be called, the “Apple Canvas”, or “Apple Tableau” (french for Dramatic Scene – bonus for being hoity toity, plus people will call’em Ta-blows if they suck). It’s now obvious that my “MacBook” re-branding idea was totally wrong, since Apple is clearly focusing on Art, with eBook reading as a bonus, not eBooks with Art as a bonus.
In other words, I think this Tablet is going to be just as important to Apple as the iPhone has been. It is going to take them into new markets, and it will be the best (or only) device in the category.
I’ll be watching Leo Laporte’s live coverage over at http://live.twit.tv, and I bet he maxes out his bandwidth pretty quickly.
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7:51 pm on January 18th, 2010I think I’m with you on most of that analysis. It takes a lot of demo to fill two hours. I think the UI for the OS will be largely new. There is just a lot of complexity on a large screen that doesn’t really exist on a small screen that they need to discuss. For example, can you run two apps side by side? Can you layer them? Do we have control of window sizes? How can we quit apps versus switch apps (the difference is barely noticeable on the iPhone)? How do apps communicate between each other? Can you drag between? I think a new paradigm is necessary to deal with this.
-on going outside the lines: I hadn’t thought about that. It’s a simple metaphor, but that might have been what they had in mind. I would agree that there could very well be some kind of paint app like the old MacPaint which ships free.
I’m still not convinced it will be pen based though. Surely it will be possible to buy an extra stylus from somebody. But I just don’t know if they’ll encourage it. They always think prescriptively instead of what people “want”, which I love. Turns out people will start using things stupidly if you give them a choice.
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10:07 am on January 19th, 2010In a way I am getting tired of all the predictions. The hype is so high that my gut is telling me it’s going to disappoint a lot of people. We’ll see. Only 1 week till we know what it is.
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12:15 pm on January 19th, 2010You dont happen to know what time Leos live.twit broadcast is going to be in you time do you. If Im awake Id like to hear that…..
I hope the Tablet is really really light. Enjoying your posts on this:)) -
12:59 pm on January 19th, 2010I think the event is at 10am PST (1pm EST, 6pm GMT?), and Leo will begin broadcasting from 9am PST (12pm EST, 5pm GMT?)
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7:51 pm on January 18th, 2010I think I’m with you on most of that analysis. It takes a lot of demo to fill two hours. I think the UI for the OS will be largely new. There is just a lot of complexity on a large screen that doesn’t really exist on a small screen that they need to discuss. For example, can you run two apps side by side? Can you layer them? Do we have control of window sizes? How can we quit apps versus switch apps (the difference is barely noticeable on the iPhone)? How do apps communicate between each other? Can you drag between? I think a new paradigm is necessary to deal with this.
-on going outside the lines: I hadn’t thought about that. It’s a simple metaphor, but that might have been what they had in mind. I would agree that there could very well be some kind of paint app like the old MacPaint which ships free.
I’m still not convinced it will be pen based though. Surely it will be possible to buy an extra stylus from somebody. But I just don’t know if they’ll encourage it. They always think prescriptively instead of what people “want”, which I love. Turns out people will start using things stupidly if you give them a choice.
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10:07 am on January 19th, 2010In a way I am getting tired of all the predictions. The hype is so high that my gut is telling me it’s going to disappoint a lot of people. We’ll see. Only 1 week till we know what it is.
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12:15 pm on January 19th, 2010You dont happen to know what time Leos live.twit broadcast is going to be in you time do you. If Im awake Id like to hear that…..
I hope the Tablet is really really light. Enjoying your posts on this:)) -
12:59 pm on January 19th, 2010I think the event is at 10am PST (1pm EST, 6pm GMT?), and Leo will begin broadcasting from 9am PST (12pm EST, 5pm GMT?)
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My Apple Tablet Predictions
Jan/106
Apple Tablet Mockup from Gawker.com
- The Tablet could assume the name MacBook. Re-brand existing laptops. This avoids consumer confusion from having a product called “MacBook” that is not book-related, and having another product that is book related, but does not have “book” in the product name.
- Coverflow will be everywhere. It’s very finger-friendly
- Either a hybrid LCD/eInk display OR 24 hrs of eBook reading ability. eInk is cool because of its battery life & great contrast/sharpness. If Apple can achieve this without using an eInk screen, they will (e.g. Pixel Qi’s dual mode screen)
- Higher-than-standard screen DPI to help reduce eye strain from reading
- Front facing camera & decent speakers, because for teens all media is social
- New iTunes format for eBooks (like LPs), uses iTunes DRM (5 machines)
- As with most other Apple products, it will come in 2 models: Consumer & Pro
– Consumer: Wi-Fi (b/g/n)
– Pro: Wi-Fi & 3G/GSM world (so they don’t need localized models/carriers)
– Both include a sleek stylus for pen-based input
– Extra: $100 for a docking station
- Pen-based input:
– used by consumers when annotating eBooks
– used by knowledge workers for marking up documents
– used by artists in Photoshop etc
- Ability to use the Tablet as a multi-touch & pen input device for any existing mac
– uses a much updated version of The Newton’s handwriting input mechanism, which Apple already owns patents for
- Ability to run apps on your existing mac as if they were running on the tablet
Example: If you have Photoshop & iTunes on your main Mac, in iTunes you’ll be able to drag their icons onto your tablet. Those icons will be added to your tablet, and automatically connected back to your mac, over the network.
When you launch Photoshop on the tablet, it will look & feel like it’s running locally, but it’ll really just be displaying the interface locally. All processing will be done back on your (powerful) Mac. Running iTunes would work the same way. The advantage is that you could access your entire music library from anywhere, and it wouldn’t require the Tablet to have a fast CPU, lots of RAM, or lots of storage space.
– If this feature doesn’t happen, expect to be able to host your music collection in the cloud (thanks to their acquisition of Lala.com), or to be able to connect to it somehow, from anywhere.
- Custom OS based on iPhone OS (optimized for tablet form factor)
- Much faster CPU than the iPhone. Closer to MacMini.
- Newer graphics chip than the iPhone
- 512MB RAM (versus iPhone’s 256)
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1:50 pm on January 13th, 2010I hope your predictions are right Madam Zara.Cant wait for 26th.
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2:26 pm on January 13th, 2010Definitely some of those I haven’t heard before.. Here are my thoughts:
-name Macbook -> Very unlikely. Macs are for mouse and keyboard. The name will die with that. iPod’s and iPhones are a far bigger deal than mac’s. Mac’s are last century. The iPhone was a total rethink of the experience, abstracting away most of a regular computer. The tablet will continue with that with a new name.
-coverflow. It works well for some stuff. I’m guessing it’ll be there.
-display – I think the battery life won’t be that high at all. They will be satisfied with charging once a day, with a 7-9 hour battery life, and no e-ink. Maybe if the engineering is there for e-ink, but I haven’t heard anything that allows a computer to be a computer and even partially use e-ink. The touchscreen on that Plastic Logic device is completely unusable for anything. And there is no way they’ll use two displays. Too costly to make and complex to use.
DPI – at least 720p, not sure how much more. Definitely higher than a laptop. I’ll go with at least as high as the dpi as the iPhone. Not sure how many pixels that’ll be. A lot more.
camera – I’ll go with a yes. It could be in the higher end model?
iTunes for books – Hope so. Sounds good. I think it would help.
2 models, definitely agreed. And most people will want the more expensive one as is always the case:)
wifi and 3G – probably
stylus – The input mechanism is the giant unknown right now. I won’t make predictions on this one:)
docking station – I’d be very surprised. It should be truly portable.
annotating ebooks – this is killer functionality. I’d love it.
ability to control mac apps. My first instinct was “no way”, and that it is too complicated because the mac has too much baggage. But now that I think about the remote app on the iPhone, that’s pretty much how it works. I sure hope that you won’t have to sync with a cord to a computer to listen to music. This device should be stand-alone. No PC necessary. I hope.
custom OS – definitely
faster CPU – for sure.
graphics chip – sounds good
RAM – yes.I like these predictions altogether.
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8:16 pm on January 13th, 2010Interesting.
Just my 2 cents:
It will a strong Media computer. Basic an iPod Touch PLUS. A plus because of the bigger screen but I also believe it will serve as an eReader for not only books but also magazines which can be bought through iTunes.
It will be able run iPod Touch apps. Question will be if it will be able to run Mac apps.
Interface will be very interesting. Have a hard time believe there will be stylus. It just doesn’t seem something that Apple would do. But the interface will be interesting. All I hope that it is not going to be a huge iPhone.
Obviously Wifi but I am not convinced that 3G is also a part. The question is how a consumer is going to pay for that. Maybe tethering through the iPhone will be possible.
All in all I am very curious about the device but I can’t imagine buying it.
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9:11 pm on January 13th, 2010I should have specified that IF it has a stylus, I think it will be 100% optional. It could be used to annotate books, documents, and do art… but if you don’t want to do those things, you don’t need the stylus. Fingers will do fine. You could even annotate using the virtual keyboard / finger painting if you wanted.
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12:35 pm on January 15th, 2010Forgot to mention, because I think the Tablet will be shared by members of the family (unlike the iPhone/iTouch), the Tablet will support multiple user accounts, like OSX (unlike iPhone OS).
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1:50 pm on January 13th, 2010I hope your predictions are right Madam Zara.Cant wait for 26th.
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2:26 pm on January 13th, 2010Definitely some of those I haven’t heard before.. Here are my thoughts:
-name Macbook -> Very unlikely. Macs are for mouse and keyboard. The name will die with that. iPod’s and iPhones are a far bigger deal than mac’s. Mac’s are last century. The iPhone was a total rethink of the experience, abstracting away most of a regular computer. The tablet will continue with that with a new name.
-coverflow. It works well for some stuff. I’m guessing it’ll be there.
-display – I think the battery life won’t be that high at all. They will be satisfied with charging once a day, with a 7-9 hour battery life, and no e-ink. Maybe if the engineering is there for e-ink, but I haven’t heard anything that allows a computer to be a computer and even partially use e-ink. The touchscreen on that Plastic Logic device is completely unusable for anything. And there is no way they’ll use two displays. Too costly to make and complex to use.
DPI – at least 720p, not sure how much more. Definitely higher than a laptop. I’ll go with at least as high as the dpi as the iPhone. Not sure how many pixels that’ll be. A lot more.
camera – I’ll go with a yes. It could be in the higher end model?
iTunes for books – Hope so. Sounds good. I think it would help.
2 models, definitely agreed. And most people will want the more expensive one as is always the case:)
wifi and 3G – probably
stylus – The input mechanism is the giant unknown right now. I won’t make predictions on this one:)
docking station – I’d be very surprised. It should be truly portable.
annotating ebooks – this is killer functionality. I’d love it.
ability to control mac apps. My first instinct was “no way”, and that it is too complicated because the mac has too much baggage. But now that I think about the remote app on the iPhone, that’s pretty much how it works. I sure hope that you won’t have to sync with a cord to a computer to listen to music. This device should be stand-alone. No PC necessary. I hope.
custom OS – definitely
faster CPU – for sure.
graphics chip – sounds good
RAM – yes.I like these predictions altogether.
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8:16 pm on January 13th, 2010Interesting.
Just my 2 cents:
It will a strong Media computer. Basic an iPod Touch PLUS. A plus because of the bigger screen but I also believe it will serve as an eReader for not only books but also magazines which can be bought through iTunes.
It will be able run iPod Touch apps. Question will be if it will be able to run Mac apps.
Interface will be very interesting. Have a hard time believe there will be stylus. It just doesn’t seem something that Apple would do. But the interface will be interesting. All I hope that it is not going to be a huge iPhone.
Obviously Wifi but I am not convinced that 3G is also a part. The question is how a consumer is going to pay for that. Maybe tethering through the iPhone will be possible.
All in all I am very curious about the device but I can’t imagine buying it.
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9:11 pm on January 13th, 2010I should have specified that IF it has a stylus, I think it will be 100% optional. It could be used to annotate books, documents, and do art… but if you don’t want to do those things, you don’t need the stylus. Fingers will do fine. You could even annotate using the virtual keyboard / finger painting if you wanted.
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12:35 pm on January 15th, 2010Forgot to mention, because I think the Tablet will be shared by members of the family (unlike the iPhone/iTouch), the Tablet will support multiple user accounts, like OSX (unlike iPhone OS).
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Life Plan
Dec/094
I was reading Spencer Fry’s blog the other day, and he was talking about his new 50 year life plan. He created one because he believes thinking about the big picture because gives him a horizon to drive towards, regardless of whether he’ll achieve everything or not. I thought that was a pretty good idea, and decided that I’d try to write one, too.
You can’t achieve your goals until you define your goals, so here I am, putting them down “on paper”, ready to be put into action on the first day of 2010. If ever I feel that I’ve lost perspective, I’ll refer back to this.
My list is different from Spencer Fry’s in a few key ways, though.
His plan is serial. He plans our year by year what he wants to get done.
It’s a great theory if you know exactly what you want to do, and if you love doing 1 thing at a time.
That’s not me, though. I love to be doing lots of things regularly, so my plan will be more parallel.
I will have 3 streams of focus, and each stream will have its own set of projects or goals. I’ll be free to adjust my projects & goals along the way, as life happens and things change. What I don’t see changing are my main areas of focus — the streams themselves.
My 3 Streams are:
- Body (health, fitness, fun)
- Mind (learning, problem solving, working)
- Spirit (love, family, giving, oneness)
Body Goals
- Eat well (whole foods, mostly plants, not too much)
- Exercise regularly
- Reduce or eliminate caffeine intake (if I need to stay awake, go for pure sugar instead)
Mind Goals
- Continue to advance in my trade (web development & entrepreneurism)
- Create my own revenue generating websites and become self-sustaining
- Become competent in electronics & magnetism
Spirit Goals
- Develop my ability to concentrate, imagine, & visualize (necessary for lucid dreaming, gnosis, etc)
- Raise a family in our home & yet-to-be-acquired cottage. Build as much as possible with my own 2 hands. Travel with family as much a possible.
- Develop my community, both in my neighbourhood, and with like-minded people in the city, by seeking out existing groups and creating new ones. Examples: Habitat for Humanity, St John’s Ambulance, Community Choir, CSETI Contact Teams, Paranormal Researchers
How will I work on all of this?
Well, I’m sure the process will evolve quite a bit over time (especially when a kid/kids are added to the mix), but here’s my initial stab at it:
Weekday Routine (work & personal project focus)
6:30-07am – spirit – meditation to plan the day
07am-08am – spirit (reading for fun) OR body (workout)
08am-12pm – mind – work
12pm-01pm – body – healthy lunch sitting at the dining table
01pm-04pm – mind – work
04pm-05pm – body (workout) OR spirit (reading for fun)
05pm-06pm – body – healthy dinner sitting at the dining table
06pm-07pm – mind/spirit – electronics/magnetism
07pm-08pm – mind/spirit – electronics/magnetism
08pm-09pm – mind/spirit – personal web dev project
09pm-10pm – mind/spirit – personal web dev project
10pm-11pm – body/mind – watch TV or play video game to wind down
11-11:30pm – spirit – meditation to end the day (plan dreams/probs to solve, express gratitude)
Saturday Routine (family focus)
6:30-07am – spirit – meditation to plan the day
07am-08am – spirit (reading for fun) OR body (workout)
08am-12pm – spirit – chores/renovations
12pm-01pm – body – healthy lunch sitting at the dining table
01pm-04pm – spirit – chores/renovations
04pm-05pm – body (workout) OR spirit (reading for fun)
05pm-06pm – body – healthy dinner sitting at the dining table
06pm-11pm – spirit – family time
11-11:30pm – spirit – meditation to end the day (plan dreams/probs to solve, express gratitude)
Sunday Routine (community focus)
6:30-07am – spirit – meditation to plan the day
07am-08am – spirit (spiritual reading for fun) OR body (workout)
08am-11am – spirit – volunteer/community involvement
11am-12pm – spirit – church/zen/temple/community event
12pm-01pm – body – healthy lunch sitting at the dining table
01pm-04pm – spirit – volunteer/community involvement
04pm-05pm – body (workout) OR spirit (spiritual reading for fun)
05pm-06pm – body – healthy dinner sitting at the dining table
06pm-11pm – spirit – family time
11-11:30pm – spirit – meditation to end the day (plan dreams/probs to solve, express gratitude)
Because I’m not specifying years, I am free to adjust plans accordingly. I don’t think it’s important that I plan specific goals so much as it is important that I set aside the time for everything I want to be able to do. If I can stick to the plan most of the time, I should be able to accomplish a great deal.
Oddly, when I finished writing this, I went into a directory of images to find one for this post, and I stumbled upon a photo that was taken 10 years ago tonight! We had just finished making a “couch cushion fort” at Amy’s house, to hide in, because it was about to switch from 1999 to 2000, and everyone was mildly worried about the Y2K bug. Shortly after this photo was taken, we decided it would be better to be outside at midnight, so we went out into the corn field to hunt for sharks. Long story.
To infinity, and beyond.
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1:52 am on January 1st, 2010There goes the value of my shares in Canadian Jello Doughnuts with sprinkles on:)
Seems a good healthy mix . GO FOR IT…
06.51 01.01.2010.
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11:07 am on January 1st, 2010I think my *new* new year’s resolution is to become as proactive as Derek.
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2:06 pm on January 2nd, 2010Hey Derek–this is a great and inspirational list! I’ve been working on something similar the last little while. Seeing this has helped me focus my own list more. Thanks!
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10:10 pm on January 2nd, 2010i made a plan about 8 years ago, at that time it was about how i would take care of nurturing myself. then about 5 years ago i set some specific goals. i gave the paper to a frend and 2 years ago after forgetting all about it, we re-opened it. amazing is all i can say. for the most part i have stayed on the path i wanted to be on, even though i had forgotten about it. i guess if you have it in your mind, you work in that direction even when you are not aware of it. i am still moving forward, and a friend of mine said, if you move forward and fall flat on your face, you are still moving in the right direction. on that note i would like to say Happy New Year to the world, keep on moving forward, we will all end up in the same place. see you there ! lol
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1:52 am on January 1st, 2010There goes the value of my shares in Canadian Jello Doughnuts with sprinkles on:)
Seems a good healthy mix . GO FOR IT…
06.51 01.01.2010.
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11:07 am on January 1st, 2010I think my *new* new year’s resolution is to become as proactive as Derek.
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2:06 pm on January 2nd, 2010Hey Derek–this is a great and inspirational list! I’ve been working on something similar the last little while. Seeing this has helped me focus my own list more. Thanks!
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10:10 pm on January 2nd, 2010i made a plan about 8 years ago, at that time it was about how i would take care of nurturing myself. then about 5 years ago i set some specific goals. i gave the paper to a frend and 2 years ago after forgetting all about it, we re-opened it. amazing is all i can say. for the most part i have stayed on the path i wanted to be on, even though i had forgotten about it. i guess if you have it in your mind, you work in that direction even when you are not aware of it. i am still moving forward, and a friend of mine said, if you move forward and fall flat on your face, you are still moving in the right direction. on that note i would like to say Happy New Year to the world, keep on moving forward, we will all end up in the same place. see you there ! lol
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Amazon Kindle vs Apple Tablet
Dec/099
Apple Tablet?
People are worried that Apple’s Tablet will be lacking digital content because Amazon has the rights to so much of it, but I think that’s misguided.
The Kindle device isn’t a profit centre for Amazon — it exists solely to push digital content, which is where Amazon hopes to turn a profit. Before the Kindle, eReaders were horrible. It pushed the boundaries, and showed that eReaders were viable.
Amazon doesn’t care about being the #1 eReader device. They care about selling lots of digital content.
That is why Amazon will gladly allow Apple’s Tablet to access & sell its digital content. Because these sales & downloads won’t use Apple’s infrastructure, they’ll be happy to make a typical Associate’s commission on each sale.
Apple’s device will have access to ALL Kindle content on launch day (through the iTunes AppStore, which will be re-branded MediaStore or iMedia).
Of course, Apple will still make a larger (30%?) chunk of change on any exclusive content they sell (digital magazines, newspapers, etc).
That’s what I think, anyway.
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9:45 am on December 29th, 2009Makes sense. Apple is about making money on the device and Amazon is about selling content. Would you buy a Apple tablet? Right now I don’t see the need for me to have one.
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12:05 pm on December 29th, 2009I’d get one in a second. Would be nice for web browsing from the couch, or watching videos in bed. Also, handy for Ula to surf from the living room while I’m working. You see, she has many week days off and works many weekends, so there are LOTS of times when I’m trying to work, and she has the day off, so she’s on her computer watching Big Brother or Survivor or something. Can be pretty distracting, depending on how treacherous the episode is
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2:17 am on December 30th, 2009Wow, how did I miss that info on Apple Tablet.Could suit my needs more than an iPhone as I dont make many mobile phone calls anyhow.Much bigger screen and looks very light. Have put iPhone on hold (they will hang onto my money but thats OK for now) and wait to see whats cooking with this Tablet as even my mate at the Apple Store is very short of info but agrees I would be a fool not to wait. I dont want an iMac, an iPhone and a Tablet. Noone seems very sure about surfing capabilities yet.
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10:44 am on December 30th, 2009Your mate @ the Apple Store is a fool to advise you to wait. iPhone and whatever the rumored device will be serve two different purposes. You want a portable MP3 player, cell phone, semi-powerful computing device in a small form factor? You go with an iPhone. You want a larger screen, bigger footprint device to browse from your couch? Get that “tablet”. They are not mutually exclusive.
Personally, I can’t picture myself w/o an iPhone and will gladly get the “tablet” to replace my laptop (more like a desktop) when I’m on the go, depending on its technical specs.
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11:21 am on December 30th, 2009True, VK, but Apple’s just announced that it’s having an event on January 26th. Surely it makes sense to wait a few more weeks before buying anything, just to see what comes out at that event.
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11:44 am on December 30th, 2009Hi VK, my Mate is no fool he just knows me so well .Im dithering you see, well thats what happens when you get older:) I dont do on the move Music,hardly play any in the Car and my mobile (brick) lives in the Car in case I breakdown and need to call someone.
I was looking for a small device to use the Web when away from home on holidays etc and first looked at a MacBook Air, very light and then got to thinking of the fab iPhone and ordered one only a few days ago using my Mates 20% discount. Now having heard of the Tablet I have put matters on hold as if this is lightweight, cheaper than the Air ,it could well suit my needs and the bonus is my better half can use it to surf the web at home rather than using my iMac 24 when I want it.I have 100mb internet speed so sharing some of that wont slow me down much. At my age we make arrangements to see people on a Monday and turn up exactly on time the following Friday.We have a landline with an ansaphone which is really all we need. You younger folks are a lot busier than us.Me and the long suffering wife are enjoying our retirement but make use of tech to make our life easier not harder.My first computer was an IBM in about 1975 good only for a Lotus spreadsheet.
HAPPY NEW YEAR in advance:) -
11:58 am on December 30th, 2009Translation: “ansaphone” = “answering machine” = “voice mail” = “call answer”
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8:56 am on December 31st, 2009fair enough. even with an iPhone I would wait since most likely a new gen. will be annouched in June. don’t wait too long though, there’s always something better on the horizon when it comes to technology
HNY
p.s. although I never heard the word “ansaphone”, I understood it right way. sounds simple, cool and funny at the same time. something I would expect to hear from Bronx resident: “yo, let da ansaphone answer dat, bitch!”. can’t picture a Brit saying it.
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12:15 pm on December 31st, 2009Ansaphone=====goes back a long long way. When they first became available in the UK it was a reel to reel tape machine manufactured by a USA company ANSAPHONE. The name stuck with this type of product.
Actually Old Boy I cant imagine a Brit saying it either.Got to toodle along its time for High Tea dont you know and the Memsahib gets a tad frosty if Im late for it at the Club.Ho Ho and HNY
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9:45 am on December 29th, 2009Makes sense. Apple is about making money on the device and Amazon is about selling content. Would you buy a Apple tablet? Right now I don’t see the need for me to have one.
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12:05 pm on December 29th, 2009I’d get one in a second. Would be nice for web browsing from the couch, or watching videos in bed. Also, handy for Ula to surf from the living room while I’m working. You see, she has many week days off and works many weekends, so there are LOTS of times when I’m trying to work, and she has the day off, so she’s on her computer watching Big Brother or Survivor or something. Can be pretty distracting, depending on how treacherous the episode is
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2:17 am on December 30th, 2009Wow, how did I miss that info on Apple Tablet.Could suit my needs more than an iPhone as I dont make many mobile phone calls anyhow.Much bigger screen and looks very light. Have put iPhone on hold (they will hang onto my money but thats OK for now) and wait to see whats cooking with this Tablet as even my mate at the Apple Store is very short of info but agrees I would be a fool not to wait. I dont want an iMac, an iPhone and a Tablet. Noone seems very sure about surfing capabilities yet.
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10:44 am on December 30th, 2009Your mate @ the Apple Store is a fool to advise you to wait. iPhone and whatever the rumored device will be serve two different purposes. You want a portable MP3 player, cell phone, semi-powerful computing device in a small form factor? You go with an iPhone. You want a larger screen, bigger footprint device to browse from your couch? Get that “tablet”. They are not mutually exclusive.
Personally, I can’t picture myself w/o an iPhone and will gladly get the “tablet” to replace my laptop (more like a desktop) when I’m on the go, depending on its technical specs.
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11:21 am on December 30th, 2009True, VK, but Apple’s just announced that it’s having an event on January 26th. Surely it makes sense to wait a few more weeks before buying anything, just to see what comes out at that event.
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11:44 am on December 30th, 2009Hi VK, my Mate is no fool he just knows me so well .Im dithering you see, well thats what happens when you get older:) I dont do on the move Music,hardly play any in the Car and my mobile (brick) lives in the Car in case I breakdown and need to call someone.
I was looking for a small device to use the Web when away from home on holidays etc and first looked at a MacBook Air, very light and then got to thinking of the fab iPhone and ordered one only a few days ago using my Mates 20% discount. Now having heard of the Tablet I have put matters on hold as if this is lightweight, cheaper than the Air ,it could well suit my needs and the bonus is my better half can use it to surf the web at home rather than using my iMac 24 when I want it.I have 100mb internet speed so sharing some of that wont slow me down much. At my age we make arrangements to see people on a Monday and turn up exactly on time the following Friday.We have a landline with an ansaphone which is really all we need. You younger folks are a lot busier than us.Me and the long suffering wife are enjoying our retirement but make use of tech to make our life easier not harder.My first computer was an IBM in about 1975 good only for a Lotus spreadsheet.
HAPPY NEW YEAR in advance:) -
11:58 am on December 30th, 2009Translation: “ansaphone” = “answering machine” = “voice mail” = “call answer”
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8:56 am on December 31st, 2009fair enough. even with an iPhone I would wait since most likely a new gen. will be annouched in June. don’t wait too long though, there’s always something better on the horizon when it comes to technology
HNY
p.s. although I never heard the word “ansaphone”, I understood it right way. sounds simple, cool and funny at the same time. something I would expect to hear from Bronx resident: “yo, let da ansaphone answer dat, bitch!”. can’t picture a Brit saying it.
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12:15 pm on December 31st, 2009Ansaphone=====goes back a long long way. When they first became available in the UK it was a reel to reel tape machine manufactured by a USA company ANSAPHONE. The name stuck with this type of product.
Actually Old Boy I cant imagine a Brit saying it either.Got to toodle along its time for High Tea dont you know and the Memsahib gets a tad frosty if Im late for it at the Club.Ho Ho and HNY
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9:22 am on January 26th, 2010
Good analysis here Derek. However, I think a price point of 499 is a little low. I remember Jobs saying that there was “no way they could make a product for lower than $500 that was not crap”.
The NWT suggested 699 may be more accurate. Well, we’ll see tomorrow!
9:32 am on January 26th, 2010
I don’t think they’ll be making it for less than $500. I think that with subsidies it will be *available* for less than $500. If you don’t want the subsidy, it’ll cost more. Of course, maybe they’ll do what they did with the iPhone – expensive at launch, and cheaper 2 months later.
10:53 am on January 26th, 2010
Great tidbits and RIGHT ON..I’m an old man and an Apple convert a few years ago but I’ve been in merchandising and retailing forever. This product that Apple is launching will certainly hit a high note for the non-technical among us. A GREAT item which I categorized as a “TABSLATE”. My definition of a tabslate is a handheld computer product larger than an IPHONE but smaller than a Laptop.
It’s the perfect product that seems to fulfill the original goal of the pioneers in the home computing field.Going back to the time of the Commodore 64 and the Apple, this concept of the “TABSLATES” brings it ALL together..
10:59 am on January 26th, 2010
I agree with that. What do you think of the availability? Will they start selling tomorrow? Some reports saying that we won’t be able to get our hands on it until March.
11:05 am on January 26th, 2010
Sadly, I agree it’s probably March, due to some recent manufacturing issues in China
11:50 am on January 26th, 2010
I just can’t see the 499 price. It would be 100 dollars over the 64GB Ipod Touch. Although I have no problems with a lower price for the touch (ps will they announce the ipod touch with a camera tomorrow…)
My gut says 799. It has to be under 1000 but it can’t be too close to the touch.
I can see that it can use a stylus but as NYT says, it won’t come with it. I would be shocked if it did.
If it has a carrier, I will be interested how the pricing is going to work. Will you be able to piggyback on the dataplan of the iPhone?
I am curious what the surprises are going to be, if there are any since everybody has been talking about it.
12:02 pm on January 26th, 2010
Great Post. One thing is for sure if its for sale in N America/Canada for around 699 Bucks or less in rip of UK it will be £699 UK Pounds.However, we r used to that.I have a need for this machine for travelling around with. (also my wife can use it leaving the iMac to me)iPhone a tad too small for me and Laptops are heavy (excl the Air) but this seems to me the way forward. Waiting with baited breath. Its going to be a very interesting announcement.Must check if my local store has something special lined up for the announcement tomorrow as its not far to go.
3:46 pm on January 26th, 2010
Personally, I’m “worried” that it will be $1000 (unsubsidized). Their pricing is pretty predictable. They mark things up by around 35%. So, whatever it costs, they usually just mark it up by that much. Are they making enough on app store, books, music, etc.. right now to cover some of that 35%? Nowhere close. Might that change if more and more people buy stuff from the store? Perhaps… but I’d be surprised if they don’t mark it up 30% as usual.
As for the name, I’ll pick the “boring” iSlate.
I think the free MobileMe accounts are sort of a possibility.. but judging from my own experiences with MobileMe, non-nerds just aren’t ready to use it. Some part of it breaks every 3 months.
10:36 pm on January 26th, 2010
Wow, you’ve really thought this out. I’m a little skeptical about it being a game-changer but if it really does launches anywhere near $500, it will be eyebrow singing, brain-searing explosion in the face of mobile computing manufacturers everywhere. One big advantage for Apple is the fact that there are already apps for it. I’m predicting a drawing app like SketchBook Pro will be one of the big sellers, especially if Apple ships a stylus with the tablet. I blogged about it: http://www.taylorkim.com/content/killer-app-apples-tablet
12:50 am on January 27th, 2010
A good set of predictions. Price will be a wildcard, but $600 is only a bit higher than a Kindle DX, which doesn’t do nearly as much. Again, Apple will expect to make money off partner revenue with this one.
I expect it will “sync” like the TV – You can see it in iTunes, but it won’t have a cable. And I’m guessing with OS4, you won’t need the cable to sync your iPhone anymore either.
Scratch iTunes, it’s going to either be “iMedia”, “iStuff,” or “iAllMyCrapAnywhereInTheWorld” but it will be the media hub that power the tablet and the newly upgraded Apple TV software (and maybe hardware, cause H.264 barely flies on the current model).
No cables, no discs, none of that old technology.
No flash drive, sorry. MobileMe wins here, and iDisk will make it happen. Besides, it’s already a 64GB flash drive in itself. A wireless one at that.
Let’s hope for even 1/3 of what you have listed above!
2:28 pm on January 27th, 2010
Congrats on the price estimate
Although the question is if you want that version.