Chance Furlong
2011-03-08 20:24:35 UTC
From Mac World:
http://tinyurl.com/6xdckhg
Four reasons why Apple and its iPad still rule the tablet market
Posted on Mar 8, 2011 9:55 am by Brad Reed, Network World
Editor’s Note: The following article is reprinted from Network World.
When it comes to releasing new form factors for its iPad tablet and
other products, Apple not only gets there first; it gets there best.
From the debut of the iPod in 2001 to the launch of the iPhone in 2007
to last year’s launch of the iPad, Apple usually sets a high bar for the
rest of the industry when it releases new types of electronic devices.
And as this week’s unveiling of the iPad 2 demonstrated, Apple is still
well on top of its competitors in the tablet market.
So why is Apple likely to rule the tablet roost for the foreseeable
future? Here are four reasons:
1. A one-year head start
Tablets occupy a weird niche market somewhere between smartphones and
laptops and it has proven difficult to really get them right the first
time around. Think of it like this: The Motorola Xoom, the first device
that’s seen as a legitimate contender for the original iPad, was
released just a week ago. Meanwhile, RIM’s first crack at tackling
tablets, the PlayBook, isn’t due out until April. While these two
companies are just dipping their toes into the tablet market, Apple is
already on its second generation of the iPad.
And from an engineering standpoint, the iPad 2 has made some significant
improvements that should keep it in the lead until its rivals release
their own second-generation tablets in the future. First, the new iPad
is thinner (0.34 inches) and lighter (1.35 pounds) than the original
iPad or any of its competitors. Second, it now has both a front-facing
and rear-facing camera that the original model lacked, as well as a USB
port.
2. A more mature app market
Applications have become an increasingly popular feature of mobile
devices over the past couple of years, especially with the high-profile
launches of application shopping centers such as Apple’s App Store and
Google’s Android Market. The most recent survey data from research firm
ChangeWave shows that 14 percent of smartphone users said applications
were what they liked best about new smartphones, followed by ease of use
(12 percent) and Internet access (12 percent).
With that in mind, consider that the Apple App Store already has an
estimated 65,000 applications tailored specifically for the iPad while
Android tablet users will have to wait until developers become more
accustomed to the “Honeycomb” edition of Android before they start
churning out apps for the Xoom and other Android tablets at a similar
rate. Given the past enthusiasm developers have shown for Android, it’s
quite likely that Honeycomb tablets will catch up to the iPad in terms
of application offerings, but for now Apple is the biggest game in town.
3. Enterprises are already adapting to it
Yes, this is counterintuitive since Apple has made clear that the iPad
is a device for consumers first. And yet the iPad’s success has led
inevitably to employees bringing their tablets to work and wanting to
use them for corporate e-mail. And while enterprises generally don’t see
the iPad as a replacement for a PC or a smartphone, a significant number
of businesses are at least intrigued enough by their potential to order
some for the workplace.
Research released late last year from ChangeWave found many enterprises
are considering taking the tablet plunge. Among business IT buyers
surveyed, 7 percent said their company currently deploys tablets, and 14
percent said their company planned to buy tablets in the first quarter
of 2011. ChangeWave found that the iPad dominated corporate purchasing
plans, as more than three-quarters of the businesses who planned on
buying tablets reported plans to buy the iPad. So although Research in
Motion and Cisco have both developed tablets that are tailored
specifically to enterprise users, it’s the consumer-oriented iPad that
most enterprises are looking at first.
4. The price is right
A cocky Steve Jobs bragged at the iPad 2 launch that the iPad
“flummoxed” Apple’s competitors and had set the bar for pricing in the
tablet market. While Jobs was certainly overplaying his hand as far as
future competition goes, for the time being he makes a good point. The
iPad 2 not only has lower pricing on its 32GB model than the rival 32GB
Motorola Xoom, it also has a far wider array of pricing options for
customers to choose from. So if you don’t feel like shelling out $729
for an unsubsidized 3G-capable 32GB iPad, you can get a 16GB Wi-Fi iPad
2 for a mere $499, as well as 32GB and 64GB models that go for $599 and
$699, respectively. In other words, people who don’t have heavy-duty
data requirements for their tablets will be able to purchase cheaper
models while Xoom users so far can only choose the 32GB model.
None of this is to say that Apple is destined to rule the tablet market
for infinity and beyond, of course. For example, look at the smartphone
market: While the iPhone is still a massively popular smartphone, it’s
far from the only popular device in what has become an increasingly
crowded market. But just as it took manufacturers such as Motorola,
Samsung and HTC some time to catch up to the iPhone, so shall
competitors struggle initially to match up with the iPad. For the time
being, the tablet market is Apple’s to lose.
http://tinyurl.com/6xdckhg
Four reasons why Apple and its iPad still rule the tablet market
Posted on Mar 8, 2011 9:55 am by Brad Reed, Network World
Editor’s Note: The following article is reprinted from Network World.
When it comes to releasing new form factors for its iPad tablet and
other products, Apple not only gets there first; it gets there best.
From the debut of the iPod in 2001 to the launch of the iPhone in 2007
to last year’s launch of the iPad, Apple usually sets a high bar for the
rest of the industry when it releases new types of electronic devices.
And as this week’s unveiling of the iPad 2 demonstrated, Apple is still
well on top of its competitors in the tablet market.
So why is Apple likely to rule the tablet roost for the foreseeable
future? Here are four reasons:
1. A one-year head start
Tablets occupy a weird niche market somewhere between smartphones and
laptops and it has proven difficult to really get them right the first
time around. Think of it like this: The Motorola Xoom, the first device
that’s seen as a legitimate contender for the original iPad, was
released just a week ago. Meanwhile, RIM’s first crack at tackling
tablets, the PlayBook, isn’t due out until April. While these two
companies are just dipping their toes into the tablet market, Apple is
already on its second generation of the iPad.
And from an engineering standpoint, the iPad 2 has made some significant
improvements that should keep it in the lead until its rivals release
their own second-generation tablets in the future. First, the new iPad
is thinner (0.34 inches) and lighter (1.35 pounds) than the original
iPad or any of its competitors. Second, it now has both a front-facing
and rear-facing camera that the original model lacked, as well as a USB
port.
2. A more mature app market
Applications have become an increasingly popular feature of mobile
devices over the past couple of years, especially with the high-profile
launches of application shopping centers such as Apple’s App Store and
Google’s Android Market. The most recent survey data from research firm
ChangeWave shows that 14 percent of smartphone users said applications
were what they liked best about new smartphones, followed by ease of use
(12 percent) and Internet access (12 percent).
With that in mind, consider that the Apple App Store already has an
estimated 65,000 applications tailored specifically for the iPad while
Android tablet users will have to wait until developers become more
accustomed to the “Honeycomb” edition of Android before they start
churning out apps for the Xoom and other Android tablets at a similar
rate. Given the past enthusiasm developers have shown for Android, it’s
quite likely that Honeycomb tablets will catch up to the iPad in terms
of application offerings, but for now Apple is the biggest game in town.
3. Enterprises are already adapting to it
Yes, this is counterintuitive since Apple has made clear that the iPad
is a device for consumers first. And yet the iPad’s success has led
inevitably to employees bringing their tablets to work and wanting to
use them for corporate e-mail. And while enterprises generally don’t see
the iPad as a replacement for a PC or a smartphone, a significant number
of businesses are at least intrigued enough by their potential to order
some for the workplace.
Research released late last year from ChangeWave found many enterprises
are considering taking the tablet plunge. Among business IT buyers
surveyed, 7 percent said their company currently deploys tablets, and 14
percent said their company planned to buy tablets in the first quarter
of 2011. ChangeWave found that the iPad dominated corporate purchasing
plans, as more than three-quarters of the businesses who planned on
buying tablets reported plans to buy the iPad. So although Research in
Motion and Cisco have both developed tablets that are tailored
specifically to enterprise users, it’s the consumer-oriented iPad that
most enterprises are looking at first.
4. The price is right
A cocky Steve Jobs bragged at the iPad 2 launch that the iPad
“flummoxed” Apple’s competitors and had set the bar for pricing in the
tablet market. While Jobs was certainly overplaying his hand as far as
future competition goes, for the time being he makes a good point. The
iPad 2 not only has lower pricing on its 32GB model than the rival 32GB
Motorola Xoom, it also has a far wider array of pricing options for
customers to choose from. So if you don’t feel like shelling out $729
for an unsubsidized 3G-capable 32GB iPad, you can get a 16GB Wi-Fi iPad
2 for a mere $499, as well as 32GB and 64GB models that go for $599 and
$699, respectively. In other words, people who don’t have heavy-duty
data requirements for their tablets will be able to purchase cheaper
models while Xoom users so far can only choose the 32GB model.
None of this is to say that Apple is destined to rule the tablet market
for infinity and beyond, of course. For example, look at the smartphone
market: While the iPhone is still a massively popular smartphone, it’s
far from the only popular device in what has become an increasingly
crowded market. But just as it took manufacturers such as Motorola,
Samsung and HTC some time to catch up to the iPhone, so shall
competitors struggle initially to match up with the iPad. For the time
being, the tablet market is Apple’s to lose.