I will now hold up my prophetic finger and document my calls on the
upcoming Apple tablet, because those who know me expect this, and I
might as well get it out of my system. Let the Internets bear record
of this Digital Strategist! Point by point for future scoring/analysis: * This will be Steve Jobs magnum opus, the realization of his earliest
personal computing dreams wizened with decades of experience (read:
previous failures and success sharpened skills), culminating in
another dramatic shift in computing that changes the world, again. I
don't think he has much life left in him, this will start his second
revolution and he can now sit back and transfer the reigns of power
(this is why I will buy this "first generation" one, as next
generations might not have the benefit of his oversight). * The tablet will run an expanded version of the iPhone OS. Not
specifically a new branch, just an expanded, beefier version for the
tablet hardware. Think iPhone OS+. * The multi-touch gesture library will be expanded upon. We've had
our iPhone primer, now for more finger-vocabulary advancement. * Apps will need to be dependent on the concept of "variable
resolution" and will scale to both iPhone and tablet. This provision
has already been included in the core of the OS for quite some time.
iPhone apps will upscale as a baseline, but tablet apps will be more
robust and limited to only the tablet. * The tablet will usher in the next generation of Graphical User
Interfaces. The desktop/window/folder metaphor that all current OSes
offer is amazingly complex (have you ever tried to teach these
concepts to a n00b? They might remember 10% of what you say/show.
Now hand them your iPhone and see the difference!). The multi-touch
OS/hardware combo decreases the abstraction as the device itself is
radically transformed with every app launch into a simple device for a
specific purpose. Welcome to the next generation of GUI. * The tablet will radically transform multiple industries. From
medical to technical to retail to education. Combine robust computing
power, mobile data, location awareness, audio visual input/output,
spacial orientation recognition, and an advanced SDK and you've laid
the groundwork for untold breakthroughs. * The tablet will become the defacto interface for many things- from
the obvious ecosystem of "dockable" items such as sound systems to the
future of anything that could utilize a custom multi-touch interface
with all the included hardware benefits- advanced car interfaces,
medical devices, machine/robotic controls, home theaters/security
systems, education delivery, etc. Everything physical that is
mechanical or electrical will have the option of docking the tablet,
to the point that many things will come out "headless" or "brainless"
and become extensions of the tablet itself. * Two pricing options: one subsidized around $600 associated with a
carrier or two, and another unsubsidized around $1,000. * I'm not so concerned about carriers, they are destined to just be
dumb utilities. The market has shifted- people now pick the hardware
first, instead of picking a carrier. People will demand their data
like they expect water, gas, and electricity. Economies will force
the carriers downfall from profit-whores whose battle cry is "ARPU!
ARPU! " (Average Revenue Per User) to "we are the cheapest!" * A front facing camera that enables video chat. Look for this to
physically flip forward when needed to act as a real photo/video
camera. * One hardware version- meaning mobile data potential built in whether
you use it or not. Potentially premium models with more memory. * Aluminum "unibody" manufacturing techniques utilized. * Dock port only, no USB. Despite the rumors, I don't think there
will be two dock ports. * Blue tooth keyboard can/will be utilized. * Dock dongle to DVI/VGA for external monitor hookup providing HD video output. * Apple bought a chip maker a while back, look for custom silicon with
built-in H.264 video compression/decompression built-in. This makes
sense on many levels- battery life, strong media usage (videos + video
chat), etc. * The marketing will not focus too much on the hardware of the device,
rather a balance between capabilities and partnerships with media
companies. * Publishers will have partnered with Apple to provide eBook content.
This is a hype-train that will be lauded as a "Kindle-killer." The
use of this device for reading old-school books will be limited.
Battery life with the color screen will limit its ability to really
perform in this sector. The real frontier will be the emergent gaming
and enhanced content apps that will leverage what the hardware can
provide. * I'm favoring the branding "iPad" over "iSlate." It's a hard call-
The Steve strong-armed away the term "iPhone" but wasn't successful
with the AppleTV's "iTV" so it could go either way… but I say "iPad"
FTW. * Apple's stock shoots up, WAY up. My virtual stock keeps on rockin'. I've held off publishing many of these thoughts for months, but now
that we are hours away I figured I'd get them out there! Where do you think I'm off? What did I miss?
upcoming Apple tablet, because those who know me expect this, and I
might as well get it out of my system. Let the Internets bear record
of this Digital Strategist! Point by point for future scoring/analysis: * This will be Steve Jobs magnum opus, the realization of his earliest
personal computing dreams wizened with decades of experience (read:
previous failures and success sharpened skills), culminating in
another dramatic shift in computing that changes the world, again. I
don't think he has much life left in him, this will start his second
revolution and he can now sit back and transfer the reigns of power
(this is why I will buy this "first generation" one, as next
generations might not have the benefit of his oversight). * The tablet will run an expanded version of the iPhone OS. Not
specifically a new branch, just an expanded, beefier version for the
tablet hardware. Think iPhone OS+. * The multi-touch gesture library will be expanded upon. We've had
our iPhone primer, now for more finger-vocabulary advancement. * Apps will need to be dependent on the concept of "variable
resolution" and will scale to both iPhone and tablet. This provision
has already been included in the core of the OS for quite some time.
iPhone apps will upscale as a baseline, but tablet apps will be more
robust and limited to only the tablet. * The tablet will usher in the next generation of Graphical User
Interfaces. The desktop/window/folder metaphor that all current OSes
offer is amazingly complex (have you ever tried to teach these
concepts to a n00b? They might remember 10% of what you say/show.
Now hand them your iPhone and see the difference!). The multi-touch
OS/hardware combo decreases the abstraction as the device itself is
radically transformed with every app launch into a simple device for a
specific purpose. Welcome to the next generation of GUI. * The tablet will radically transform multiple industries. From
medical to technical to retail to education. Combine robust computing
power, mobile data, location awareness, audio visual input/output,
spacial orientation recognition, and an advanced SDK and you've laid
the groundwork for untold breakthroughs. * The tablet will become the defacto interface for many things- from
the obvious ecosystem of "dockable" items such as sound systems to the
future of anything that could utilize a custom multi-touch interface
with all the included hardware benefits- advanced car interfaces,
medical devices, machine/robotic controls, home theaters/security
systems, education delivery, etc. Everything physical that is
mechanical or electrical will have the option of docking the tablet,
to the point that many things will come out "headless" or "brainless"
and become extensions of the tablet itself. * Two pricing options: one subsidized around $600 associated with a
carrier or two, and another unsubsidized around $1,000. * I'm not so concerned about carriers, they are destined to just be
dumb utilities. The market has shifted- people now pick the hardware
first, instead of picking a carrier. People will demand their data
like they expect water, gas, and electricity. Economies will force
the carriers downfall from profit-whores whose battle cry is "ARPU!
ARPU! " (Average Revenue Per User) to "we are the cheapest!" * A front facing camera that enables video chat. Look for this to
physically flip forward when needed to act as a real photo/video
camera. * One hardware version- meaning mobile data potential built in whether
you use it or not. Potentially premium models with more memory. * Aluminum "unibody" manufacturing techniques utilized. * Dock port only, no USB. Despite the rumors, I don't think there
will be two dock ports. * Blue tooth keyboard can/will be utilized. * Dock dongle to DVI/VGA for external monitor hookup providing HD video output. * Apple bought a chip maker a while back, look for custom silicon with
built-in H.264 video compression/decompression built-in. This makes
sense on many levels- battery life, strong media usage (videos + video
chat), etc. * The marketing will not focus too much on the hardware of the device,
rather a balance between capabilities and partnerships with media
companies. * Publishers will have partnered with Apple to provide eBook content.
This is a hype-train that will be lauded as a "Kindle-killer." The
use of this device for reading old-school books will be limited.
Battery life with the color screen will limit its ability to really
perform in this sector. The real frontier will be the emergent gaming
and enhanced content apps that will leverage what the hardware can
provide. * I'm favoring the branding "iPad" over "iSlate." It's a hard call-
The Steve strong-armed away the term "iPhone" but wasn't successful
with the AppleTV's "iTV" so it could go either way… but I say "iPad"
FTW. * Apple's stock shoots up, WAY up. My virtual stock keeps on rockin'. I've held off publishing many of these thoughts for months, but now
that we are hours away I figured I'd get them out there! Where do you think I'm off? What did I miss?
