How to compete with iPad Matt Legend Gemmell February 5, 2010
This is an open letter to the many companies who want to compete with the iPad. Sony, HP, the JooJoo people; all of them. Dear Potential iPad Competitors, We've all seen the media furore about the iPad, and we know that this day has been coming for a long time. There's something natural and seductive about the idea of a tablet computer. Something to do with the form factor, portability, implied intuitiveness and non-computery quality of the thing. It's straight out of Star Trek, and a lot of people want one in their lives. I'm a little worried about you, though. Your usual tactic is to simply copy the industrial design of the most successful product, reduce the price, then adopt a pump and dump strategy until your next quarterly financials. That's fine in itself; that's how business works. I just think you're misinterpreting both why people are excited about the iPad (even if they don't realise it), and what exactly you need to copy. I think you might be on a dead-end track without even realising it. I'm here to help you. I mean that genuinely. As you read the previous paragraphs, you were probably assuming I was speaking in a sarcastic, mean-spirited Apple fanboy tone - I assure you that's not the case. Yes, I'm a Mac/iPhone/iPad developer and contractor, and I'm excited about the iPad, but I'm more excited by the general class of devices which iPad represents. I don't want Apple to be the only company who understands the potential and attraction of devices like these. I use an iPhone, but I'm glad that there are now many other touch-screen smartphones with polished interfaces, multi-touch capability, desktop-class web browsers and functionality-enhancing sensor hardware. A good idea is a good idea, and I'd like everyone to have access to it. Competition is good, but only as long as it's good competition. A flood of second-rate imitations doesn't help anyone; not the customer, and not even your bottom line. The better you compete, the more marketshare you'll have and the more choice the consumer will have. I'm trying to take a long-term view of this burgeoning market, because it's the responsible thing to do given that I care about empowering people in general, rather than enriching one specific company (whichever company that might be). So, let me tell you about a few areas in which I think you might have got the wrong end of the stick about iPad, and what you need to do to compete with it most effectively. ... http://mattgemmell.com/2010/02/05/how-to-compete-with-ipad *********************************** * POST TO MEDIANEWS@ETSKYWARN.NET * *********************************** Medianews mailing list Medianews@etskywarn.net http://lists.etskywarn.net/mailman/listinfo/medianews
