Tuesday, November 8, 2011

My TouchPad Today: Four Months in the Buffet Line with the TP?

As of today, I'm at the four-month mark with my TP and figure its a good time to take a look in the rearview mirror and peer into the crystal ball about what lies ahead.

Rearview Mirror
  • The TP was in sad shape when it debuted in July and is somewhat better now that it has received a couple of updates. But let's not kid ourselves into thinking that's its a polished product worth $500. The firesale price of $100 for the 16GB model is too low, but a helluva lot more realistic than the debut price.
  • Copy/Paste remains incredibly bad.
  • QuickOffice and Smart Office have brought document editing to the TP, but both have limitations that make a fella long for a PC with a full-fledged web browser and mouse.
  • Sometimes ya just need the functionality and precision of a mouse to get things done.
  • The TP, despite its limitations, has largely saved my laptop from the bumps and bruises of four months in the world of coffee shops, fast food joints, cars and back porches.

Crystal Ball
  • The TP is a goner, but tablets, as a whole, are here to stay. The question is... Where will they fit in the roster of devices we own and use?
  • For my money, the tablet wont be a PC killer/replacement. It also won't be a smartphone replacement. Each device falls into a niche, somewhat like the assortment of woods and irons a golfer carries in his bag. There's some personal preference involved in club selection, but the good golfer knows how to pick the right club for the right situation.
  • Tossing around more metaphors here... Right now the world is in the midst of a tablet craze and folks are using tablets just for the sake of using tablets. When the dust settles (or the bubble bursts) the tablet will be the buffet line of the online world, the spot to graze and consume from the Internet online menu. The PC will continue to be the kitchen and dinner table of the online world.

What's in your TP rearview mirror and crystal ball?



This post was drafted on my TouchPad


Follow me on Twitter... @rnolan1087

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