What happened to the iPod product category? iPod sales were cannibalized first by the iPod touch and then iPhone slowly cannibalized sales of the iPod touch. Apple has never been afraid of cannibalising the sales of its existing products. Apple’s late CEO Steve Jobs famously said, “If you don’t cannibalize yourself, someone else will.”

Is iPad facing the same fate as of the iPod? Will the iPad soon not be a major source of revenue for Apple? To understand these aspects let’s get into the details.

From iPad Air to iPad Air 2 – Not a major product update

If we look at the current trend of iPad sales we see some interesting figures; in Q1 2014 Apple sold 26 million tablets compare that to Q1 2015 the company sold 21.4 million. In 2013 Apple launched the new iPad Air and in 2014 the company launched iPad Air 2. Apple sold more iPad Air’s than iPad Air 2 during their respective holiday quarters.

One of the most obvious reasons that explains the fall in sales figures for iPad Air 2 could be due to the new tablet not being a major update when compared to its predecessor. iPad Air was a radical redesign and added many enhancements however, the iPad Air 2 received a modest update with improvements being camera, barometer, new processor with motion co-processor, and Touch-ID. These updates were certainly not enough for users who already own an iPad Air to upgrade.

Was iPad just a fad? Before we jump onto any conclusions we need to delve further into the tablet category.

Different Upgrade Cycles

Unlike iPhones customers are not looking to upgrade their tablets every two-years. Our smartphones have to endure much more rigorous use each day compared to the tablets. So even if you still own an iPad that was introduced in 2012 it may still be working just fine. I have an iPad 2, Retina Display MacBook Pro and iPhone 5. Even though the second-gen iPad now lags in performance after iOS 8 update I still don’t see the need to upgrade. One possible reason could also be that after purchasing the latest MacBook Pro I have increasingly felt lesser need to work on my iPad.

Users’ tablet upgrade cycle will largely depend on what you use the tablet for. If it’s just for browsing, emails, and watching movies then you’re probably not going to upgrade every two years. If you’re into gaming and love to play games on your iPad then upgrading every two years makes sense as Apple upgrades the tablets with much more capable graphic chips and all AAA game titles are quickly updated to take advantage of new features.

Smartphones have also become an expression of showing off the latest gadget you bought as one obviously tends to use it more often no matter where you are. Tablets would probably never reach that level of attention. You don’t upgrade your MacBook Air or MacBook Pro every year just because a new model was made available.

If we look at iPhone’s upgrade cycle where the company introduces major improvements every two years and follows up with minor improvements the following year it still continues to outperform previous years sales figures. iPad category certainly won’t give the same results. There’s still a lot of scope for the tablet however, its adoption into new markets and industries is dependent on factors other than just faster processor and better camera.

More choice

Another reason attributing to the decline in sales could be the introduction of large screen iPhones. Users who would previously carry an iPad mini and an iPhone can now carry just an iPhone 6 Plus. Apple has been always accused of not offering much choice to its customers however, now its a different story.

There’s a 7.9 inch iPad mini, 9.7 inch iPad, 4 inch iPhone 5S, 4.7 inch iPhone 6, and 5.5 inch iPhone 6 Plus. So, even though iPad sales in particular may have been affected, it could potentially be getting converted into iPhone sales.

With the new range of choices now available to customers it may take a couple of years for the sales figures to stabilise and adjust as customers make their choice for their preferred device for various computing purposes.

Content

iPhone had a three years lead on the iPad. When the iPad was first introduced it was not until the iPad 2 that we started seeing a large number of companies creating apps for their employees. iPad’s growth depends a lot on the ecosystem of apps other than games and productivity category. As web developers, companies, educational institutions develop more and more content optimised for the tablet we will witness continuous rise in tablet sales. Apple made a great move to tackle this issue by partnering with IBM to create enterprise ready apps.

So, should Apple be worried about the state of the iPad? No!  Apple should not be worried about lower iPad sales as it leads in market share and competitors aren’t making much progress in differentiating their products from the iPad. Microsoft is offering desktop computer experience on a tablet however, it doesn’t appear to be working favourably for the company. So, clearly if someone needs a tablet they are still looking at Apple.

The tablet market exploded after the introduction of the iPad. Apple’s competitors are waiting on Apple to take the next leap so that they can copy it.

As long as Apple continues to make improvements and make more capable tablets each year, this category is here to stay.

Photos Credit: Ben Miller, Lap Fung Chan

Apple’s 7.9 inch tablet, the iPad mini is due for a refresh this fall and according to a new report the next gen iPad mini will have an almost bezel free design. We recently highlighted another report which claimed that Apple is facing shortage of retina display supply that could result in retina iPad mini launch to be delayed until 2014.

DigiTimes published a repot citing sources that claim Apple will introduce a redesigned version of the iPad mini to give the next-gen 7.9 inch tablet an almost bezel free look. The current iPad mini design already features a very narrow bezel to it is unclear how the company will accomplish this. The report further highlights that retina display iPad mini won’t be available for this holiday season however, customers can expect a refresh this fall with improved technical specifications.

While the new iPad mini may not be availabe during the year-end shopping season, Apple reportedly may first release a slightly updated version of the current iPad mini in the second half of 2013, which is expected to be lighter, thinner and equipped with improved specifications, the sources said.

Apple clearly dominates the tablet market space which is evident by the total mobile web share. The company has a very aggressive marketing strategy for its tablet product line-up. The introduction of a small 7.9 inch tablet gives Apple an edge to dominate the market further by entering the small screen tablet segment. The company does not want to give any room to its competitors to compete in this segment.

Tablet product category was revolutionised by Apple and it was the first company to sell it in large numbers. The product refresh cycle for tablets has become shorter since the third and fourth gen 10-inch tablet as both were introduced in less than a year.

According to a new report Apple is expected to launch lower priced iPad mini this year that could hit the market at $199 – $249 price points. With Android gaining market share in the smartphone and tablet market many analysts believe that the Cupertino, Calif., based company should address the low priced market segment.

We’ve reported on rumors about Apple working on a cheaper iPhone and now as iPad mini refresh is expected soon reports about cheaper iPad mini are beginning to flourish. The second gen iPad mini is expected to carry the same design but feature high resolution retina display and upgraded cameras. The processors and RAM would also see an update to support the high processing power required by the retina display.

In a research note, KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo mentions:

Prior to iPad mini 2 launch, Apple might roll out a more affordable iPad mini to compete with Android products. To cut costs, Apple might push for lower component prices, use a more advanced process to produce the A5 processor, simplify metal casing production, remove the rear camera, cut storage to 8GB and find more component suppliers to lower costs. We think this cheaper iPad mini retail for US$199~249.

Kuo believes that at a lower price point Apple will be able to cater to the low end of the tablet market which is currently dominated by Android tablets. Apple has publicly denied all reports of a low-cost product and have continued to stress on quality of the products. However, it will be interesting to see if the company introduces a low cost tablet in the market to remain competitive and stop Android from dominating any particular market segment.

{via MacRumors}

Last week, Apple Inc. (AAPL) shipping estimates for the iPad mini dropped to 3-5 days in the U.S Apple Store. Now, the iPad mini’s shipping estimates has once again improved to 1-3 days in the U.S store. The estimates have been slowly improving and customers will now have an iPad mini order fulfilled, shipped, and delivered in under a week.

Other online Apple Stores around the world are also experiencing improvements in their shipping estimates, coming in at 3-5 business days. Apple’s European store had a two week wait for an iPad mini, which has since improved to 3-5 days.

The introduction of a smaller iPad has proved to be successful for Apple. It is a direct competitor to all the e-readers available in the market. By launching a smaller tablet Apple aims to capture every segment of the tablet market. Even though the iPad mini is an expensive product when compared to other smaller tablets available, consumers continue to pay premium for seamless integration of hardware and software services.

Apple experienced supply constraints for the iPad mini which caused a backlog of orders, and as a result, a very long wait time. Apple noted that it expects the supply to catch up to demand by the end of March. Supply constraints were caused in part by the iPad mini’s G/F2 (DITO) thin-film display technology, which is also rumored to be used in the new iPad 5 (fifth gen).

{Via MacRumors}

Apple’s iPad mini is expected to be a big hit in the coming days and months. In a report from AppleInsider, Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster mentioned that he believes Apple will sell about 1.5 million iPad mini in the first weekend of sales. The iPad mini goes on sale today, and will sell through the weekend, despite hurricane Sandy shutting down Apple’s Retail Stores on the East Coast for several days. During initial sales of the iPad mini, 4G LTE versions of the device will not be available but will go on sale later on this month.

Munster also mentioned that it is the “newness of the form factor for consumers” that will continue to the grow iPad sales, with 20-25% of the market accounted as smaller-sized tablets. Munster believes that people will realize the portability and the benefits of having the iPad experience in a smaller form factor. Prior to the release of the iPad mini, Munster also noted that five iPad minis would be equal to the cannibalization of one full sized iPad.

Gene Munster has a proven track record and has speculated on numerous other Apple products, including the original iPad, iPad 2 and iPhone. Munster is right in his speculation that the iPad will eventually come to lead the 7.9” tablet market, much of which is currently dominated by Android and Samsung devices.

It’s finally here! On Tuesday, Apple introduced the iPad mini during a media event at the California Theatre in San Jose, California. The iPad Mini has been a rumor around the web for several months now, and several weeks prior to announcement, parts began to leak. The iPad Mini is only 7.2-mm thin, down from the full sized iPad’s 9.4 mm and sports a 7.9 inch screen.

This is a drastic reduction from Apple’s full sized iPad, which sports a 9.7 inch Retina Display. The iPad mini, although much lighter and thinner resembles more an iPhone then an iPad and houses the same internals as the 4th generation iPod touch, including the 5MP iSight Camera for images and video, as well as the FaceTime HD camera for video calls, and the A5 chip. 4G LTE will also be available on the Cellular model of the mini.

The iPad mini also has the same resolution as the iPad 2 at 1024 by 768 pixels and weighs only 0.68 pounds, half the weight of a full sized iPad. Even with these lower than full sized specs, Apple is introducing a thinner, lighter, and powerful product to the tablet market, which has recently seen an increase in 6-8 inch devices. Amazon’s Kindle has dominated the e-reader market, and Apple is getting a leg-up by introducing a product that, when paired with iBooks can compete directly.

It is yet unknown whether the iPad mini will cannibalize sales of the iPod touch, which carries the same technical specs and now has a 4 inch screen. The iPad mini is priced at $329, as predicted for a base WiFi model and adds on another $130 for WiFi+Cellular. It will be available for Pe-Order on October 26 and will go on sale on November 02.

{Image Credit: Fox News}

Amazon introduced the Kindle Fire late last year, as a response to Apple’s dominance of the tablet computer market. On Thursday, the Seattle, Washington based company moved to introduce the new Kindle Fire HD LTE for the same $499 the iPad sells for.

A 32GB Kindle Fire HD LTE is available for the same price of a 16GB WiFi only iPad. However, the company took it one step further and tacked on a $50/year data plan, far less than Apple’s data plans for the WiFi+LTE iPads. All of Apple’s cellular iPads all carry a $130 premium charge for the 3G and 4G LTE technology built inside.

This may give the iPad some competition, particularly with Amazon’s wise choice to introduce the new device before the holiday season. Amazon also introduced an 8.9 inch WiFi only Kindle Fire HD for $299, a 7-inch Kindle Fire HD for $199 and dropped the price of the current Kindle Fire to $159. Each Kindle Fire HD LTE comes with a data cap of 250MB of data for $50/year, 20GB of cloud storage and a $10 credit to the Amazon app store.

Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos made it a point to compare the Kindle Fire HD price points as well as the data plans to Apple’s iPad, noting that the average iPad owner with a data plan would pay over $959 in their first year of ownership. Amazon’s Kindle FIre HD LTE has the potential to make a rift in the tablet market, and is scheduled to arrive right before Thanksgiving and Christmas, on November 20.

{Via AppleInsider}

In an interesting turn of events in the ongoing legal battle between Apple Inc. (AAPL) and Samsung a U.K court ordered the Cupertino based company to publish notice saying that Samsung didn’t copy the iPad.

AAPL lost a patent lawsuit against Samsung in a London court on July 9 and Judge Colin Birss ordered a ruling which stated that Samsung’s Galaxy tablets don’t infringe Apple’s iPad design. The Judge has now ordered Apple to post the notice on it’s U.K website for a period of six months and also run advertisement in several newspapers and magazines to correct Samsung’s impression in the eyes of the customers.

Bloomberg was first to report on the developing story and has published a statement by Richard Hacon, a lawyer who is representing Apple in the U.K courts.

The order means Apple will have to publish “an advertisement” for Samsung, and is prejudicial to the company, Richard Hacon, a lawyer representing Cupertino, California-based Apple, told the court. “No company likes to refer to a rival on its website.”

The latest development in the international patent lawsuits between the two tech giants comes as an embarrassment to Apple as the company has repeatedly said that Samsung ‘slavishly’ copied it’s iPad and iPhone. Apple is free to appeal the decision and will most likely do so.

Competition in the tablet market is heating up as Android market share is on the rise and Galaxy Tablets finally beginning to see some success. Apple is clearly in the lead with its iPad being a major success in all major international markets however, the ruling by U.K judge could put some pressure on Apple and think of alternate ways to tackle and defend it’s intellectual property rights.

It will be interesting to see how Apple lawyers respond and appeal this decision in the U.K. This ruling could also be seen as first major victory for Samsung. The South Korea-based company had to face injunction against its Galaxy Tab in Australia and the U.S.

Amazon.com Inc. (AMZN) and Apple Inc. (AAPL) have been competing in the ereader and tablet market for over a year now, since the iPad was introduced. On Friday, a report from Bloomberg mentioned that Amazon is now looking to introduce its own smartphone to take on the iPhone and some of the leading Android devices in the market.

A smartphone would give Amazon a wider range of low-priced hardware devices that bolster its strategy of making money from digital books, songs and movies. It would help Chief Executive Officer Jeff Bezos — who made a foray into tablets with the Kindle Fire — carve out a slice of the market for advanced wireless handsets.

Amazon has one of the most popular ereaders out on the market, the Kindle and is also leading the industry with some of its other products, including its cloud services and tablet computer, the Kindle Fire. The report mentions that Amazon is set to acquire a portfolio of patents that would allow the company to take steps in competing directly with some of the top competitors.

The rumored smartphone would likely borrow certain aspects of the Kindle Fire, including features such as purchasing books, magazines, and newspapers from Amazon’s store as well as using Amazon’s Cloud Drive as external storage. Amazon currently operates services that control a considerable portion of the digital content available online. By introducing a smartphone alongside its tablet and pairing with its online content, Amazon could very well present the iPhone with a serious competitor in the smartphone market.

{Via MacRumors}

Apple still relies on Google’s Maps technology to provide iPhone users with directions and map data, as well as search feature in the native Safari browser. Google relies on Apple’s massive number of iPhone users to bring mobile traffic to the search giant. However, the distance between the tech giants is becoming more apparent with reports of Apple looking to include China’s Baidu search in iOS.

A report from SinaTech via TechinAsia revealed that the Cupertino company is looking to release an update that will incorporate Baidu’s search functionality into iOS, much like Google search operates now. This would allow users to opt for Baidu to search everything from streets to websites directly from the iPhone and much more quickly too. According to a previous report from TheNextWeb, Baidu currently holds over 83.6 percent of China’s search space and is more detailed than Google in mapping streets in China. This would severely impact the number of Google users in China, especially if Baidu ships out of the box on the iPhone and iPad.

Apple has a large market share in China and is continuously expanding its number of retail stores and the influence of its products to capitalize on the large influx in customers. Tim Cook specified that China is a large growth opportunity for Apple and is visiting the country to likely familiarize Apple with its international customers. Baidu may be just what Apple needs to help pioneer its vision in China and allow its products to be as simple and accessible for its international customers as it is for customers in the United States.

{via TheNextWeb}

Apple has opened up a new section in the iTunes App Store that highlights some of the Retina Enabled apps for the New iPad 3. On March 7th, Apple announced the New iPad, with high resolution Retina Display, A5X chip and an updated camera.

The section is called “Great Apps for the New iPad” and takes advantage of the higher resolution display of the New iPad. Games in the “Great Apps for the New iPad” section include Flight Control Rocket, Sky Gamblers, Infinity Blade II. Also listed are apps such as Tweetbot and Evernote.

The third gen iPad has already launched in many countries including the United States and is now available in very limited quantities. The new iPad now supports the highest resolution on a mobile device and as Apple explained it has more pixels than a full HDTV. The display also improves the saturation and makes photos, text and games look amazing on 9.7 inch display.

Even though the overall design hasn’t seen any major changes Apple continues to dominate the tablet market with a product design that is almost one year old. iPad (third generation) has witnessed huge demand and even after initial shipping delays Apple has recorded new sales record for the new iPad.

iPad 3 rumors have reached an all time high as the release date for Apple’s third gen tablet nears. iPad 3 keynote event will kick off on March 7th at 10 AM in San Francisco and details about the launch event continue to leak.

According to a new report published by DigiTimes, during iPad 3 launch event Apple is expected to introduce 8GB iPad 2 model in addition to 16 GB, 32 GB and 64 GB iPad 3 models. This move could be seen as Apple’s attempt to lower the price of entry level iPad thus making if more affordable.

We are familiar with Apple’s strategy to offer previous gen iPhone in 8GB model while the new iPhone models are made available at higher price points with more storage. The report oddly does not mention 64GB iPad model, it only mentions iPad 3 in 16GB and 32GB variation.

As Apple has scheduled an event on March 7, sources from its upstream supply chain pointed out that the company is expected to launch two iPad 3 models – a 16GB version and 32GB version.

In addition to iPad 3, Apple is also expected to unveil an 8GB iPad 2, allowing the tablet PC series to cover different segments and to defend against Windows 8-based tablet PCs, the sources noted.

While most rumors in the past have centered around iPad 3, DigiTimes brings focus to Apple’s strategy for its second gen tablet. 8GB iPad 2 would help the Cupertino, Calif. based company to create product differentiation and at a lower price point Apple would be able to grab a much larger share of the tablet market.

It will be interesting to see if Apple lowers the price of iPad 2 and offers 8GB model. Let us know what you think in the comments below.

Many tablets have been introduced in the market from companies looking to create the “iPad killer”. Top contenders include the Motorola Xoom and Kindle Fire, which failed to follow through with the original hype that it created upon release.

On Tuesday, following Apple’s announcement of their 4th quarter earnings for 2011, an analyst during the earnings call, asked Apple CEO Tim Cook if the iPad was impacted by lower priced tablets. Cook, as a reply, noted that Apple sold a record 15.4 million iPads and that Apple doesn’t consider “limited function tablets and e-readers to be in the same category as the iPad”.

Cook also noted that ecosystem for the iPad is “in a class by itself”. Tim Cook may have a point as it proves true during sales, where customers seem to gravitate towards product that offer a more solidified user experience, simplifying email, web, and desktop computer integration seamlessly, all of which iOS does very well.

We strongly believe in optimizing applications from day one to take advantage of the larger canvas. There are only a few hundred apps designed for the competition, versus more than 170,000 apps designed specifically for iPad. People who want an iPad won’t settle for a limited function tablet.

However, Cook wasn’t the only person praising the iPad. A number of executives from the Cupertino company have said that tablets are going to overtake the PC market in units and according to IDC, tablets outsold desktop PC’s last quarter on a unit basis in the United States. Following his statements about the iPad, Cook also mentioned that Apple will “continue to innovate like crazy” and will compete with any tablet out in the market.

Apple is consistently leading the smart phone and tablet market, guided by Steve Jobs’ quote from famous hockey player Wayne Gretzky, “Skate to where the puck is going to be, not where it has been”. Apple’s advanced intuition of the trends helps them to adjust their new product lines to the ever shifting technology market.

Apple is expected to announce the iPad 3 sometime between February and March, with a new A6 chip, higher resolution screen, and better cameras.

Asus told investors that this quarter it is only expecting to sell 1.4 million notebooks, compared to 1.5 million in the previous quarter. Whilst Apple’s sales seem to be increasing in all areas of their business that must be a bitter pill to swallow for Asus.

Asus CEO Jerry Shen, is refreshingly upfront about the iPad being the cause of a drop in demand for their notebooks.

What will be interesting to observe is whether Apple’s predicted 85% share of the tablet market will decline as the likes of RIM, HP and Google start shipping their tablets. Or if Apple’s share will hold steady, or even grow, as it did when it launched iTunes and the original iPod what seems like a century ago now. For a long time people were claiming that it was only a matter of time before rival MP3 players from the likes of Sony (who own the iconic brandname ‘Walkman’) would start to eat into Apple’s market share. It hasn’t happened yet though. Part of the reason is that Apple are very good at tying up their products with a great user experience, and the all important content to go with them.

I think that the other problem that other manufacturers face is that the public buying iPads doesn’t see them as “tablet computers”. Which is the way that the computer industry sees them. Where as Apple’s customers by and large see iPads as “Apple iPads”, and its quite likely that the term iPad will become common usage, much like “Hoover” became what a lot of people call Vacuum Cleaners.

Time will tell. But I think 2011 might be a disappointing year for one or two computer manufacturers.

Do you think Apple are set to own the “tablet” market for the foreseeable future? Or are Google, RIM and HP going to rake market share away from Apple in 2011? Let us know your take on it in the comments.

iPad vs. JooJoo

The JooJoo from Fusion Garage was born in controversy earlier this year. Allegedly starting life as the much vaunted CrunchPad, the JooJoo is a 12 inch tablet device. The JooJoo runs a custom, browser-based operating system, has USB connectivity, and a forward facing camera. It seems that one of the main selling points many of the iPad competitors will trumpet this year is the availability of ports not found on the iPad and the video camera missing from iPadv1. To be honest, I’ve gone back and forth in my head about it as well. I understand Apple’s reasoning in omitting the ports and making external connectivity an option. I understand the argument for having them. In the end, if it doesn’t affect the quality of the device, I don’t think the presence or absence would sway my decision one way or another.

Contender or pretender? The JooJoo screen is 2 inches larger than the iPad. It has a multitouch capacitive display that runs at a 1366 X 768 resolution. It has USB ports and a camera. From a sheer hardware point of view it could be argued the JooJoo is a winner. The problem with this conclusion is the iPad is a more complete package than just the hardware. Along with the hardware comes an experience intertwined with it. The iPad brings a familiar operating system user experience with a catalog of over 150,000 applications. The JooJoo runs a custom operating system closed to development than no one has ever used before. In the end the integrated experience overrules the brute force hardware size approach the JooJoo seems to take.

Conclusion? Pretender.

iPad vs. zenPad

The Enso zenPad snuck on to the scene a couple of weeks ago with little fanfare. A 5 inch device running Android 1.6, the zenPad makes its run against the iPad from a different approach than the JooJoo. While the JooJoo trumpets its size and connectivity options, the zenPad emphasizes how inexpensive it is. It also comes with microUSB and microSD connectivity but Enso is really pushing the fact you can have an Android tablet with GPS and 3G connectivity for $215 USD. GPS and 3G connectivity are optional but attractive at this price point. It would certainly appeal to the price conscious tablet shopper.

Contender or pretender? The zenPad is half the size of the iPad. It runs Android 1.6 which is a positive in that there are a catalog of applications for the device but it’s also a negative. Android is a very splintered and branched operating system. Android 1.6 is an older version of the operating system that exists today as a bare minimum for most of the newest and hottest Android applications. There are promises of 2.x upgrades on the Enso web site but until that happens you’re stuck at 1.6. From a usage point of view, Android still pales in comparison to the iPhone/iPad operating system. Sure the zenPad is cheap and if that rules your spending habits this might be the device for you. I don’t know about you but I may be willing to go to the dollar store to buy a lot of things but my computer isn’t one of them.

Conclusion? Pretender.

iPad vs. HP Slate

This is the heavy weight bout everyone has been waiting for. The HP Slate is HP and Microsoft’s entry into the tablet market. While there will probably be several tablets running the Windows operating system this year, the HP Slate has been crowned as Microsoft’s main champion in the space. Steve Ballmer showed it off at CES, and it has gotten the full court press from both HP and Microsoft. The Slate will be slightly smaller than the iPad (8.9 inch display versus the iPad’s 9.7) but sports a host of connectivity options through USB and SD card slots. It will also sport dual cameras, one forward and one rearward facing. It will run Windows 7 optimized with a custom touch UI overlay developed by HP. The Slate’s vector on the tablet market seems to take a netbook and squish it down to tablet size.

Contender or pretender? The Slate, when viewed in the context of the iPad, is interesting for a number of reasons, none of them good. The first reason I just mentioned. Instead of reinventing and innovating as, Apple clearly did with the iPad, HP and Microsoft just took the innards of a netbook, squished them down as small as they could and threw in Windows 7. Doesn’t that sound appealing? The second reason it’s interesting is the feature list. Between the USB connectors, SD card slots, and dual cameras; it sounds like the Slate was designed off a sheet listing the shortcomings of the iPad. Instead of analyzing the issue properly, HP and Microsoft seemed to have wanted to latch on to the criticisms of the iPad as a selling point of their own device. I’m sure this will bring some people to their side but ultimately it doesn’t make their device any better than Apple’s. Windows 7 running on netbook electronics will be a nightmare and won’t offer anything near the user experience people are reporting on the iPad.

Conslusion? Pretender.

The Winner?

This will obviously not come as a surprise to you but the iPad is still clearly the best tablet device available. Some have bigger screens, some have USB ports, some may even come with six or seven cameras! Adding things, dropping prices, or making it sing and dance won’t make it any better than the iPad. The genius and logic of the iPad is that it combines the elements it is comprised of into an integrated experience that was clearly thought out and produced with all the elements in mind. Sure, Apple could have had a bigger screen but that would have made the device more heavy and unwieldy. Sure they could have added cameras but that would have added to the price. If there is one thing you can trust an Apple device to be, it is well designed with a purpose and intention. They aren’t chasing a list of “must haves” or criticisms of the competition. Say what you will about Apple, they make great stuff. The fact they sold 300,000 units on the first day only reinforces that.

My advice? If you haven’t bought an iPad, save your pennies for one. The JooJoo, zenPad, and Slate are poor seconds to the versatility, design, and ability of the iPad.