You can never underestimate the desire of the consumer to impress the neighbors with the latest and greatest gadget. That latest and greatest gadget today is the tablet, the device that has been called the "answer to the PC" as if it will replace the laptop computer within the coming generation.
However, the downfall of the tablet is based on one simple fact: It is redundant.
Tablets are simply a hybrid of the laptop computer and the smartphone, a kind of "smartphone 1.5" or "laptop 0.5" that attempts to combine the best features of each, but ends up leaving out what makes each of those devices unique, special, and more than anything, practical.
A tablet is neither as powerful as a laptop nor as portable as a phone. It is more an accessory than anything else, and the sales of the iPad 2 (much less than that of the iPad 1) shows that reality is somewhat sinking in for the general public.
Keep in mind, there is nothing bad about tablets. If the laptop or the smartphone did not exist, the tablet would definitely be on the list for "Greatest gadget to hit the Information Age."
However, the tablet was built in response to consumer demand for something more powerful than a smartphone. That would be the notebook, which has everything that the tablet has, plus a keyboard so that you can actually type on it.
And yes, you can wire in a keyboard to a tablet, but that is just adding to the clunkiness of the device.
If you remember back about a decade ago, there was another device that people thought was just the bee's knees at the time. At the time, everyone who was someone, especially socially mobile professionals, simply had to have one, whether they needed it or not.
The PDA.
And where is it today? That's right; it turned into the smartphone.
The good thing about tablets is that it brings to the table some great technologies that can be folded into the laptop computer and into the smartphone. Tablets are good for the future of technology. However, in and of themselves, they are simply not useful enough to warrant being kept for a long period of time in the mainstream. Once the newness wears off and people get back to business, rather than trying to impress the guy next to them on the plane in first class (as if first class in this economic environment isn't impressive enough), the tablet will most likely go the way of the PDA.
This is hardly a bad thing. I can't wait to see what's next, and believe me, I will be the first in line.
Britney Fuller is a writer who enjoys sharing her knowledge and advice with readers. For more on tablets, Shake The Tech offers readers more on the subject.
