The word is out. Everyone needs a tablet. Nobody new it until Apple came out with the iPad. The big mystery is how we lived without them for so many years.
It makes sense. We need the iPods because the iPhone's are too big to run with. We need the iPhones because the iPads are a bit too big for our pockets. We need the iPads because laptops are just too heavy. We need the laptops because desktops arent portable. And we need the desktops because ... well, just because.
To think there was a time where you couldn't update your facebook page while walking to work. To think of all those friends who didnt know you were walking to work at that exact moment. To think that there was a time when facebook didnt even exist. A more primitive time when our survival instincts took over and we had to manage life without having phone and internet access at every moment of our lives.
Ok, so it sounds like Im one of those guys who hates change. Im getting older and I suppose at some point I may become that person, but I still see myself as far too young for that phase. I love thinking about the potential, about where we are going. I find myself fascinated by some of the things that are happening. But tablets just arent one of them.
I want fewer devices, not more. I want to do more things with less hardware. I want everything integrated. I want my old stuff to be obsolete, not complimented. I dont want to fill a gap with a new product, I want to replace a broader spectrum with a new product. I like waking up and not having that many things to worry about. I leave my house with my wallet and my phone. It used to be just my wallet. I don't want a carry-all to hold my wallet, phone, tablet, chargers, extra batteries, protective cases, fold out keyboard, and wireless mouse. The more responsibility you put in my hands, the less happy I am. Give me fewer things to watch over, and Im a customer.
But tablets arent really about moving technology forward. They arent that novel either. In fact, little of what Apple has put out has been novel. Marginal improvements on poorly marketed novel products that nobody was every told they needed. Apple is taking advantage of their current status. They needed another thing to sell us. They dont want us to stop buying the other things, they want us to buy more things. So while it may not be making my life better (or your life better), it is good business. As for us, the consumers, we have disposable income with nothing really great to buy (that we dont have already). Tablets are filling a need - we work jobs we dont like to earn money to buy things. So there had better be something new to buy! Apple helped us out there.
But thats not progress, innovation, or moving us forward. I hate watching movies on airplane screens. Even my 32 inch tv is looking small. So why would I want to watch movies on a tablet? I find my arms too tired of holding books while Im laying down trying to relax. So why would I hold a tablet? I type slower on my computer than I can think, I type slower on my phone than on my computer, and I type slower on a tablet than on my phone. So clearly I dont want to type on the thing. Can I really be so unique that a product that clearly has so little value added to me has so much value added to the rest of the world? I doubt it.
So before you buy a tablet, really think. What do I want? We are the consumers, we should be driving the market, not some rich folks in Silicon Valley trying to get even richer. Let's figure out what we want and begin demanding that. If you do that and what you come up with is a tablet, go for it. But if you decide what you want is an entertainment system thats wirelessly synced to the internet and your hard drive allowing you to store your music, tv shows, movies, playlists, favorite channels, and photos once and play them seemlessly from whatever you happen to have in front of you wherever in the world you are without cables, set up, or complex file browsing, then lets make a stink and say so. Maybe then Ill be ready to buy the next hottest product to hit the market. Until then, Ive opted to toss it.
It makes sense. We need the iPods because the iPhone's are too big to run with. We need the iPhones because the iPads are a bit too big for our pockets. We need the iPads because laptops are just too heavy. We need the laptops because desktops arent portable. And we need the desktops because ... well, just because.
To think there was a time where you couldn't update your facebook page while walking to work. To think of all those friends who didnt know you were walking to work at that exact moment. To think that there was a time when facebook didnt even exist. A more primitive time when our survival instincts took over and we had to manage life without having phone and internet access at every moment of our lives.
Ok, so it sounds like Im one of those guys who hates change. Im getting older and I suppose at some point I may become that person, but I still see myself as far too young for that phase. I love thinking about the potential, about where we are going. I find myself fascinated by some of the things that are happening. But tablets just arent one of them.
I want fewer devices, not more. I want to do more things with less hardware. I want everything integrated. I want my old stuff to be obsolete, not complimented. I dont want to fill a gap with a new product, I want to replace a broader spectrum with a new product. I like waking up and not having that many things to worry about. I leave my house with my wallet and my phone. It used to be just my wallet. I don't want a carry-all to hold my wallet, phone, tablet, chargers, extra batteries, protective cases, fold out keyboard, and wireless mouse. The more responsibility you put in my hands, the less happy I am. Give me fewer things to watch over, and Im a customer.
But tablets arent really about moving technology forward. They arent that novel either. In fact, little of what Apple has put out has been novel. Marginal improvements on poorly marketed novel products that nobody was every told they needed. Apple is taking advantage of their current status. They needed another thing to sell us. They dont want us to stop buying the other things, they want us to buy more things. So while it may not be making my life better (or your life better), it is good business. As for us, the consumers, we have disposable income with nothing really great to buy (that we dont have already). Tablets are filling a need - we work jobs we dont like to earn money to buy things. So there had better be something new to buy! Apple helped us out there.
But thats not progress, innovation, or moving us forward. I hate watching movies on airplane screens. Even my 32 inch tv is looking small. So why would I want to watch movies on a tablet? I find my arms too tired of holding books while Im laying down trying to relax. So why would I hold a tablet? I type slower on my computer than I can think, I type slower on my phone than on my computer, and I type slower on a tablet than on my phone. So clearly I dont want to type on the thing. Can I really be so unique that a product that clearly has so little value added to me has so much value added to the rest of the world? I doubt it.
So before you buy a tablet, really think. What do I want? We are the consumers, we should be driving the market, not some rich folks in Silicon Valley trying to get even richer. Let's figure out what we want and begin demanding that. If you do that and what you come up with is a tablet, go for it. But if you decide what you want is an entertainment system thats wirelessly synced to the internet and your hard drive allowing you to store your music, tv shows, movies, playlists, favorite channels, and photos once and play them seemlessly from whatever you happen to have in front of you wherever in the world you are without cables, set up, or complex file browsing, then lets make a stink and say so. Maybe then Ill be ready to buy the next hottest product to hit the market. Until then, Ive opted to toss it.
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