Apple iPad vs “White Box” Tablet - Jason's Argonauts Home Improvement The Next Big Thing

Originality, I fear, is to often only undetected and frequently unconscious plagiarism.

Dean W. R. Inge, Wit and Wisdom, Preface

With the meteoric unchecked rise of the Apple iPad to prominence since  the first Apple iPad made its debut on Saturday 3^rd April 2010AD as stated in my blog article entitled “Apple iPad and the future of Mobile Computing”, comes plagiarists.

Statistics from analyst IDC indicate that the Apple iPad accounted for 83% of the total Global Market share of Tablets in the last Quarter of 2010 as stated in the article “iPad Market Share Stabilizes as Post-PC Apple Products Surge”, published March 10, 2011, 1:36pm PT by Charles Jade, GigaOM. 

Overall in the Tablet space, which now includes the Samsung Galaxy Tablets, the Blackberry Playbook Seventeen Million (17,000,000) of them were shipped worldwide in 2010AD.

Certainly explains Apple’s hoarding of Tablet components as noted in my blog article entitled “Apple and the WWDC in June 2011 - Space Above and Beyond Android”.

This is backed up by the article “IDC: Apple iPad secures 87 percent Market share”, published JANUARY 18, 2011 1:50 PM PST by Don Reisinger, The Digital Home - CNET News, which analyzed and touts IDC’s results that speak of the phenomenal success of the Apple iPad and the Tablets in the nascent Market Internationally, showing that it is not just a fad!!

With a projection of forty four million six hundred thousand (44,600,000) Tablets to be shipped in 2010AD and seventy million eight hundred thousand (70,800,000) Tablets to be shipped in 2012AD, Apple CEO Steve Jobs “post-PC era” is right on track as per my blog article entitled “Apple iPad 2 and PC future - Doomsday in the Battlefield” and chronicled in my Geezam Blog article entitled “Are we witnessing Laptop and PC Extinction?”.

Despite this, Tablet adoption in the US is still too slow for some PC makers to commit fully to what is still a growing but untried Market, the result of my suggestion of the Apple iPad by yours truly back in April 2009AD to a bunch of not-very-entertaining Shurpower Generator Engineers!

Thus, No. 1 PC maker Dell is looking to the fast growing economies recession-resistant of the People’s Republic of China, India and Japan and their thirst for technology to boost their lackluster Tablet sales thus far as stated in the article “Exclusive: Dell spurns U.S. in launch of Android Tablet in China”, published JUNE 8, 2011 9:34 PM PDT by Brooke Crothers, CNET News – Nanotech.

PC Makers appeared initially to be flummoxed and confused as to what to do next in face of the Apple iPad and the Apple MacBook Air onslaught as stated in my blog article entitled “Apple iPad, PC Makers and Battery Life - Lost in Space and The AppleByte”.

Intel, thankfully, has risen to the challenge, organizing the Intel and PC camp by first introducing the brand new 22nm Ivy Bridge Processors. This was touted as being more energy efficient and having improved transistors density and heat dissipation, effectively and Iso-linear Processor as stated in my blog article entitled “Intel & Poison Ivy Bridge Processors - 22nm in an Iso-Linear of Their Own”.

Intel then did one better by then defining new parameters for a new category of computing device, namely the UltraBook as stated in my blog article entitled “Intel and the UltraBook - Stephen King's MacBook and iPad Thinner Hex”.

This UltraBook will take its place alongside the Smartbooks e.g. the Google ChromeBook and the Tablet e.g. the Apple iPad, erasing all that existed before in your computer textbook.

Which, if all goes according to plan with the new Sandy Bridge Processors as stated in my blog article entitled “MacBook Pro and Intel LightPeak - Thunderbolt and The Fantastic Mr. Fox” and Ivy Bridge Processors slated to appear in devices by the Fourth Quarter of 2011, will revive the sagging Laptop sales by giving customers that which they desire: performance and great specs at prices mere mortals can afford.

I still have my sights on buying a Google ChromeBook this Christmas 2011AD as stated in my Geezam Blog article entitled “Digicel’s Cloud Backup Services – A Deep Analysis”, as I like the idea of a NC (Network Computer), a device I have dreamed of since hearing it discussed when I was but a Sixth former at Glenmuir High School back in 1997AD.

This as streaming the London Olympics 2012 starting July 27^th 2012AD is just around the corner!!!

So it is not surprising that yet another trend has begun to emerge, that being the rise of a “White Box” Market for Tablets as stated in the article “Beyond the iPad: “White-box” Tablet numbers explode”, published MAY 21, 2011 1:47 PM PDT by Brooke Crothers, CNET News – Nanotech.

This discovery of a Market for makers of unbranded Tablets from components similar to that of HP and Apple was based on discrepancies in component orders discovered by analyst DisplaySearch, which like iSuppli, tracks component statistics.

This as best expressed by DisplaySearch analyst Richard Shim, quote: “When we were doing checks for Q1 (first quarter), we noticed that for 9.7-inch, 1024-by-768 panels, there was a discrepancy in the numbers that were produced versus the numbers that Apple and HP were reporting. So, there were a couple million of these tablets produced”.

Not surprising that their may be a DIY (Do It Yourself) Market for Tablet in the Wild, as this is an essential part of any computer Market.

This as it improves the Biodiversity of the Tablet Market and ensures rapid increase in the Tablet Adoption. Akin to Chinese Dual SIM phones or even the purchase of PC Components to build your own PC, these initial devices are of a lower quality, thanks to the availability of free Google Android SDK.

This translates to costs for a “White Box” Tablet of US$199 – without contract. Alas, this is too good to be true, I am afraid!

Thus explaining DisplaySearch analyst Richard Shim prediction of their demise, quote: “So can we expect white-box markets to be a recurring influence on the Tablet Market? The verdict is still out, but what we're hearing in China is that many of the white-box players are regretting their foray into the...Market and are considering withdrawing their Tablet PC business”.

It appears that Apple’s push towards quality and user experience is the big winner here. But they [“White Box” Tablet] spur Tablet Adoption, which is the basis of my Biodiversity argument.

This as being that they are made from components by Third-Party Tablet makers riding on the success of the Apple iPad, like the Google Android-powered smartphones.

They are a techie’s dream in terms of ease of modification, as one can easily “root” i.e. go to the device Hard-Drive’s partition highest folder within which the sub-folders are contained, modify and reinstall the OS, if one so desires. Thus improving the products in terms of OS and specs, as a Market to supply components for repairing such devices exists, much as exists with Blackberrys and PC’s.

The latest report by DisplaySearch analyst Richard Shim indicates that the Market for “White Box” Tablets is on the rise as stated in the article “'White box' tablets surge, gaining on Apple”, published JUNE 7, 2011 5:45 PM PDT by Brooke Crothers, CNET News – Nanotech.

Apple iPad’s is in pole position globally, with 53.6% of the Tablet Market for the First Quarter of 2011AD. Samsung Galaxy Tablets are in a close second place finish, are ranging in with 26.8% of the Tablet Market for the First Quarter of 2011AD

But it is the “White Box” Tablets in Third Place with 19.6% of the Tablet Market for the First Quarter of 2011AD that is the filly to watch. This as initial sales of 567,000 units in the Fourth Quarter of 2010AD have jumped by 235% to one million nine hundred thousand (1,900,000) units in the First Quarter of 2011AD!

Certainly, this previously ignored Market segment is experiencing incredible growth, mainly thanks to:

1. The use of a common ARM design
2. Google Android, which significantly lowers the pricing.
3. The Tech Enthusiast DIY Market that likes to “root” and modify gadgets

Again, the words of DisplaySearch analyst Richard Shim put it in perspective, quote: “Price is a significant influence on any consumer product, and tablets currently carry a healthy premium on the cost of the hardware components. The emergence of the [“White Box”] Tablets Market is an indication that the Market is reacting to that premium and trying to give consumers a lower price to drive adoption. In the short term, the tradeoff will likely result in a less than ideal user experience”.

Looks like if I had to make a bet, I would not be surprised that, just as is the case with home built PCs, “rooted” Android Phones and Chinese Dual-SIM smartphones, these “White Box” Tablets may become the “hobby horse” of a DIY Tablet Tech Enthusiast as they root and modify the Tablets to their hearts content, Home Improvement (TV Series 1991–1999) Style.

The clever production house that is the People’s Republic of China is getting better and better at these designs, making the “White Box” Tablet Market the contender to watch, as opposed to the Brand-named offerings from RIM, Motorola or even Samsung!

As in the movie Jason and the Argonauts (1963), it is not about the goal at the end of the odyssey, but the adventure that this “White Box” Tablets may allow those tech enthusiasts dissatisfied with the overpriced walled-garden approach of Apple and the Tablet Gods, thinking that they can design The Next Big Thing (2001)!