The speculation about the upcoming product from Apple, presumably some form of tablet computer, is all over the place. The more I read the more I want. The more I want the more I wish. The more I wish the more I desire a big iPhone.
I’ve thought about it a lot over the last several weeks. I began to ask myself ‘If Apple comes out with a tablet computer what would it have to have for me to buy one and use it?’ I came to the conclusion that I think they could simply hit a homerun by making it a big iPhone.
The iPhone has been a transformative device for me personally. In my link to the L5 remote I wrote this about the utility of the device:
"The utility of an iPhone is something that is being realized over time. It is a simple, extensible touchscreen device that can and will replace many, many other devices. Think of the devices it has already replaced (for those of us that own one). For me the iPhone has already replaced a pocket-sized digital camera for quick photos, an iPod, a phone, a “netbook†like device for Internet access (anything smaller than a laptop), a notebook, a pocket dictionary (not a device I suppose), a photo album, an alarm clock, a calendar, a to do list of some sort, a wireless remote control for my surround sound when playing music through iTunes, a pocket-sized gaming device (like a Nintendo DS or the like), and much more."
By simply making the iPhone bigger what other voids could the device fill? Because of the size of the iPhone I have never used it to read anything of great length like a book and haven’t ever written anything of great length like a blog post or company memo. However, if the iPhone were larger, presumably, I’d be able to do those things.
But, like the Kindle, that wouldn’t be enough to get me to open my wallet. The way I figure it, it’d have to let me access the Internet everywhere. This is the moment we’ve all been really waiting for isn’t it? It is what everyone enjoys so much about tethering laptop computers to their Internet connected phones. It will change everything. Having a device that lets you access the Internet from virtually anywhere in the world is the transformative device.
Having the Internet everywhere, even on my small screened iPhone, has changed the way that I live. I no longer print directions, as an example. Heck, I no longer even worry about things like directions. Things like where to eat, or being able to find information about my flight before I get to the airport. I just pack and go. I can do banking on the go, check email, send a photo to my wife before I purchase something, and communicate with people on just about every service imaginable.
My Macbook Pro is much more usable than my iPhone on a variety of levels yet I don’t take it with me everywhere I go. It is big, doesn’t come with a built-in Internet connection, and is overkill for many of the tasks I need on the go. The speed at which I’m able to accomplish things is much quicker on my laptop than my iPhone for a few reasons – technical specs, screen size, keyboard size, and Internet connection speed. If the tablet could make up ground on any of those fronts I would bring a tablet with me everywhere that I went simply for the ability to access the Internet in a much better fashion than my iPhone.
So that is what I want in a tablet. A big iPhone for reading, writing, and better Internet access. If it does this well than everything else that it will no doubt do will be icing on my cake.
