Ohio Chatter DEV

justincredible

Anyone been reading up on the rumors surrounding the new device?

I know, I know. Apple products suck and Steve Jobs wears mock turtlenecks. I'll get that out of the way now to keep the thread on track.

I've been trying to follow along as much as possible. It appears it will have a 3G connection and the price will be subsidized if signing up for a new data contract. It will run some sort of modified iphone OS and will run all current iphone/ipod touch applications.

Steve Jobs was quoted as saying this is the most important thing he has ever done. It seems like this could be great for college kids and text book publishers. I could see a push towards paperless text books which would be nice. I would have loved something like this while I was in school so I wouldn't have to lug around stacks of text books.

raiderbuck

It looks cool (from the rumor pics), but personally I'd have a hard time justifying purchasing this product.

My first thought would be "great alternative to the Kindle", but that's about it.

Fred Garvin

Does anybody know if there will be a webcast of the event? If so, please post a link. Thanks!

justincredible

raiderbuck wrote: It looks cool (from the rumor pics), but personally I'd have a hard time justifying purchasing this product.

My first thought would be "great alternative to the Kindle", but that's about it.

Yeah, I think it is going to take something revolutionary that hasn't been revealed yet for me to justify buying one. If I were a college kid and could get all my textbooks on it, though, it would be a no brainer.

justincredible

Fred Garvin wrote: Does anybody know if there will be a webcast of the event? If so, please post a link. Thanks!

I'm not sure about webcasts, I usually just follow along on engadget or tuaw. They'll "live-blog" the event.

mucalum49

justincredible wrote: I could see a push towards paperless text books which would be nice. I would have loved something like this while I was in school so I wouldn't have to lug around stacks of text books.

The Wall Street Journal wrote an article stating this is one of the markets that Steve Jobs wants to enter with the tablet, amongst others:

With the new tablet device that is debuting next week, Apple Inc. Chief Executive Steve Jobs is betting he can reshape businesses like textbooks, newspapers and television much the way his iPod revamped the music industry—and expand Apple's influence and revenue as a content middleman.

balk14

why is this getting so much notoriety as a hard copy paper replacement? hp has had the tablet out for 6 years now and i haven't seen/heard them make a dent in this yet? At my college every incoming student was given the new model HP tablet which you'd think would set up the school perfectly to offer paperless books...

justincredible

balk14 wrote: why is this getting so much notoriety as a hard copy paper replacement? hp has had the tablet out for 6 years now and i haven't seen/heard them make a dent in this yet? At my college every incoming student was given the new model HP tablet which you'd think would set up the school perfectly to offer paperless books...

The biggest problem with the Windows-based tablets is that they have crammed a full OS with handwriting recognition onto the tablet at a very large premium over just getting a regular laptop. This tablet will have an OS built specifically for this type of interface. We'll see how well it will work but it seems that Apple is taking a different approach than other tablet makers who have failed.

mucalum49

balk14 wrote: why is this getting so much notoriety as a hard copy paper replacement? hp has had the tablet out for 6 years now and i haven't seen/heard them make a dent in this yet? At my college every incoming student was given the new model HP tablet which you'd think would set up the school perfectly to offer paperless books...

In all honesty I think that the market just wasn't ready for the HP tablet when it came out. You always here that saying "way before its time"; but six years ago could you imagine having cell phones that do the things that the iPhone and Android phones do? I think the popularity of these devices made it possible for the Kindle and other such readers to see that there is a legitimate market out there for such products. Apple is joining in with a product they very possibly could have released earlier but maybe decided to hold back till there was enough perceived demand. Just my $.02...

cbus4life

It is certainly nice and could be quite revolutionary, but i'm still not buying into the "ebook"/"etextbook" thing just yet. In my field, we've been hearing about it for years, and still nothing has significant has happened.

I could possibly see it happening with college textbooks, as the cost is getting outrageous, but even that remains to be seen, and i'm skeptical whether it will really change things a whole lot.

I've taken part in a few recent studies on ebook users and the like, and i just don't seen any strong indicators that people are willing, on a whole, to committ to the whole idea.

Time will tell. Costs will play a huge factor.

But, we still have to realize, that the cost of producing these "e" materials just doesn't go away or fall drastically because we don't have to produce the physical book anymore. Cost is just transferred to the folks maintaining the electronic resources/making them available.

raiderbuck

mucalum49 wrote:
balk14 wrote: why is this getting so much notoriety as a hard copy paper replacement? hp has had the tablet out for 6 years now and i haven't seen/heard them make a dent in this yet? At my college every incoming student was given the new model HP tablet which you'd think would set up the school perfectly to offer paperless books...
In all honesty I think that the market just wasn't ready for the HP tablet when it came out. You always here that saying "way before its time"; but six years ago could you imagine having cell phones that do the things that the iPhone and Android phones do? I think the popularity of these devices made it possible for the Kindle and other such readers to see that there is a legitimate market out there for such products. Apple is joining in with a product they very possibly could have released earlier but maybe decided to hold back till there was enough perceived demand. Just my $.02...

...and because it's an Apple...lol

I don't mean in a "oh Apple is a superior company, blah blah blah," kinda way. It's just that Apple usually releases some big products at their January events. The latest two "new" products were the iPhone and the Macbook Air. We all know how much fanfare there was with these two products.

What's also supposed to be released is an update to the iPhone OS i believe. Also Macrumors.com usually posts about the events too.

OneBuckeye

My biggest problem is I don't want to buy a freaking data plan for this thing. Just make it have wifi and use it like an ipod touch. I already pay a cable and phone bill why would I want another bill. I am going to use it like a laptop not a phone. I will have wifi whereever I go or I can plug it into a wall.

justincredible

OneBuckeye wrote: My biggest problem is I don't want to buy a freaking data plan for this thing. Just make it have wifi and use it like an ipod touch. I already pay a cable and phone bill why would I want another bill. I am going to use it like a laptop not a phone. I will have wifi whereever I go or I can plug it into a wall.

I don't think a data plan is required, but I could be wrong.

OneBuckeye

I hope not.

Fab1b

I am interested in it but won't get it, I already have an Iphone and a Macbook pro, they have too much of my money already

!

OneBuckeye

Last minute leaks

http://www.boygeniusreport.com/2010/01/27/last-minute-apple-tablet-leaks-images-emerge-books-to-cost-12-99-14-99-1-per-episode-tv-shows/

In the waning moments before Apple’s highly anticipated tablet event, a few last minute leaks are stirring up the excitement. First, we have some blurry pictures of a tablet device of approximately 9-10 inches in size running a version of the iPhone OS. The device is encased in a plastic housing, bolted down to a table and covered with a black drape. This cloak and dagger treatment is reportedly standard practice for any super secret Apple device so these images may indeed be the Apple tablet. Apple is also reportedly in last minute negotiations with book publishers and television studios to finalize pricing for its rumored tablet device. Apple is rumored to be pushing Hollywood to offer $1 per episode pricing on television shows in iTunes and is offering book publishers a pricing scheme that would set book prices at $12.99 to $14.99 for best sellers with a basement price of $9.99 for less popular books. Apple would reportedly take a 30% cut of all sales, leaving book publishers with a take home price of $10.49 or less. This could place them between a rock and a hard place with Apple offering a potentially larger audience with less revenue per book, or going with Amazon which offers greater revenue per book with its Kindle but may not have the reach and allure of this rumored tablet.

MrPoke

Everything i've read is that the iPad will come in three sizes: 10" 13" 15" and will start at $600 and will be on sale in march. The photos i've seen make it look like a giant iphone. I've also read that it will be partnered with Verizon and other companies as well. Have also heard that Apple will announce the end of AT&T exclusivity for the iPhone.

Granted they are all just rumors, most of them seem pretty credible. I am absolute certain though that either the new tablet or iPhone will involve Verizon in someway. Verizon informed their managers of a big announcement today at 1pm, the same time Apple is expected to begin their "big" event.

Anna-Town

http://live.gizmodo.com/

Here is where i'm following it at.

Ytowngirlinfla

e readers don't have data plans they have built in data. i like the ereader concept, i use my itouch with the kindle app, the only problem is a lot of authors aren't in on it. Grisham my favorite author hasn't gone that way yet and it's because i think they won't make as much profits and also a lot of pirating going on.

OneBuckeye

going on now...

from jobs presentation.