Showing posts with label playbook. Show all posts

Getting Behind the Tablet Sales Numbers


One thing that a lot of tablet PC prognosticators like to do is gauge and measure the market, either while a device is available or weeks to months ahead of its launch. So, when we do get data, inevitably it will be thrown around a dozen different ways before we understand what it really means.

Sometimes, numbers are simple. Estimates of more than 13 million iPads beings old seem realistic considering the demand for the device and the capacity at most retailers. However, the numbers for the Samsung Galaxy Tab, which reported to have sold 2 million units, are not quite the same. Usually, statements like this mean “2 million shipped to retailers” not actually sold to end users. We don’t know how many that means, but company statements have already tempered it quite a bit.  

Measuring the Future

What does that mean for companies that have a new device coming out in 2011? What does it take to create a mainstream device and how does the public generally respond to certain features? No one knows. In fact, right now, the only devices on the market to draw data from are the mega-selling iPad and a dozen or so smaller devices with varying reviews and sales numbers – none of them with outstanding selling points.

I think that niche devices like the Playbook will actually sell decently well to their respective markets, though whether they can be mega-sellers in the mass market remains to be seen. I also think that there will probably be at least one other breakout device in 2011 – most likely the Xoom, though LG’s new tablet is starting to look very attractive with the announcement of multi-carrier 4G support and 3D playback.

We have no idea what will drive end-user interest. Reviews, technical specs, and usefulness have never really been the determining factors in what sells in the technology industry. Apple’s products are never the most powerful or the most feature-rich – they are often the “coolest” and that works for them. So, to be successful, does a company need to “out-cool” Apple or can they simply find their way into the niche through a variety of highly useful, mass-market features?

It remains to be seen. But, I have a feeling in 2011 we’ll be doing a lot of number parsing as sales numbers like that of the Galaxy Tab start to pour in. 

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The First Day of CES


The Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas officially started today, so as you can imagine there is a lot of news to sort through. There are a few things that are more interesting than others, though, so here are some highlights as of this morning:

Google’s Android 3.0 Reveal

Not actually at CES, but probably related nonetheless due to the announcement of so many Honeycomb tablets today and over the weekend, Android 3.0 is in fact Honeycomb and as rumoured has been built completely for tablet devices, not smartphones. That means we’re going to get completely dedicated tablet features in the next few months on a slew of new tablets.

What we’re seeing now is as completely overhauled user interface, new keyboard for tablets, and blown up versions of apps that have been, to date, a little unwieldy due to their smartphone roots.

Android 3.0 Tablets

On the subject of the Android 3.0 unveil, there are a number of new tablets being announced as we speak. The Motorola Xoom became official today, featuring the previously rumoured dual core processor (Tegra), 4G, HD video recording, and Honeycomb OS. LG has also announced a new tablet in the form of the G-Slate – details are limited as of right now, but we’ll probably see a lot more very soon. Oh, and Android 3.0 will have video chat through Google Talk.

More 4G Devices

It will be interesting to see if Apple jumps on board with the 4G train too because it looks like there will be at least three or four solid 4G tablets available by the end of Q2 in 2011. The Motorola Xoom was the biggest profile to be announced thus far, but RIM has confirmed 4G capabilities on its new tablet (running on Sprint WiMax for now, possibly more), and T Mobile’s G Slate will also feature 4G. That’s three big time manufacturers with big time iPad competitors coming out in the next few months all featuring 4G connectivity.

Convertible Tablets

Dell already hit us with the Inspiron Duo a few weeks ago, but there are a lot of new convertible tablet/netbook hybrids being announced as we speak. Asus has a new one coming in the form of an Eee tablet and HP has announced their own convertible tablet/netbook option likely to be released very soon.

More to Come

This is only the start of course. I’ll be back in the next couple days with more news out of CES and what it will mean for the tablet computing market. I am still excited to see more hands on time with the Notion Ink Adam, which I personally want to be a fan of (but have been reserving judgment on thus far). Exciting times ahead – stay tuned.

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RIM’s PlayBook – Can it Work?




After a lot of question marks popped up in mid-September following a Wall Street Journal article, Research in Motion (RIM) announced their first foray into the tablet field last week. I won’t say I’m not surprised – BlackBerry has been trying to tap into the Apple zeitgeist for the better part of two years now – since they launched their first touch screen phone, the Storm back in 2008.
This announcement, however, dovetailed nicely with my post earlier this week about the surge in tablet computing – from Best Buy’s frantic exaggerations to Apple’s industry dominance (for now). As we know, RIM isn’t alone in their rush to get a piece of the soon to be $40 billion dollar a year industry. Samsung’s Galaxy is in the works as we speak. Dell will soon release their Streak tablet and we all know Apple’s working on their second generation iPad that will likely increase storage and improve on a handful of common concerns for owners of the first generation device.
RIM’s new tablet is set to be a 7-inch device using Marvell Technology Group chips and the newest version of a QNX Software Systems OS (not the long maligned BlackBerry OS that is slowly starting to phase out of RIM’s products). Of course, how that QNX operating system will work on a tablet PC remains to be seen. While QNX has done fantastic work in car-dashboard OS and industrial applications, they haven’t worked in the consumer tech field before, and many people including myself are unsure of RIM’s move to dump the BlackBerry OS 6 so quickly.
The App Issue
Another major issue I can’t help but point out is the lack of App support. For better or worse, the mobile computing industry is now reliant on the App store structure established by Apple’s iOS and Google’s Android. The BlackBerry OS is already at a major disadvantage in this category – how will it perform when looking down the barrel of hundreds of thousands of apps on rival devices with a second OS to support?
In fact, the App issue is the reason most of the new devices we’ve been hearing about are coming fully loaded with Android (or in the case of the Tega V2, both Android and Windows). Personally, I don’t like this move by RIM. The BlackBerry platform, while lagging in consumer markets, is still the number one smartphone platform in the world due to enterprise users – changing it and knowingly splitting developers in an already hungry atmosphere is questionable.
When a company undermines its dominance because they’re afraid of what another product is doing, bad things happen. Apple has done something special in the design and presentation of their iPhone and iPad devices. However, one thing they haven’t done is produce a quality enterprise platform. RIM has long dominated in this field because their phones are developed with business users in mind, providing advanced security options, immediate support and training programs around the globe for IT professionals – can their new tablet do the same in the midst of an OS transition, without 3G support and with extremely limited options for expansion through Apps?
It makes me wonder – what should a tablet developer be focused on right now if they want to produce a successful device? Does a device need to have Android installed to be financially viable, or can a third party OS succeed, even without all those fun add-ons to choose from?
This is a burgeoning market, but in the next 6-9 months I think we’re going to get a very clear idea of where it is headed and who will take the lead. Apple has by no means locked up the title of tablet King – not with so many missing features for power users, but to overcome their sizable head start, manufacturers will need to produce something that reaches not only those who need tablet tools, but those who are attracted to the sleek new form of the mobile PC.

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