The Mac Tablet is (Relatively) Pointless
The Apple tablet is the white whale of the Mac enthusiast community. It’s one of those products that every die hard geek seems to think will change the world, but seem to overlook it’s painfully obvious lack of usefulness in the real world. Heck, I want one, and I have absolutely no practical use for the damn thing. So what’s the big deal?
Who would really need a Mac tablet? Well, the same people who have already adopted those dreadful PC tablets Gates has been pushing for the last 5 years. We’re talking doctors, educators, engineers and I suppose a small audience of digital artists. Ironically, these are also the fields that seem to have a disproportionally higher number of Mac users.1 Why walk around with a bunch of patient history papers when you can carry one device with all that information, and everything else you could possibly want to know about them, their condition, etc. It only makes sense that these fields, and I suppose others, would want to move towards this.
Of course, this leads the obvious question: is there any practical use for these things in my home? For me, there isn’t. I do want one, because the idea of just picking up a device and taking it into the living room to browser the web without the hassle of trackpads or positioning the laptop display just right so it isn’t blocking my view but I can still see the TV.
Wait, I think we already have this. It’s called an iPhone.
Many people are pondering the same thing you are or have already on this topic. What about a larger form-factor iPhone/iPod Touch? Always on. Connectivity anywhere. Simple, elegant user experience. Proven development platform. Of course, this idea is not without its pitfalls. How would Apple support iPhone apps on a larger display? They couldn’t just stretch them out- that would look hideous. Besides, Apple would want to take advantage of the larger resolution. More room for developers to add widgets and functionality. But there goes your 1:1 app compatibility with their already huge App Store.
So what about just slapping the full version of OS X on it, with 3G support? Sure, that would work. You still loose out on iPhone apps, but at least you’d have the whole range of existing Mac software to work with. But what about the elegant simplicity of the iPhone? Is taking your index finger and carefully clicking a menu item as satisfying a experience as a carefully placed mouse cursor?
Apple has surprised me in the past, and no doubt they’ll do it again. Everyone agrees, a Mac tablet is coming; I just wonder if we’re talking a year from now, or more like 5. I think the perfect Mac tablet is already here, and it’s called an iPhone.
1. No, I have absolutely no studies to back that comment up; it’s just been my experience.