So, I’m WAY behind on updates here at TechnologEase and there’s a lot to discuss and get caught up on. But all in good time. (Side note: One thing I’m finding, especially in light of the recent news about Steve Jobs is… either you are reading the news, or you are making it; there isn’t time to do both. You think Steve Jobs had time for a blog and updating a blog and reading industry news all the time? Think again. He was the news and still is. Food for thought.)
But, breaking the are-news-or-reading-news axiom for a moment… I just have to write about the following… Wanna be tablet makers take notice; I’m just blown away that no one in the I’m-not-an-iPad tablet business seems to be getting this:
So the wife and I head out to pick up a couple of New York strips and fixins. The “children” (my four mostly grown) are all out of the house visiting the Minnesota State Fair and since I can cook as well as most chefs in 3-4 star restaurants, why drop $100 for an evening out when I can recreate for $10 a plate? So we’re in this unnamed retail outlet to pick up the fixins and I run across the new Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 tablet.
I pick it up. Feels great. Feels like an iPad 2, maybe even slightly thinner. I turn it on. Looks impressive. I start trying to run some applications. Not impressive. My wife was standing beside me and she’s got absolutely NO technical sense of direction — north is south is east is west. Immediately we both look at each other. It’s noticeably sluggish. The next question out of our mouths, as just simple consumers is… “Why would I buy this over the iPad 2??!!”
Tablet makers, are you hearing this? Do you understand what you are up against? Who your real competition is? Have any of you gone out and bought an iPad and actually used it? Have you asked ANYONE what they think of any of of your prototypes? Have you done any field market analysis work on any of what you are doing, sampling your average consumer for response?!? To your prototype designs? HAVE YOU CONSIDERED YOUR PRICE POINTS??
I mean, seriously… we immediately put the tablet down and went about our shopping; it was instant “case closed.” It looked nice, but that was about it. And at $479 (this was a discount retail outlet, so this was slightly discounted), we didn’t even bat an eye. It went right back on the shelf. We weren’t impressed in the least. (1) It’s not an iPad, (2) It’s noticeably more sluggish than an iPad, and (3) it’s the same price as an iPad. What idiot would buy it?!
Look guys… you’ve got to get this figured out and soon or it’s game over. (It may already be.) For the money, ounce for ounce, the iPad 2 is light years ahead of where you are now. The iPad 2 is second generation. The rest of you are all first generation. And you’re not even as good as the iPad 1 in a lot of cases.
We walked down the aisle and there was an 8″ Vizio tablet for $289. Now that’s more like it. It’s a little thicker than the iPad 2 or the Samsumg Galaxy, but you know what? As a consumer, I don’t really care. As long as it’s not a brick, I’m willing to be a bit forgiving on the thickness. I’m just saying, they have it “right.” It’s not an iPad, it has decent response, it’s a quant little device, it’s useful. If I didn’t already own an iPad 2 and I was a little tight for cash, I would easily consider making the purchase of this Vizio tablet.
Tablet makers, here’s the deal. You aren’t an iPad. That’s the first thing most people are going to think aside from a very small population of die-hard Android geeks. “I don’t have the money for an iPad, but I want something similar with similar functionality and similar performance.” That’s your market. At $450+, as a consumer, you’re already in range for an iPad. So why, if I’m budget crunched and not an Android geek do I want your product?
I don’t. Suddenly the gigantic differential in sales makes a lot of sense, doesn’t it? I don’t think this column is going to be news to anyone who reads it except the other tablet makers, who, for whatever reason, don’t seem to have a clue and don’t seem like they are doing the simple due diligence of field market research and some of the product design pre-reqs that first year marketing and product design students are taught.
The axiomatic rule, the first thing you have to understand is… You aren’t an iPad. Market and price accordingly and we’ll begin to see if Apple can be given a run for their money. I think someone out there can, and with the resignation of Steve Jobs, this is every other person’s big break. The Michael Jordan of technology has retired — hung up his sneakers. But you are not going to be able to compete head to head in Apple’s $500 Roman arena. There’s a Maximus out there somewhere fighting in Alexandria, and that arena is in the $250-$350 (tops!) price range. The first company that figures this out will defeat the rest of the Commodus wannabes out there.
As a mere regular tablet consumer with a lot of IT running in me, I feel like I’m just stating the obvious. The thing we as tablet consumers wonder is… is any other tablet maker going to listen?
