The iPad is the tablet market, for now
That lede may rankle Android enthusiasts. But let me begin with a vignette that illustrates the confusion that prevails with tablets other than the iPad.
A few tech blogs posted headlines on Thursday and Friday proclaiming that the Motorola Xoom had dropped to $500 at Costco.
I decided to swing by my local Costco in suburban Los Angeles Friday night to verify this, since one of the biggest criticisms of the Xoom has been its high price vis-a-vis the iPad. Why make the trip to Costco and not just verify this online? Well, that eye-catching price didn’t show up online.
So, on entering Costco, the first section I ran into was electronics. And the Xoom is prominently advertised: banners are in your face at the entrance and hard to miss. That’s good. Unfortunately, the buying experience went downhill from there.
The first hint of trouble was the complete absence of pricing. No $499 banner that I had seen in the tech blog. Not even a small price tag. Nothing. So, of course, I asked a clerk about this. She apologized about the lack of a posted price and then promptly excused herself to find out what was happening. Apparently, it wasn’t an easy question to answer, because it was a long time before she returned.
What took so long? She had to talk to her manager because there was some confusion. About the price, of course. Or lack of it. The verdict: $789.
Needless to say, I was surprised, as that’s higher than the online price and a far cry from $500. But that was the only price she gave me. (And it’s possible that other Costco stores may be selling the Xoom for $499 or $500, but certainly not this one.)
App Developers Sticking to iPhone
Apple’s iPad and iPhone, let alone the explosion of Android devices and new offerings from RIM and Microsoft. That’s the takeaway from the joint IDC/Appcelerator quarterly survey of 2,760 mobile developers, out today.
The survey represents the third such partnership between research firm IDC and Appcelerator, which builds products that help developers recompile their applications for multiple platforms. Over the past six months, developer interest in both Apple’s iOS platform and Google’s Android platform has remained flat, even as more Android devices have shipped than any other kind.
App developers say the problem is that as Android is deployed on more devices, it’s becoming harder to develop for it, because of a profusion of device specifications and a pool of newcomer app developers, many of whom were Web and desktop developers just two years ago. Robert Koch, whose team develops the task-list organizer Wunderlist, wrestles with the vagaries of Android development every day. (Wunderlist is on iOS, Android, OS X, Windows, and the Web.)
“It’s very, very difficult to write a good application for every Android device,” says Koch, who cites differing screen resolutions, hardware configurations, and CPU speeds as core concerns. “We had to buy a lot of devices just [to test] our little task-management app.
Apple launching iPad 2 overseas
Apple is launching its iPad 2 in more than 25 countries on March 25th, 2011. Their supply shortage is not stopping them from launching the products abroad quickly.
The market leading tablet will start selling in Korea, Hong Kong, Singapore and more markets. Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO, mentioned that the launch of the iPad 2 comes at a time when the company’s competitors are yet struggling to catch up to its first iPad.
“We’re experiencing amazing demand for iPad 2 in the US, and customers around the world have told us they can’t wait to get their hands on it,” Jobs said. “We appreciate everyone’s patience and we are working hard to build enough iPads for everyone.”
Microsoft’s iPad Competitor Not Due Till 2012?
It’s been more than seven months since Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer told investment analysts that becoming a major player in the tablet computing market was “job one,” but the company has little to show so far, even as the iPad will celebrate its first birthday next month.
In fact, it may be late summer next year — that is, as much as a year and a half — before Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) seriously enters the market for tablets, according to a published report.
Friday, Bloomberg reported that anonymous sources with knowledge of Microsoft’s plans had said that the company won’t be finished adding in all of the necessary features to Windows, ostensibly Windows 8 at that point, to support tablet computing — until late summer 2012.
“Public testing of a new version of Windows will begin at the end of this year with partners and customers, said the people, who declined to be identified because the plans haven’t been disclosed publicly,” the report said.
While the company itself has been officially mum, various reports claiming sources close to the software giant say that Microsoft plans to provide tablet features like support for multiple touch displays, greatly expanded battery life, and instant on capabilities in Windows 8 which is due around that time.
Best Buy rumored to give Apple’s iPad to all its sales associates
A new report claims that big-box electronics retailer Best Buy may be preparing to hand out iPads to each of the on-floor sales associates in its 1,100 US stores.
“A source with knowledge of corporate mobile device deployments” has told Forbes that one of the 10 largest retailers in the U.S. will soon distribute iPads to all its sales staff. The source noted that the retailer in question operates 1,100 U.S. stores, making Best Buy, which had 1093 U.S. stores as of September 2010, the most likely candidate.
The report also notes that Best Buy is a natural match because of its existing relationship with Apple. When the original iPad was released last year, Best Buy was one of Apple’s few launch day retail partners. Best Buy has already begun advertising the recently announced iPad 2, which goes on sale on March 11.
Best Buy’s rumored widespread rollout of the iPad to its employees could come as part of the company’s Connected Store initiative. The retailer launched a pilot program in 27 stores last year that gave several mobile devices, such as iPads, iPod touches and Samsung Galaxy Tabs, to sales associates for the purpose of educating consumers and processing purchases. According to the report, Best Buy has acknowledged that the Connected Store pilot could be expanded in the future.
iPad Trade-in Economy Explodes, Portends Huge iPad 2 Sales
If the burgeoning trade-in activity for the original iPad is any indication, sales of the iPad 2 could exceed even the most brazen predictions.
Trade-in programs from Gazelle, eBay and NextWorth are all reporting sustained levels of user interest. Meanwhile, Apple is giving some recent iPad 1 buyers a $100 discount.
iPad Trade-in Economy Explodes, Portends Huge iPad 2 Sales
1 hour ago by Christina Warren
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ShareemailshareShare 33emailshareIf the burgeoning trade-in activity for the original iPad is any indication, sales of the iPad 2 could exceed even the most brazen predictions.
Trade-in programs from Gazelle, eBay and NextWorth are all reporting sustained levels of user interest. Meanwhile, Apple is giving some recent iPad 1 buyers a $100 discount.
Four things to expect from Apple tomorrow
It’s hard to believe it’s been a little more than a year since the original iPad’s introduction. Since its unveiling last January, Apple has sold more than 15 million of the devices, well beyond the company’s original expectations, as can be witnessed by the long wait times in its first few months of availability.
Competitors like Motorola are just now beginning to release iPad competitors like the Google Android-based Xoom, with HP trailing not too far behind with the WebOS-powered TouchPad due this summer. Meanwhile, Microsoft is plotting to make Windows squeeze into all matter of form factors in its move to support ARM processors in the next version of the OS.
That brings us to tomorrow, when Apple is expected to detail the next major version of the iPad at an invite-only event here in San Francisco. CNET will be there to bring you the news, as it happens, with our live blog. In the interim, there’s a small laundry list of things that can be expected alongside a successor to Apple’s slate effort:
A new iPad
If you’re expecting Apple to release a follow up to the iPad tomorrow, chances are you’re right. As with rumors leading up to the original iPad’s release, there have been all the signs a product refresh is on the way, from reseller supply chains drying up, to a number of purported parts showing up from overseas manufacturing facilities.
Apple iPad launch due on March 2: source
Apple Inc is expected to launch its new iPad on March 2, contrary to speculation of a delay of the latest version of the popular tablet computer.
One person familiar with the matter said recent speculation about a delay until June was “simply not true” as Apple is planning a launch in the same seasonal schedule as the first iPad, which went on sale in April 2010.
Apple will host an event on March 2, where the company is expected to take the wraps off the newest iPad model, an individual with knowledge of the situation said. Apple declined to comment.
Shares of Apple fell 3 percent after a Taiwanese brokerage firm said the next version of the iPad tablet computer will be delayed as maker Hon Hai faces production bottlenecks due to the device’s new design.
But analysts quickly downplayed the report, noting that Apple has been reliable when it comes to its release schedule.
“Apple has a very consistent track record,” said Hudson Square Research analyst Daniel Ernst.
The speculation over the timing of the iPad unveiling comes as unverified tabloid reports of the faltering health of its iconic chief executive, Steve Jobs, cloud perceptions of the company’s ability to maintain its global technology leadership over the long term.
Apple’s Steve Jobs prioritizing next-gen iPad, iPhone on medical leave
While on medical leave for undisclosed health issues, Apple CEO Steve Jobs continues to work from home, remaining especially involved in work on the second-generation iPad and the next version of the iPhone, according to a new report.
The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday that, as expected, Jobs has stayed “closely involved in the company’s strategic decisions and product development” during a medical leave to focus on his health, according to people familiar with the matter.
Apple announced in January that Jobs would take a medical leave of absence for the second time in two years. At the time, Jobs wrote in a press release that he would “continue as CEO and be involved in major strategic decisions for the company.”
According to the Journal’s sources, Jobs continues to work on “the next version of the iPad tablet computer, expected out in the next couple of months, and a new iPhone, expected to be released this summer.”
Sources also reported that day-to-day operations remain “nearly unchanged” under COO Tim Cook, although some said there is a “sense of sadness” because of concerns about Jobs’ health. Cook also managed operations for the company while Jobs took his previous leave, earning $59 million in the process.
Though pundits have speculated about Jobs’ reasons for his leave of absence, the exact nature of his condition remains unclear. People who have seen Jobs in recent months have said that he “continues to look thin.” Sources also told the Journal that Apple and Jobs “appear to be going about things in much the same way as they did during his previous medical leave, at the time of his transplant.”
Dell previews conceptual tablet running Windows 7
Without providing a price or release date, Dell has begun showing a non-working prototype representing a 10 inch tablet running Windows 7.
According to report by CNET, the product is aimed at users “who need greater mobility, as well as IT organizations that demand control, security, manageability, and integration with existing infrastructure investments.”
Named the Windows 7 Business Tablet (rather than using the Dell Streak brand), the product concept is short on specifics apart from needing to use an Intel processor. Last month, Microsoft announced plans to port Windows 7 to the ARM architecture used by Apple’s iPad, but said this would take at least two years to deliver. Dell hopes to bring the concept to market “sometime later this year,” according to the report.
Steven Lalla, Dell’s vice president of its commercial client product group, said that “businesses want Windows because it fits into the IT management scheme,” before qualifying that with, “not to say Android doesn’t.”
For those who don’t need Windows to fit into the IT management scheme, Dell will offer the same hardware running Android, an interesting choice given that so far, most Android tablets are built around ARM devices like the iPad.