The rumor about Apple Tablet has been very persistence for couple of years now. Right now the rumor is as strong as ever and predicting the announcement of the product in September/October, 2009. It will run the full Mac OS X and have a slot loading superdrive . The screen size is more likely be 10" and Intel Atom chip inside the tablet.
Currently Apple is talking to book and music publishers in an effort to get access to content for the new device. Back in May we outlined extensively the move by Apple to deliver a device that will allow consumers to easily read their morning newspapers on an Apple screen with media organisations offering a low cost monthly subscription rate. The content will interface with new touch software from Apple that allow pages to be turned easily and enlarged using two fingers. Advertising in the newspapers and magazines will contain links which allow consumers to access a web page directly from their device.
Mark Mulligan, vice-president and research director of consumer product strategy at Forrester Research, said: "the rumours around a tablet are pretty presistent building up to this. Everything strategically makes sense: the one thing that record labels are still unable to do is to get people to buy albums in sizeable numbers. The problem is that iTunes unbundles albums; to persuade people to buy bulk, they have to deliver added value."
Some of the impetus for the new device is believed to have come from record companies which have seen their incomes plummet even when people buy content legally because far fewer now buy entire albums; Apple's iTunes Music Store, launched in 2003, allows people to download single tracks rather than buying the whole album at once - drastically cutting the income for the record company.
Is it going to compete with Amazon Kindle ? It may even compete with ASUS Eee PC netbook ?
So, can Apple turn the Tablet PC into a success when previous attempts has failed.? The short answer is 'yes'. Any company that can make a mobile phone with no buttons, no picture messaging, slow Web access and no video capture into the most desirable phone on the planet can easily make tablets popular.
