Random Ideas

Who out there has not heard of the iPad by now? Surely only a select few people now live so far under a rock that the iPad is a mystery. But, what does a person do if they want something similar and can not swallow the massive price that Apple places on the device? Many people can’t justify a $600-$900 expense for what amounts to a very large (and heavy) iPod Touch. In it’s defense, it is fast, with a slick interface. Batter life is pretty good too…

In the other corner…

While Google has not yet declared Android ready for use in tablets, they are flooding the market. You can buy them on line and in Walmart. The quality and size varies greatly though. The two form factors that seem most popular are 7 inch and 10.2 inch. They offer different CPU speeds and storage. What is nice is almost all of them have a slot for adding a micro SD memory card to increase storage. Some come with GPS, cameras, or even 3G connectivity. Prices range from $77 to $600 depending on who you buy from. Verizon and T-Mobile both now offer the Samsung Galaxy Tab with a 3G plan.

If you shop for one of these interesting devices, remember that it is NOT an iPad. Even the slowest and cheapest of the Android tablets work wonderfully for eBook use. In fact, some come with a Kindle client installed and you can install the Nook reader as well as other eBook readers on the device. Battery life varies greatly, but the market is still young.

One area that is a problem is that the sellers often do not know enough about the devices. Often they will confuse the specs of the device and tell you things like, “It has Android 1.9!” For the record, the current Android versions are as follows; 1.1, 1.5, 1.6, 2.0, 2.0.1, 2.1, and the current version, 2.2. What they are often doing is giving you a revision number for the chipset. That version has nothing to do with the Android version, but some diagnostic apps for Android misreport it as the Android version.

Apps for Android is one area where Apple can not compete. Apple has one app store, Android has at least three other than the one sponsored by Google. Not only that, but you can download the tools to make your own if the mood strikes you. There is no fee to pay or kit to buy in order to start making apps and sell them to other users.

I recently got my hands on a wimpy, slow, quickly discharged, android tablet running version 1.6. I love it! It cost all of $110. Web browsing is nice. Media playback works fairly well. The high point is the ability to read eBooks and create documents with Documents to Go. I also love to use it to get current weather and such.

As I see it, Apple has a LOT to worry about. Next year, Google has hinted they will release the first version of Android that they think is ready to be used in a tablet. By then, hardware vendors will hit the market with devices that promise to blow our minds. If I were a certain Mr. Jobs, I would be working on price breaks and heaping on the features before the market shifts to a consortium of vendors with choices for the users.

Many of you may have read the recent remarks by Apple representatives about netbooks… They generally denegrated the platform and called them “cheap and flimsy” if memory serves. They claimed that low quality was the only way the price could be so low.

I am going to have to call BS on all counts. I happen to own an ASUS  1000HA. I have it dual booted with Windows XP and Ubuntu 9.4. I also have done various levels of support and repair on Apple computers and laptops for the last 12 years. What Apple fails to admit is that every time they tried to make a small machine similar to netbooks, they ended up with junk. Case in point the Macbook Air… No physical network port? Are they NUTS? (Yes, they are.) Larger machines, they make very nicely (although they are still over priced in the extreme). Ever since they failed at the Newton and the Powerbook Duo, Apple has had a chip on their shoulder for the subnotebook/netbook category. Add to the issue that a refurbished, off brand netbook can easily be made to run the latest Mac OSX and you have a very sore spot for a proprietary company that is used to charging two thousand dollars for a small form factor laptop.

Apple is going to have to grow up and deal with the fact that zealots are not the end all, be all of marketing. At some point, you have to actually give the market what they want to stay in business. They learned that with the iPod and the iPhone. The iPhone is merely a better version of the touch screen phones that Palm, Audiovox, HP, and many others have been selling for years with great success and considerable proffit. The iPod is just an improved MP3 player. MP3 players were popular in the market before the iPod and will always be.

I think they need to stick to actual advantages in their product line rather than propaganda that insults other manufacturers to sell their product. Either that, or admit that they lack to intellect and skill to compete in the netbook category.