If you’ve even glanced at a website in the last month you’ve probably heard the speculation that Apple will be releasing some type of tablet device at their event on the 27th. This certainly isn’t the first time that there has been rumors spreading across the net about the mythical Apple tablet. Time and time again the rumors proved to be false. This time around there certainly is a lot more evidence than there has been before – and with all these other eBook readers and the like coming out of the woodwork it certainly is possible Apple wants to continue take grabs its piece of the media pie.
I’ll be honest, I won’t really believe it until I see it. Too many times in the past there were indicators that Apple was about to release one, and they ended up releasing something else. So yes, I’m skeptical.
The tablet market has also been a rather niche one, more so than many other technologies. Things like the Kindle, or the recently released Nook, have come along that are a bit of a compromise between a touch computing platform, and media enabled device. Both are geared towards being a digital replacement to the shrinking dead tree industry. Multi-functionality is something that we don’t see much of in these early renditions. While this may change in the future, right now there is a window for a combination of a media device (music, movies, and books) and a device to deal with our online lives (social media, e-mail, web browsing, etc.). If anyone can take a fledgling market and make it a must have experience it will be Apple. The question is, is it the right time? Is Apple even releasing this beast? Or will the 27th leave all the Apple Tablet fan club kiddies sad little pandas?
Just a Man with a Mash Paddle 