Think of all the doctors out there that could use a portable tablet. I have never understood why the medical field has such a reliance on paper files. I feel that it always comes down to the entry of the data. Can you imagine if Apple used it’s newton handwriting technology with a tablet. Way way cool. Lots of possibilities with a device like we have been talking about.

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A Mac tablet would be interesting, except we’d have to get by one of SJ’s (apparent) pet peeves:  “Who wants a stylus?”  No way SJ would say that the average finger allows finer control and better handwriting than a stylus does when it comes to things like tablets.  And who wants smudges all over the tablet screen?

I noticed yesterday that Dell has a tablet coming out next week.

But they are being sued for touch screen patent infringement .

[quote author=“granny smith”]I believe there’s more than few pro photographers or graphics folk around here who can attest that the pounds add up.  And needing to protect the electronic gear as well as haul it around is an issue.

Photographers would shoot polaroid test photos in the analog age.  Now the lap top is used on most location shoots.  I lust for a lightweight tablet/laptop.  A touchscreen image processor…......nice.  Direct, fast, wireless downloading from the camera….....even nicer, but I’m probably dreaming.  These things will come someday.  At Macworld?.......  Who knows.

I am not a professional photographer,  but that is the number one reason I take my MacBook with me.

I would love a touch tablet to input my photos in and view.  To only carry an extra 2 pounds around would sure be nice instead of 7.

[quote author=“willrob”]I noticed yesterday that Dell has a tablet coming out next week.

But they are being sued for touch screen patent infringement .

Perhaps that’s one of the perils of outsourcing your R&D to the far east.

Apparently you have not used an iPhone much.  The iPhone touch screen technology blows away those concerns.  I believe SJ has stayed away from tablets precisely because of the need for a cumbersome input device (mouse, keyboard, or stylus). The iPhone interface solves that problem.  I now see a tablet in Apple’s future that is essentially a very large iPod Touch, but with sufficient memory and storage resources to run all the standard OS X apps.  The old Newton handwriting recognition software is still alive at Apple.  It could be included, but it wouldn’t be needed.  This thing will finally fly.

[quote author=“Zeke”] I now see a tablet in Apple’s future that is essentially a very large iPod Touch, but with sufficient memory and storage resources to run all the standard OS X apps.  This thing will finally fly.

Yep that’s exactly how I see it except I don’t think it will be configured to just run standard OS X apps (although it may be technically capable of doing so). I think SJ will configure it like an iPhone/touch and require apps to be specially configured to work on it, to ensure the best possible user experience.

[quote author=“Tommo_UK”][quote author=“Zeke”] I now see a tablet in Apple’s future that is essentially a very large iPod Touch, but with sufficient memory and storage resources to run all the standard OS X apps.  This thing will finally fly.

Yep that’s exactly how I see it except I don’t think it will be configured to just run standard OS X apps (although it may be technically capable of doing so). I think SJ will configure it like an iPhone/touch and require apps to be specially configured to work on it, to ensure the best possible user experience.

Yes, that is. New Leopard features have already been designed with the touch control in mind, IMO. Touch navigation through folders and files, touchy dock, etc.

I seem to remember an Apple patent being revealed, about this time last year, that detailed a motion sensor system for a hand-held device.
Maybe it will make an appearance in the “tablet”.  Could make for a bitchin’ game system, or kindle thingie. A little shake to make a page turn.  Lots of possibilities.

[quote author=“granny smith”]I seem to remember an Apple patent being revealed, about this time last year, that detailed a motion sensor system for a hand-held device.
Maybe it will make an appearance in the “tablet”.  Could make for a bitchin’ game system, or kindle thingie. A little shake to make a page turn.  Lots of possibilities.

The motion sensor is already in the iPhone and iPod Touch for rotating images. The patent simply explored other possibilities to broaden patent claims.

Zeke, I don’t own an iPhone, but I have used it from time to time at the Apple Store and have also played with/set up two iPhones owned by other family members.  I’m just not entirely sure if people could get used to, or could see the merit in, dragging their fingers all over a _tablet_-sized computer screen—only because styluses are the norm in that realm.  But if the tablet isn’t _presented_ like your typical Mac, and has custom interface elements to encourage multi-touch use as Tommo_UK mentioned, then I can see Apple moving along the paradigm shift away from styluses.

[quote author=“Mav”]Zeke, I don’t own an iPhone, but I have used it from time to time at the Apple Store and have also played with/set up two iPhones owned by other family members.  I’m just not entirely sure if people could get used to, or could see the merit in, dragging their fingers all over a _tablet_-sized computer screen—only because styluses are the norm in that realm.  But if the tablet isn’t _presented_ like your typical Mac, and has custom interface elements to encourage multi-touch use as Tommo_UK mentioned, then I can see Apple moving along the paradigm shift away from styluses.

There are already more iPhones and iPod touches in circulation than the entire production run of Tablet PCs. Apple has already established the paradigm the majority will be used to and will expect