Musings on the Tablet
What if the rumored Apple tablet is a subversive, anti-pirating transition device?
Apple has an extraordinary system built up with the iPhone, the best three points being (1) the App Store, (2) Multi-touch, and (3) style. The last point is more or less a given with Apple–they’ve always done style well. The first two are worth looking at.
Multi-touch I have reviewed previously, and it is just as valuable now as the Mouse and the GUI were in 1984; Apple stands to profit by being the first on the leading edge of a new interface revolution. Using your hands to interface with a computer is just shy of the perfect interface, the remainder being voice interaction. That’s how we interact with our world–through our hands and with our speech. Bringing Multi-touch to the PC will be a big thing, and Apple holds most of the patents on that.
But the secret weapon Apple wields is the App Store–or, more specifically, the new paradigm Apple has built for applications. Think about it: have you ever pirated an app? “Borrowed” an install CD of Microsoft Office from a friend or family member, or even downloaded something from the Internet via P2P? Most people have.
But who here has ever used a pirated iPhone app? Sure, the iPhone has the whole “jailbreak” thing, and it is possible to pirate iPhone apps–but it is not easy, nor is it common. It’s a very fringe thing, despite the widespread use of the iPhone.
The iPhone represents a software company’s dream: a closed system where users almost always pay for software.
The rumored Apple tablet could be a step toward standardizing that paradigm. If this takes over, then the days of easy pirating would be over; sure, you could do it, but it would be harder to do, and therefore less common.
But it’s not a loss to the casual pirate user; one of the reasons people pirate so often is because of the steep price of apps. Even cheap popular commercial apps usually cost more than a hundred dollars, and often more advanced software costs several hundred dollars, advancing to the four-digit range.
One of the reasons software costs so much: because so many people pirate it, software companies have to charge more to make up the difference. Why do so many people pirate it? Because it costs so much.
Enter the new Apple App Store paradigm. A system where most people pay for apps because (1) it’s harder to pirate apps, and (2) apps are much cheaper. That’s the key, breaking the cycle of expensive apps. If everyone paid full price for Adobe Creative Suite, it wouldn’t have to cost a thousand dollars. By starting with the iPhone app store, where the under-$10 price range is expected, Apple can build up from there. If the Apple tablet is a controlled app environment like the iPhone, it can engender cheaper apps.
Imagine the new Apple tablet coming out with iWork-for-Tablet being included free, along with iLife and Mail and Safari. And then you pay no more than $25 for new apps. Many people balk at buying PowerPoint for $100–but how about for $25? Most would probably say, “Hmmm, not so bad. Why not?” and plunk down the money.
Apple’s iTunes Store has made it clear that people will pay for something they could easily pirate, so long as the price tag is reasonable.
Is Apple’s new Tablet a step toward a closed, controlled, and pirate-free future for software?
If so, then Apple stands to profit enormously–as Microsoft does not seem to be poised to go the same way, and Apple stands to make a sweet 30% on all software sold–when currently, neither Microsoft nor Apple get a penny for third-party software sold for use on their OS.
Apple may be smarter than we give it credit for.
I agree. I am working now on iPhone apps with one eye cocked at the future of what I can do on the tablet. I’m thinking 1280×720 resolution, 8″ x 4.5″ (9″ diagonal) HD screen.
Interesting. You made me start to wonder how that might work out. If it’s a 9″ (or 9.2″) screen, then it would work out like you said. If it’s a 10″ screen–some 10″ screens go above 720 (the 10″ Sony Vaio W is 1368 x 768). Assuming a 10″ screen measured diagonally, and using the Pythagorean theorem, one can guess at a screen measuring 8″ by 6″–but that’s a 4:3 aspect ration more suited to old-style TVs. As a media playing device, widescreen would be more in order, but not so much to warp the screen. 8.5″ by 5.25″ works out about right, it’s close to 16:9, so let’s go with that.
The iPhone’s screen has a pixel density of 163 ppi; assuming they match that, on an 8.5″ x 5.25″ screen, that works out to 1385 x 855, slightly better resolution than the Vaio. Assuming your 8″ x 4.5″, it’d be closer to 1305 x 735, close to your guess.
A 720p screen might not be unreasonable to expect, assuming higher pixel density would be more expensive and the extra 135 pixels in a 1385 x 855 screen might be wasted in video, but Apple goes above standards elsewhere–my 24-inch iMac is 1920 x 1200, well above the 1080 for Hi-Def. So I am guessing that 1280 x 720 would actually be the minimum.
This also changes my view of the tablet–somehow I imagined a 10″ screen being bigger. 8.5″ x 5.25″ is kinda small–though if Apple puts a border around that like on the screen of my MBP, maybe a half-inch per side, then the whole unit would be 9.5″ x 6.25″–a bit better but still smaller than I expected. If it’s a 9″ (diagonal) with the same or lesser borders, that’s getting pretty small.
Interesting.
I don’t get the design of this machine (based on the mock-ups). It’s too big to hold in one hand and type with the other, right? So if you have to set it down on a desk or your lap, then you must also bow your head to look down at the screen. On the other hand, if you set it up vertically on a stand, then you would have to bend your wrists back in order to type. Who would buy such a thing? Please tell me what I’m overlooking here.
You just have to hold it in your hands. I described a 10″-screen version with a 1/2″ border for total dimensions of 9.5″ x 6.25″. When I grabbed a hardcover book from my bookshelf and measured it, it was almost exactly that size. See if you can find one that size that you have, hopefully not too thick–the thinner the better, as the tablet will probably be pretty thin–no less thin than the iPhone, but thinner than a laptop.
Then hold it by placing it on top of one hand lengthwise and hold it in front of you in “landscape” orientation, and you’ll find that your writing hand will feel comfortable when “typing” on it. Spread out your fingers on it and you’ll find that if they don’t cover the whole area, they come close (remember there’s a 1/2″ border). And note that you are holding a standard-sized book–in portrait mode, it’s a natural e-book size.
The problem is not using it while holding it, but using it on a surface. I can only presume that Apple has spent a considerable amount of time working on a very appropriate solution. Look at the screen hinge Apple made for the current Macbook Pro line–an excellent solution. Apple probably has found a way to prop up the unit at an appropriate angle for typing and viewing so that it will be stable/non-sliding on most surfaces. But I suspect that a 10″ tablet, due to its small size, will be primarily a hand-held device, like the iPhone.
Very thorough and helpful answer. Thank you.
Can’t wait to see what Apple’s solution is.