Is Apple betting the farm on the new iPad (iPad3 or iPadHD or ?)?

[ilovejedd]

Originally Posted by ScotiaBurrell

Any OS have this right now?

Handwriting recognition? Windows. I reckon Linux, too.

[petermillard]

Originally Posted by ilovejedd

But those are dedicated apps, yes? I was thinking more along the lines of being able to use handwriting when posting comments on MobileRead using Safari. Basically, pen/handwriting as another form of input for all apps and not just being limited to dedicated note-taking apps.

Yes, OS-level handwriting recognition would be great. In OSX (10.2-10.5 I think) Apple had this in the form of Ink (Inkwell??); there are 'Ink Preferences' still in OSX 10.7, though 'not available at this time...' - just checked So there's every chance that tech hasn't gone away, just shelved, perhaps, for future reference?

Must say, I'd love a 'Graffiti' app for iOS - if only to bring back some fond Palm memories

[SeaKing]

Would someone that had real hands on experience with the Microsoft Tablet of 10 or more years ago care to comment on it.

I believe it had a stylus.

I have used a stylus on a Palm PDA and on a Wacom pad. How did the MS tablet compare?

[HansTWN]

Originally Posted by SeaKing

Would someone that had real hands on experience with the Microsoft Tablet of 10 or more years ago care to comment on it.

I believe it had a stylus.

I have used a stylus on a Palm PDA and on a Wacom pad. How did the MS tablet compare?

I have a modern tablet PC (from HP) with a swivel screen that folds down on the keyboard. The handwriting recognition does work very well, even though I can hardly read my own handwriting. Nowadays I mostly type, anway. And Windows 7 on a tablet with a Wacom pen works fine for me. The newer version has both touch and pen, so you also get pinch and zoom. The main reason I prefer my Android/WebOS tablet for casual use are the battery life (it is a core i7) and weight of my PC, as well as the fact that it does get quite warm. I don't believe it will be too long before they can actually fit a real PC into tablet form that offers the best of both worlds (with detachable external keyboard and monitor). Not one of those sloth like ones from Fujitsu and others.

[Barty]

Originally Posted by Andrew H.

I don't think the tablet is a computer replacement. What it is is a replacement for the *second* computer - the netbook or laptop you use for going to meetings or travel (if that's what your job entails). The computer you have with you mostly for e-mail or to access documents or reference materials which you may or may not need, but which you want to have access to just in case.

they still use tablets on ST:TNG. nuff said!

Re win8: remember that MS was well behind on GUI. Windows 1 and 2 sucked. Windows 3 sucked, too, compared to macos, but it was good enough and it was built on the huge base that was DOS. History could repeat itself in the mobile realm.

[Belfaborac]

Originally Posted by Andrew H.

I don't think the tablet is a computer replacement. What it is is a replacement for the *second* computer - the netbook or laptop you use for going to meetings or travel (if that's what your job entails). The computer you have with you mostly for e-mail or to access documents or reference materials which you may or may not need, but which you want to have access to just in case.

For a huge number of people, a tablet is a perfectly adequate replacement for a "proper" computer. There's no shortage of people whose only computer use consists of sending e-mails, checking and updating Facebook, chatting, browsing and some very light photo editing. In fact, I'd say that's the case for almost everyone I know.

[RainingLemur]

Originally Posted by HansTWN

I have a modern tablet PC (from HP) with a swivel screen that folds down on the keyboard. The handwriting recognition does work very well, even though I can hardly read my own handwriting.

http://theoatmeal.com/blog/handwriting

[ScotiaBurrell]

Originally Posted by Barty

History could repeat itself in the mobile realm.

That Apple reap many $ while lots of other hardware makers suffer? Yes, could happen.

[SeaKing]

Originally Posted by Belfaborac

For a huge number of people, a tablet is a perfectly adequate replacement for a "proper" computer. There's no shortage of people whose only computer use consists of sending e-mails, checking and updating Facebook, chatting, browsing and some very light photo editing. In fact, I'd say that's the case for almost everyone I know.

I can agree with the gist of this though I am not much for Facebook (not on it) or chatting or photo editing.
The only thing I am not sure about is the numbers. "huge" seems high but is it just more than 50%.

The netbook provided lots of people with an acceptable substitute and weaned them from the full functional desktop and laptop/notebook.

This set up the next step, the tablet taking the same people and more.

I want a tablet for the cockpit, for the car (disclaimer: not while at the controls). In a tight space. Essentially like an eReader but more. To read, to study, to listen to a course, in the car to have a larger GPS.
You don't have to worry about sand or mud in the keyboard while using it. Just protect the ports.

I love the built in GPS, larger than the portable GPS I have in the truck. Note not aGPS with cellular GPS or WiFi, but a built in chip. As for the cellular connection when wanted or needed for email or browsing a WiFi tablet can use a mobile hotspot or a business hotspot.

Now I have tried a phone with all these functions but the screen was too small and the costs per month cut into my budget for toys. A simple feature phone will do a Google inquiry for info. Address. Phone number. Weather.

[Belfaborac]

Originally Posted by SeaKing

I can agree with the gist of this though I am not much for Facebook (not on it) or chatting or photo editing.

Ditto.

The only thing I am not sure about is the numbers. "huge" seems high but is it just more than 50%.

A huge number, not a huge majority.

[petermillard]

Originally Posted by SeaKing

Would someone that had real hands on experience with the Microsoft Tablet of 10 or more years ago care to comment on it.

I believe it had a stylus.

I have used a stylus on a Palm PDA and on a Wacom pad. How did the MS tablet compare?

I had a Compaq TC 1000 - the early one with the skanky Transmeta Crusoe processor - for a little while. It was perfectly adequate for its time, albeit slow - slooooow - with a so-so 10" screen; chunky, heavy and poor battery life, it was pen-based computing of it's day, but compared to the poisonous Fujitsu tablet I had before that running WinCE it was a joy to use.

WinXP Tablet Edition wasn't bad at all; you could write with 'digital ink' in a specific application (Journal??) or use the 'ink to text' utility to write in a specific area and have the words translated into typing in apps that supported it; handwriting recognition was pretty good, though I do remember having problems putting formulae into spreadsheets with it - the virtual keyboard was a better bet for that.

The pen/stylus was powered, and not Wacom-type, it was something else, can't remember what; FineLine or something like that? I remember it being criticised for not being Wacom-compatible, though I don't think it really made a difference for many people.

It was very expensive at the time, around £1500 UKP I think; my wife's company had a few units in for evaluation, then sold them off to the staff at a big discount, so I picked it up cheaply and sold it on at a profit - I couldn't justify keeping it and I am nothing if not mercenary

Originally Posted by SeaKing

I want a tablet for the cockpit, for the car (disclaimer: not while at the controls). In a tight space. Essentially like an eReader but more. To read, to study, to listen to a course, in the car to have a larger GPS. You don't have to worry about sand or mud in the keyboard while using it. Just protect the ports.

I love the built in GPS, larger than the portable GPS I have in the truck. Note not aGPS with cellular GPS or WiFi, but a built in chip. As for the cellular connection when wanted or needed for email or browsing a WiFi tablet can use a mobile hotspot or a business hotspot.

Now I have tried a phone with all these functions but the screen was too small...

You've just described my usage of a tablet for the last couple of years - though in addition I've been using it as an A-Z, a TV, a radio, my book, news and magazine reader. I've used it to check parking restrictions near a customers house before visiting them, I take all my work notes on it, use it for a whole host of things you'd expect, and a few you wouldn't e.g. invoicing and accounts - who'd have thought?

And every time I hear someone say that the iPad is just a 'media tablet' for 'content consumption' I just laugh to myself; I do understand that it won't work for everyone, but it works just fine for me.

Cheers, Pete

[Sil_liS]

Originally Posted by monkeyluis

It'll be announced soon enough. Apple always discloses their numbers.

We'll see. Apple's market share is shrinking faster than expected.
The estimates from last year were predicting Apple's tablet share to drop to 47% by 2015, but those predictions had a 63.5% market share in 2012.


But now they have a smaller market share than expected:

And this is probably due to ereaders:


Considering that Windows is still the #1 OS:

Windows 8 might take a big chunk of the tablet market share of both Apple and Android.

[murraypaul]

Which of those graphs are meant to be worldwide, and which US only?

[heySkippy]

How in the world do you chart iOS and Android in the same pie with Windows and MacOS? :boggled:

[murraypaul]

Originally Posted by Sil_liS

Considering that Windows is still the #1 OS:

I think that must be installed base, not current sales?
The report quoted here:
http://www.mobileinquirer.com/2012/a...-in-the-world/
Says that there were ~120 million in total of desktops, laptops, netbooks and tablets sold in 2011 Q4, and Apple sold 15 million iPad in that quarter, so that puts them at 12.5% just on iPads, not the whole of iOS.