iPad Dopplegangers
Is it only me who can’t seem to smile every time an iPad wanna be says: “me too”. Actually I had this post in draft form for a few weeks but got distracted. Walked into a Three Store yesterday though and here they were promoting the Samsung Galaxy Tab or Pad or Tablet if you like. It would be a compelling buy if not for the fact that I am not a big fan of Android Apps Interface.
It is a personal usability issue that I experienced when I got the HTC Desire running Android 2.1. One thing amongst many stuck in my mind is why not Skype App on Android. Then I realised that hey … Google Talk is available and it appears .. will soon offer an true alternative to Skype.
10 weeks ago I got a chance to try out a physical phone using my Gmail interface. Impressive and echo free experience. To clarify this means using my PC to call and land or mobile phone (fees apply) which I did. Then I got excited when I noticed I would get a “universal number” that people could call using their physical phones or soft phones to ring my Google Number. When receiveing a call, I could in theory hear it ring simultaneously on my soft/pc phone, mobile and land line at the same time folks! So this means being reached when offline. Yes then disappointingly, being based in Asia, this service was and is not available. Only for lucky folks in the US and Canada.
Let’s get back to Apple though. There is no doubt in my mind that that Apple have made technology cool and user friendly and that is one of the biggest reason they are mega successful. Established benchmarks that everyone else and their dog wishes to emulate and stake their flag into this growing market share.
As for competitors for this growing tablet segment; who some 9 months after making a largely public annoucement that they’ve got an “iPad like device”, finally get their act together? Yes folks, amongst several contenders, I was thinking of HP’s tablet which they announced in Jan 2010 some 6 moths before iPad made its tremendous debut. Why 9 months later and where is the decorum in saying “me too” here?
Sounds to me like lethargy, lack of imagination combined with the inability to get things done is why Apple can innovate and sell close to 5 million iPads in the last few months, scaling up from a purported 2 million units produced per month to now 3 million.
According to several quotes I came up onto recently: Morgan Stanley analyst Katy Huberty states:
“Apple recently indicated to its suppliers a desire to move to 3 million per month in C4Q10. This implies a run rate of 36 million in CY11, close to the current 40 million supply chain forecast.”
Only a month ago, I read that production was only running at 1 Million per month and that they would double it.
The tablet is so hot that Lenovo is launching LePad in 2011. When I saw “LePad” I went back and read more carefully … it originally sounded to me like a French Sanitation serviette. After a little while (probably needed more coffee at that time) I got it! .. “Le” from Le-novo and “Pad” from .. I guess i-Pad??
Make no mistake, I am very proud and happy for Lenovo and our Chinese “brothers” who bought IBM PC Unit back in 2004 for 1.25 Billion. I am not so sure though about LePad catching on outside France, Quebec and Belgium.
| Lenovo buys IBM’s PC unit for $1.25 billion |
