The Apple iTablet as a business tool
There are a million reasons why the Apple tablet should succeed with consumers, but is the much-predicted new product likely to be a hit in the corporate world as well?
The rumored Apple tablet computer is almost certain to be a hit with consumers for many reasons. It’s the right size for an e-reader, it would certainly replace a netbook, it would be great at media, it would run all of those app store apps, even if it just ran the iPhone operating system, and is such a perfect size for a really portable computer. There is so much smoke from the rumor mill that we have to believe there is an Apple tablet in there somewhere.
Is there also a chance that the iTablet will make inroads into the corporate world? There are reasons to think so, some of which are laid out in an eWeek story. But there are some key reasons why the rumored Apple tablet has a chance to transform the business world as well, depending on how Apple wants to provision it with features. Or, perhaps more likely, Apple may position different models for different segments of the tablet marketplace.
A basic tablet computer that did all of the things that a netbook and e-reader does would also be helpful for business people. But an advanced or “pro†model (carrying a higher price tag, of course) with a fuller feature set would also be advantageous for corporate types. It could include a phone, usable via bluetooth or a headset, could run a slightly advance operating system (somewhere between the iPhone OS and OS X) and have a faster processor (probably custom-built by Apple), thus becoming the modern version of portable computing in a very small package, with all the usability of a notebook in a much slicker package, and with Apple cachet.
If the pundits are correct, and we are headed toward a future of cloud computing, such a device could fit right into the corporate mindset. Still small enough to fit into a pocket of a suit coat or a purse, certainly small enough to take up just a tiny bit of room in a briefcase with all of your other business tools, a fairly powerful computer that had constant contact with the cloud through Wi-Fi and the wireless phone network seems like a natural fit for business. While everyone else is concentrating on cheaper notebooks and even less expensive netbooks, Apple could be almost alone in trying to tackle the Next Big Thing in portable computing, both personal and business.
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