But specs do not sell tablets. Most consumers are looking for a different experience than what they can get on their desktop or notebook. Without knowing it, they’re looking for lasting novelty. Sure, some consumers want multitasking, some want a tweakable interface, perhaps some out there even want a tablet with seven homescreens and an app drawer. That’s where Android tablets come in. The iPad, however, captures consumers with a slightly new paradigm in portable computing and does so with style and class.
If A Motorola Android Tab Leaks And It’s Just Like The Rest, Does It Really Matter? by Matt Burns from TechCrunch.
Simply put: Android tablets are missing the simplicity and elegance of the iPad.
Therein lies the current problem with Android tablets. Vendors are too busy pimping out specs, playing the same game with tablets that they played with desktops and laptops. Customers flocked to the iPad because of its simplicity, not just in the use of the device but also in being able to determine which model to buy. Have the vendors learned nothing from Apple over the course of the past ten years?
Simplicity is key. One of the reasons Apple’s iPad has been so successful is that it transcends these games. The only real questions a potential iPad buyer must ask themselves are: 1) Do I need 3G access in addition to wifi? and 2) How much onboard storage space do I need? With the impending release of iCloud - and other services like Spotify and Dropbox - the second question is becoming increasingly irrelevant.
The new era of mobile computing will not be defined by chip speeds, RAM and storage space. Instead, it will be defined by other more consumer-oriented features such as screen size, mobile carrier access, and immediate availability of applications.
The latter area - tablet specific applications - is where Android currently lags way behind Apple. Until this changes, Android is going to have a tough time gaining any significant traction in the tablet market.
