Apple Tablet: A Wish List

Pretty much everyone expects Apple to announce its long awaited tablet sometime in the first quarter of 2010, yet most of the device’s details are still shrouded in secrecy. Optimists expect advanced technologies like OLED, a solid-state flash drive, and an affordable price tag; others think that the tablet will be overpriced and barely more capable than an iPhone. Here is my realistic wish list for the Apple tablet:

If it is well under $1,000: Even if some of the rumors are true that the tablet will sell for around $700, I still would not expect Apple to release a netbook tablet. Steve Jobs has been on record as saying that he does not believe in producing crippled Macs, which have very limited functionality. The good news is that Intel is preparing to unveil all new and presumably far more powerful Atom CPUs for the second generation of netbooks. Something like a duo-core Atom with nVidia’s Ion chipset could possibly keep the Apple tablet’s costs within the widely speculated $700 range; however, do not expect a solid-state hard drive (unless it is tiny and slow) or OLED, both of which would dramatically drive up the price. A 1.8″ mechanical disk (Air and Classic iPod) with 120Gb or larger storage would be decent. An optical drive would not make sense in the tablet. If its screen size is between 7 to 11 inches, a little over one million pixels (1280×800 or so) is reasonable, but I cannot imagine 1.3 million or higher pixel count (1440×900). A built-in lithium-polymer battery that lasts for 4-6 rated hours would be fine. As for memory, I would not look for more than 2Gb 1066MHz, which is sufficient for the tablet’s purposes.

If it is well over $1,000: At this price point, I am expecting Intel’s recent release of its Ultra Low Voltage Core 2 Duo processors, SU7300 (1.3GHz) and SU7800 (1.4GHz), with at least an nVidia 9400m or better. Should Apple enter the tablet market with a premium offering, then a solid-state hard drive may be either standard or optional. Unless the tablet arrives at $2,000, I cannot fathom an OLED screen. Only small PMPs like the Cowon S9, Zune HD, etc. have OLED at the moment. Sony has pushed back OLED development, and there are no big OLED displays at fair prices, so an OLED Apple tablet in 2010 is nearly unimaginable to me.

Regardless of price, I think that the big seller will be a full version of OS X Snow Leopard designed for touchscreens. In my estimation, the iPhone’s OS is not enough to justify buying a tablet. Multi-touch is an absolute necessity. Obviously, Wireless N, Bluetooth, speakers, and basic USB ports need to be present, but what about FireWire? Based on Apple’s history, it should also include Mini-DisplayPort output too, making the tablet a versatile PC. Whatever happens; this should be an interesting start to 2010.