The PC, Laptop, Notebook, Tablet or the Smart Phone?The arrival of Windows8-powered Surface Tablets is sure to unsettle te oligopoly of Google's Android and Apple's iOS. Tablets that run on Android and iOS were just offshoots of a single stem: the Smartphones. With no added features and apps, except high-resolution screen and some USB ports, tablets did not cast any magic on the users. Windows was waiting for the right moment to pounce and grab the opportunity; this resulted in the disclosure of their undercover operation on a tablet that runs on the latest Windows 8 Operating System, which is yet to be released.
Tablets never became an intimate gadget for any of its users other than for the ones who got it as a gift. One major reason for this is that compared to a Smartphone, the tablet is a less portable device; but with an identical interface and similar functions, except for the bigger screen. I have seen people going haywire after losing their Phones; but in case of Tablets, people are concerned only about whether the game or a movie they were playing has stalled or not. For obvious reason: one gives her heart only to someone who best understands it. Tablets never became integral for the purpose of communication. Though many of them came with the latest 3G to 4G connectivity, its users never thought of using it beyond watching movies, playing games and at times checking the mail.
Where did the manufacturers go wrong?
Deciding that the tablets can become future mobile alternative made a mess. When people prefer 'small is good' it is absurd to believe that a 7 inch screen can penetrate into their communication habit. Microsoft's decision to go ahead with a tablet that works like a regular laptop is not an out of the box thought. Microsoft tried to accomplish this even in 2000 by coming out with its Windows Tablet Computer, which failed miserably in the market.
The failure was the result of the companys' lack of farsightedness. However, gaining inspiration from the users' frequent interaction with mails, social media and other online apps, windows designed the new Metro style operating system Windows 8, with Homescreen becoming the gateway for many applications. Its one touch access belittles all the existing interfaces in the tablet industry.
Addiction has never stopped gadget hoppers from moving from one brand to another. This is evident when we think of mobile phones. The once glorious Nokia Symbian had to heed to the pressure from the Android mobiles and was forced to pitch in Microsoft to rescue them from the market ditch. People like to experiment with new gadgets, if they move forward buying Tablet with full PC functionality that means the irritating alarm bell will start to ring in the rivals' ears, signaling that it is time to revitalize the existing technology.
The innovation in technology is not something built overnight. Many heads rub each other to form a conclusion on creating new devices. True about the creation of Tablets too. A long trail is left behind during assembling of a Tablet, which has the latest specifications.
Rather than the addition of peripherals the trend seeks for reduction of protruding extensions. A series of such expulsions can be seen from the era of desktops until the now popular tablets. Integrated virtual keyboards replaced the physical keyboards seen in PCs and laptops; the mouse is almost dead, with the integration of touchscreens with better precision and one touch access. Earlier processors used to be room heaters, such was the noise and heat they radiated; over time processors became 'Atoms', leaving no trace of their existence.
We can neither ignore the past generation of gadgets (of humans too), nor can we stick on with the old paradigms. Tablets may be a future revenue generator or in the passing of time, they may surpass Laptops and Ultraboooks in performance and better user experience. Desktop, Laptop, Smartphone, Tablet or whatever, when new brilliance puts in better devices, for the poor ones, doors open to the garve of electronic waste.
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