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Asus Insider Claims Apple Tablet Is Real

CaptainCrunchyApple writes "According to cnet.co.uk the oft-rumoured Apple Tablet PC is actually very real, and on its way soon. CNET claims to have spoken to an anonymous tipster at Asus who claims to be working with Apple to produce the tablet. 'We're guessing it'll be based on Intel Core architecture, a tweaked version of Leopard, and have all the multi-touch, CoverFlow goodness we've seen in the iPhone and iPod touch. All this begs the question: Can Apple turn the Tablet PC into a success when previous attempts have failed? The short answer is 'yes'. Any company that can make a mobile phone with no buttons, no picture messaging, slow Web access and no video capture into the most desirable phone on the planet can easily make tablets popular.'"

10 of 358 comments (clear)

  1. Nifty. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Tablet PC's have been cornered by Windows for a while now, it'll be nice to see some competition in the market.

    1. Re:Nifty. by djh101010 · · Score: 4, Insightful

      I should have been more specific. I'm talking about officially-supported unlocking, and an officially-supported SDK. So you can keep your phone under warranty and not have to wait for hacks to use your own SIM or applications. The contractual reasons for not having officially-supported unlocking are well known. And I have to mention that my Treo 600 was locked to Verizon, I couldn't use it with any other service provider. Oh, and there was no SIM card that I could access, and the battery also wasn't user-replacable, just for the record. The officially supported SDK comes out in January or so, if you don't want to use the third party one that's been out for months already.

      You're not hallucinating, you simply don't make the distinction between official and unofficial.
      You're right, it doesn't matter to me whose sdk is used to write third-party apps for my iPhone. Why should it?


      As for GPS, cell triangulation is NOT GPS. Considering there are phones out there with actual bona fide GPS in them, having to use a rough technology like cell triangulation seems a bit cheap.
      Fair enough - works more than well enough for me where I live, maybe I'm supposed to be bothered that it's coming from cellphone tower locations instead of time shifts measured from geosynchronous orbit but, functions the same from my perspective. And even if it didn't exist, that lack of one minor feature is more than made up for by the usability of the rest of the iPhone.

      I'm not disliking it out of ignorance. Not having an official SDK or an official unlocking method, which can leave your phone inoperable with the latest firmware, is a show-stopper. Ah, so you _are_ intentionally distorting facts. Because this latest is quite a backpedal from your initial points that it couldn't be unlocked and had no SDK.
  2. Previous Attempts?!?! by iknownuttin · · Score: 5, Insightful
    All this begs the question: Can Apple turn the Tablet PC into a success when previous attempts have failed?

    The link they give goes to an article about the Newton. I don't mean to be pedantic, but comparing a PDA to a Tablet?

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  3. Apple Tablet WAS real by alta · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Unfortunatly, ASUS will now suffer the Wrath of Jobs. This won't be the first time Jobs nixed a product because some dumbass at the company making it spilled the beans. Someone refresh my memory, when was the last time this happened? Was it the ZFS debacle? I think it happened before that with some hardware once as well...

    Thanks to this anonymous poster, we'll never see the rumored Apple Tablet. Thanks

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  4. Re:If it sells by Yahweh+Doesn't+Exist · · Score: 4, Insightful

    what's with all the hate?

    why care SO much that you HOPE people end up being unhappy? don't you worry there's something wrong with you?

    plus your Apple tax thing is clear BS since you only pay Apple money if you buy Apple products. that's not a 'tax', it's a 'cost' or 'price'. the more you know!

  5. Fine, but Apple's handwriting recognition sucks! by TomorrowPlusX · · Score: 4, Insightful

    As much as I'm a "loyal" Apple user ( I came from linux, and I do love OS X ) I will say flat out that Microsoft's handwriting input is years ahead of Apple's. Microsoft has thoroughly integrated it, with very impressive recognition and overall it *feels* right, like MS really put a lot of love into it.

    As it stands today, "Ink", Apple's handwriting interface leaves a lot to be desired. In principle, it's nicely done. A good sort of floating scratch pad which you can write on, which will insert into the active doc. But, the quality of the handwriting recognition is pretty poor. God knows Apple has the resources to do this right. I'm sure there's a lot of left over experience from Newton ( if Jobs didn't fire all of those guys ), but as it stands, if Apple released a tablet with Ink it would be useless for anything but consuming media.

    Frankly, I don't want to consume media. I want to use a computer, and a tablet is a nice form factor. I know I'd never write code on a tablet, but I'd like to think I *could*. I used to sketch out prototype algorithms using graffiti on a palm ( which I'd later edit/compile/etc on my desktop ), it was a nice thing to be able to do. What I don't want is a real computer which is so hobbled by bad input that it's only good for music, internet and video.

    Seems to me Apple *could* do it... but who knows. Microsoft pulled it off, so, let's let competition bloom!

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  6. Re:I just don't see it... by UnknowingFool · · Score: 3, Insightful

    I'm sure Apple will have solved the touch screen, keyboard and attractiveness issues, but I just don't see how they'll get around the weight.

    Apple will probably focus on this aspect unlike other manufacturers, as Apple has a tendency to work on form and function. Other manufacturers don't go the extra mile to do both. After all, the first iPod was considerably smaller than the Nomad.

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  7. Re:I just don't see it... by dave420 · · Score: 4, Insightful

    It didn't fail in the slightest. The swivel keyboard is optional, and is a way to turn a notebook into a tablet. It's not forced on people. You don't buy a nice slimline tablet and Bill Gates turns up on your doorstep threatening your dog with a shotgun, screaming until you swap out your tablet for a notebook/tablet hybrid. Funnily enough, people want those machines, hence them being available to the public. Some folks like being able to draw using a pen on a tablet they hold, and also like using it as a notebook. Some just like the tablet-only computers that don't have a keyboard, which weigh considerably lighter, and run all office software you can shake a stick at. But please don't let facts get in the way - you were on a roll.

  8. Re:I just don't see it... by compro01 · · Score: 3, Insightful

    i personally like the swivel bit. there're a lot of times when i need a keyboard or a write-on screen and that seems to be to be the most elegant method for it, rather than having to lug around an external keyboard, plus a way to prop up the tablet or use a OSK (which is too damn slow).

    though i agree that weight is an issue. perhaps solid-state drives and ultracaps replacing the battery would help for that.

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  9. Business 101 by Space+cowboy · · Score: 3, Insightful

    It's not stupid at all. Apple make a huge impact every time they release something major - far and away more than any of their rivals. There's a direct relationship between the secrecy of the company and the buzz for a release, which translates into a *lot* of cash in sales. One of the reasons the iPhone was themost successful consumer product launch in history is the control over information that Apple exerts.

    When the benefits are measured in billions of dollars, it makes perfect sense to implement the policy that Apple does. Sure it's an easy shot to blame it on Steve's ego, but it looks like a cold blooded business decision to me.

    Simon

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