Close
  • Latest News
  • Big Data and Analytics
  • Cloud
  • Networking
  • Cybersecurity
  • Applications
  • IT Management
  • Storage
  • Sponsored
  • Mobile
  • Small Business
  • Development
  • Database
  • Servers
  • Android
  • Apple
  • Innovation
  • Blogs
  • PC Hardware
  • Reviews
  • Search Engines
  • Virtualization
Read Down
Sign in
Close
Welcome!Log into your account
Forgot your password?
Read Down
Password recovery
Recover your password
Close
Search
Logo
Logo
  • Latest News
  • Big Data and Analytics
  • Cloud
  • Networking
  • Cybersecurity
  • Applications
  • IT Management
  • Storage
  • Sponsored
  • Mobile
  • Small Business
  • Development
  • Database
  • Servers
  • Android
  • Apple
  • Innovation
  • Blogs
  • PC Hardware
  • Reviews
  • Search Engines
  • Virtualization
More
    Home Latest News
    • PC Hardware

    Happy Birthday, Tablet PC

    By
    Rob Enderle
    -
    November 9, 2003
    Share
    Facebook
    Twitter
    Linkedin

      On Friday, the Tablet PC turned one year old. It has been an interesting year for this new product: In some ways, it was both premature and late.

      Premature, in that the processors and battery technology that would make this product work properly had not arrived by the time it launched; and incredibly late considering it is a transition product from pen and paper, an alternative that seemingly should have arisen much earlier in history of the PC.

      The most painful part of the Microsoft-driven platforms early days: You had to choose between a product that was cool and had great battery life but sucked in terms of system performance (the HP Tablet PC equipped with a Transmeta Crusoe processor) and products that had decent performance but sucked in terms of battery life and system killing heat (models outfitted with the Intel Pentium III-M). It wasnt until late in the first year when Centrino-based systems came to market. Suddenly, we could have decent battery life and decent performance even in the market leading designs from HP and Toshiba.

      Of course, we will likely have to wait for another 12 to 18 months before fuel cells arrive to drive these systems for the 8 to 16 hours that the market demands in a product that is designed fully to replace pen and paper.

      While not perfect, this product has actually had a comparatively good first year. Its success has a lot to do with the products that really defined the product class long before the Tablet PC came to market; we should take a moment to reminisce about some of the departed (and somewhat illegitimate) parents of the Tablet PC. The most memorable of these early tablets is the Apple Newton, which not only helped spawn the Tablet PC but launched the Palm computer—an ironic turn of events that echoed Apples own borrowings from Xerox in the early 80s. (Xerox made early strides with the graphical user interface and the mouse, both of which defined the first Macs and, eventually, Windows).

      If the Newton was the Father of the Tablet, Microsofts WinPad was the mother. This was a product: basically, a laptop computer with a touchscreen that really defined what the market needed in a product and helped define one of the critical decisions for the Tablet—the use of a digitizer over a touchscreen. This allowed users to rest their hands on the screen while writing and provided a much brighter picture overall. This innovation, coupled with the vastly lower cost, allowed the Tablet PC virtually to take over the old WinPad market almost overnight. One died so the other could live.

      The Tablet PCs relative success also has a lot to do with the effort the Microsoft team made to bring the platform it to market; the company did a better job with the Table PC than with any other business-oriented hardware platform I can recall. Recalling the work it did with the Xbox and the Media Center PC, Microsoft sampled the product out to a significant number of influencers, press and analysts. Based on feedback about the product, Microsoft early next year is expected to offer a comprehensive number of improvements; that makes Microsofts Tablet PC unit one of the most responsive Ive seen in any company or industry I cover.

      Over its next two birthdays, the Tablet PC should get bigger (and smaller) as its features begin to permeate the PC market. It will help foster modular computers and as well as a new class of mobile entertainment centers, home automation controllers and wireless displays.

      It will face competition from touchscreen laptops that will come to market at a fraction of what it currently costs. And, in a few short years, it should disappear as a class of product—not die, mind you, but grow to encompass laptop computers, becoming one of the sacrificial parents of next-generation mobile personal computer technology.

      Tablet PC, congratulations on your first year! Now, go out there and propagate.

      Discuss This in the eWEEK Forum

      Rob Enderle is the principal analyst for the Enderle Group, a company specializing in emerging personal technology.

      Rob Enderle
      https://enderlegroup.com
      Rob Enderle is a principal at Enderle Group. He is a nationally recognized analyst and a longtime contributor to eWEEK and Pund-IT. Enderle is considered one of the top 10 IT analysts in the world by Apollo Research, which evaluated 3,960 technology analysts and their individual press coverage metrics.

      MOST POPULAR ARTICLES

      Cybersecurity

      Visa’s Michael Jabbara on Cybersecurity and Digital...

      James Maguire - May 17, 2022 0
      I spoke with Michael Jabbara, VP and Global Head of Fraud Services at Visa, about the cybersecurity technology used to ensure the safe transfer...
      Read more
      Cloud

      Yotascale CEO Asim Razzaq on Controlling Multicloud...

      James Maguire - May 5, 2022 0
      Asim Razzaq, CEO of Yotascale, provides guidance on understanding—and containing—the complex cost structure of multicloud computing. Among the topics we covered:  As you survey the...
      Read more
      Big Data and Analytics

      GoodData CEO Roman Stanek on Business Intelligence...

      James Maguire - May 4, 2022 0
      I spoke with Roman Stanek, CEO of GoodData, about business intelligence, data as a service, and the frustration that many executives have with data...
      Read more
      IT Management

      Intuit’s Nhung Ho on AI for the...

      James Maguire - May 13, 2022 0
      I spoke with Nhung Ho, Vice President of AI at Intuit, about adoption of AI in the small and medium-sized business market, and how...
      Read more
      Applications

      Cisco’s Thimaya Subaiya on Customer Experience in...

      James Maguire - May 10, 2022 0
      I spoke with Thimaya Subaiya, SVP and GM of Global Customer Experience at Cisco, about the factors that create good customer experience – and...
      Read more
      Logo

      eWeek has the latest technology news and analysis, buying guides, and product reviews for IT professionals and technology buyers. The site’s focus is on innovative solutions and covering in-depth technical content. eWeek stays on the cutting edge of technology news and IT trends through interviews and expert analysis. Gain insight from top innovators and thought leaders in the fields of IT, business, enterprise software, startups, and more.

      Facebook
      Linkedin
      RSS
      Twitter
      Youtube

      Advertisers

      Advertise with TechnologyAdvice on eWeek and our other IT-focused platforms.

      Advertise with Us

      Menu

      • About eWeek
      • Subscribe to our Newsletter
      • Latest News

      Our Brands

      • Privacy Policy
      • Terms
      • About
      • Contact
      • Advertise
      • Sitemap
      • California – Do Not Sell My Information

      Property of TechnologyAdvice.
      © 2021 TechnologyAdvice. All Rights Reserved

      Advertiser Disclosure: Some of the products that appear on this site are from companies from which TechnologyAdvice receives compensation. This compensation may impact how and where products appear on this site including, for example, the order in which they appear. TechnologyAdvice does not include all companies or all types of products available in the marketplace.

      ×