IDEA No 97
TABLET DEVICES
When Ted Nelson described a hypermedia docuverse in 1974, he called for a user interface so simple that a beginner could understand it within ten seconds. Thirty-six years later, when Apple released the iPad, he got his wish.
Multi-touch gestures, such as pinch and zoom, swipe and tap, have become standard across devices.
When Steve Jobs announced Apple’s latest revolutionary product in 2010, the touchscreen tablet PC appeared to be nothing more than a large iPhone. A large iPhone that could not be used to make calls. Why would anyone want one? Within a month, a million had been sold. Plenty of people wanted one.
The iPad is portable, good value and packed with features. More importantly, it’s fun. Add thousands of apps made for the device – many available free – and you have a winning combination. Whereas computers are work tools, tablets are for entertainment.
Rather than replacing the PC, the tablet complements it. We use a conventional computer with a keyboard when we want to be productive; tablets are used from the sofa while watching TV. Perfect for email, surfing the Web, watching movies and playing games, the tablet is a lean-back, rather than a lean-forward, device.
One of the unexpected behaviours prompted by the rise of the touchscreen device is multiscreening. The TV no longer commands our full attention. While we are watching our favourite shows, we are also using our tablets to chat with friends, play games or write emails. We may start watching a film on TV in the lounge and finish watching it on a tablet in bed.
The tablet PC is no passing fad: 200 million iPads have been sold, and similar products like the Motorola Xoom and Samsung Galaxy are also proving popular. Suprisingly, it is not another hardware manufacturer that is Apple’s biggest challenger. Amazon’s Kindle Fire is proving yet again that it is content, not technology, that drives demand.
The iPad and its touchscreen technology is the biggest breakthrough in interface design since Douglas Engelbart introduced the mouse at the Mother of All Demos in 1968 (see The Mouse). The mouse was unsurpassed for 40 years. I would not bet against the tablet device having similar lasting power.■
‘Rather than replacing the PC, the tablet complements it.’
Touchscreen displays are inextricably linked with the success of tablet devices, challenging the 40-year dominance of the mouse.