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From my understanding Apple spent a lot of time getting the form factor right for the iPad. A lot of thought went into ensuring the OS was adequate for the devi

by ergo98 16y ago

From my understanding Apple spent a lot of time getting the form factor right for the iPad. A lot of thought went into ensuring the OS was adequate for the device. The device is too big and too heavy. The OS far from optimal for the device. That the Galaxy Tab is a pretty marginal device, with a slew of weaknesses, in no way validates anything that Apple has done with the iPad. The iPad is a superior device to the tab. However I, and billions of other people, haven't opted to buy it. The market waits for something that fits our needs better. It's as if companies think it's the shape of the device matters more than the experience of using the device. I guess knowing this What does this even mean? It sounds like some sort of iPad-owner defensive reaction to a smaller tablet. Samsung couldn't suddenly make Android tablet-ready, but as above you're drawing the wrong conclusion. A 7" tablet with a unoptimized OS does not invalidate a 7" tablet. A tablet with an unoptimized OS does not validate every facet of a tablet with a more appropriate OS. As one aside, and to go slightly conspiratorial, the lack of decent Android competitors to the iPad falls largely on Google's shoulders. It strongly seems like Google was of mixed emotions about tablets, desperately wanting devices bigger than a smartphone to be owned by the ChromeOS project. They ignored the market, undermined the market, and only came around after lots of delays, all while ChromeOS slowly pushed its way into the light.

arethuza 16y ago
I honestly think the iPad size is spot on - a larger one would be too clumsy and a smaller one would sort of defeat the purpose of a device a bit. It might be a bit on the heavy side (and I had to think about that) but I guess it is a trade off with battery size - and I'm pretty pleased with the battery life. I'm not a particularly enthusiastic smartphone user (I have both a work iPhone and a personal Android phone) - I use the iPad far more than my phones.
- srik1234 16y ago
  I think it is still a bit early to rule out 7" tablets, since Tab is the only 7" device in the market now and running a non-recommended OS. "Price" could be a deciding factor in this case. $649 is a ridiculous price. ( http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00480P67K/ref=asc_df_B00480P67K1414228?smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=asn&creative=395093&creativeASIN=B00480P67K http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00480P67K/ref=asc_df_B00480P67K141... ) Pricing it above iPad is unbelievable. Someone who pays $649 (or $599 through discount stores) expects a greater value than iPad experience, which Froyo does not meet.
- berntb 16y ago
  I agree. The iPad size allows me to, more or less, read web pages and standard pdf documents even with my old eyes. 7" must be a sweet spot for some people that don't need to read documents and want a screen larger than a mobile phone -- but still need the difference in portability. But I doubt it is a large niche.
yequalsx 16y ago
The problem I have with your statements below " However I, and billions of other people, haven't opted to buy it. The market waits for something that fits our needs better." are that this could have been said of any object 9 months after its appearance. This could have been said about movies, TV, radio, cell phones, etc. I think it's clear that there is a market for iPad like devices. My statement about shape versus experience is that there are a slew of tablet devices that clearly have been rushed into production. I think companies are doing this because they want to say, "We're in the tablet market too." Samsung made a tablet for the sake of making a tablet. I don't think they put much thought into the device. They were more focused on having a device than on having a device with a good user experience. Apple spent a lot of development time before they released the iPad. This shows in their product. There is nothing wrong with a 7" tablet. There is something wrong with a 7" tablet using an OS not designed for such a device. Android isn't tablet ready and people should not expect Android tablets to be as good as the iPad. BTW I don't own an iPad. I never buy first generation hardware.
- ergo98 16y ago
  I think it's clear that there is a market for iPad like devices. Of course there is, as the market has clearly shown. I suspect that there will be a market for 5", 7", 10", 12", and so on tablets. Consumer choice is good. Yet your post seemed to posit that because the iPad has succeeded where the Tab hasn't, every decision Apple made with the iPad (in particular form factor) has been validated. That is specious reasoning.
  - yequalsx 16y ago
    My original post mentioned that Apple spent a lot of time thinking about the user experience of the iPad before they actually produced it. Samsung hasn't put nearly as much thought into the user experience. The point being that it's natural that the Galaxy Tab has a higher rate of return than the iPad. It should be the case that iPad is the market leader in this category. They created the category and made a very nice device. The other tablets are not nearly as polished as the iPad and this is obvious once you use them. Concluding from what I've written that I think that "every decision Apple made with the iPad (in particular form factor) has been validated" is a miscarachterization.

by ergo98 16y ago

arethuza 16y ago

I honestly think the iPad size is spot on - a larger one would be too clumsy and a smaller one would sort of defeat the purpose of a device a bit. It might be a bit on the heavy side (and I had to think about that) but I guess it is a trade off with battery size - and I'm pretty pleased with the battery life. I'm not a particularly enthusiastic smartphone user (I have both a work iPhone and a personal Android phone) - I use the iPad far more than my phones.

srik1234 16y ago
I think it is still a bit early to rule out 7" tablets, since Tab is the only 7" device in the market now and running a non-recommended OS. "Price" could be a deciding factor in this case. $649 is a ridiculous price. ( http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00480P67K/ref=asc_df_B00480P67K1414228?smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=asn&creative=395093&creativeASIN=B00480P67K http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00480P67K/ref=asc_df_B00480P67K141... ) Pricing it above iPad is unbelievable. Someone who pays $649 (or $599 through discount stores) expects a greater value than iPad experience, which Froyo does not meet.
berntb 16y ago
I agree. The iPad size allows me to, more or less, read web pages and standard pdf documents even with my old eyes. 7" must be a sweet spot for some people that don't need to read documents and want a screen larger than a mobile phone -- but still need the difference in portability. But I doubt it is a large niche.

yequalsx 16y ago

The problem I have with your statements below " However I, and billions of other people, haven't opted to buy it. The market waits for something that fits our needs better." are that this could have been said of any object 9 months after its appearance. This could have been said about movies, TV, radio, cell phones, etc. I think it's clear that there is a market for iPad like devices. My statement about shape versus experience is that there are a slew of tablet devices that clearly have been rushed into production. I think companies are doing this because they want to say, "We're in the tablet market too." Samsung made a tablet for the sake of making a tablet. I don't think they put much thought into the device. They were more focused on having a device than on having a device with a good user experience. Apple spent a lot of development time before they released the iPad. This shows in their product. There is nothing wrong with a 7" tablet. There is something wrong with a 7" tablet using an OS not designed for such a device. Android isn't tablet ready and people should not expect Android tablets to be as good as the iPad. BTW I don't own an iPad. I never buy first generation hardware.

ergo98 16y ago
I think it's clear that there is a market for iPad like devices. Of course there is, as the market has clearly shown. I suspect that there will be a market for 5", 7", 10", 12", and so on tablets. Consumer choice is good. Yet your post seemed to posit that because the iPad has succeeded where the Tab hasn't, every decision Apple made with the iPad (in particular form factor) has been validated. That is specious reasoning.
- yequalsx 16y ago
  My original post mentioned that Apple spent a lot of time thinking about the user experience of the iPad before they actually produced it. Samsung hasn't put nearly as much thought into the user experience. The point being that it's natural that the Galaxy Tab has a higher rate of return than the iPad. It should be the case that iPad is the market leader in this category. They created the category and made a very nice device. The other tablets are not nearly as polished as the iPad and this is obvious once you use them. Concluding from what I've written that I think that "every decision Apple made with the iPad (in particular form factor) has been validated" is a miscarachterization.