After iPad, Who's Next?

This iPad week whether mobile warriors from other camps like it or not. But it'll be over eventually and another platform will get the attention. So who might that be?

There are already Android tablets but let's be honest, they're nothing like the iPad with years of research that Apple has put it. For the most part, its second tier companies installing Android on existing hardware.

HP and DELL might have something coming in the next few months but they aren't going to follow the same mobile ecosystem that the iPad, iPhone, and iPod Touch share.

So who truly will have something similar to what Apple has created with the iPad?

In my tweets, I blasted off a series of quick thoughts. HTC probably has things in the work but they'll in the same situation Dell and HP will be in. As a matter of fact, some Android tablets require hacks to access the Marketplace, Android's equivalent of the iTunes App Store.

WebOS is certainly possible and Palm has indicated in the past that the WebOS may make its way onto hardwares other than smartphones. Plus, Palm is currently doing some soul searching and I think it is more likely to come out with Pre 2 rather than a WebOS tablet.

That leaves Microsoft, Nintendo, and Sony. Nintendo has already tipped its hand with 3DS last week. We'll know more about it in the coming weeks as details will be expertly leaked to the media. But all along, I think the Big 3 in the console market offers the best chance for a complete mobile experience.

Sony is certainly working on PSP 2. PSP is 5 years old and may be six by the time the PSP 2 is out. This leaves Sony plenty of time to answer the other challengers, including the iPad. Sony has a strong following but it's execution has been par at best. Sony will need answer Apple's upstart status in gaming but also in other mobile areas as well. I just don't see that happening.

We might see a Viao-branded tablet running Android. Can Sony integrate PSP into Android? That's the only way I see Sony entering the tablet market with a strong mobile offering. Sony will not be offering any WM7 products if Microsoft insists in Zune integration (which is also why I think Microsoft will allow hardware developers the option of Zune integration but won't insist on it).

Nintendo is one of the most innovation companies in the world. Hardware and gaming. Constantly pushing the realm of possibilities. It might offer something in the mobile market that goes beyond its traditional comfort gaming zone. If it does, look out. It could be amazing. It is likely to happen?

Now we come to Microsoft. WM7, Zune, and Xbox. Mash it together and maybe Redmond will have a winner? Sure. But keep in mind that Microsoft is a large corporation with a multitude of interests and markets to satisfy, and never mind the internal politics.

My only fear is that Microsoft will do too much. It'll cram as much as it can into a tablet and see what sticks. That might work in the past before Google. That might work in the past with Apple struggling to remain solvent 15 or so years ago. Today, it has to deal with a healthy Steve Jobs and a $40 billion cash rich Apple that is likely to surpass Microsoft's market value.

Microsoft cannot afford to wait for the market to "see what sticks". But among these tech giants, it is Microsoft that I think has the best chance to duplicate the same media/app/hardware ecosystem that Apple patiently spent the last decade building.

It is not going to be easy. Certainly, these companies can build a comprehensive mobile solution for work and play but it may not be enough just to match others feature for feature, song for song, and app for app. Microsoft, Nintendo, or anyone else will need to provide the next revolutionary (but I settle for evolutionary) step in mobile computing.

Who do you think is up next after the iPad?

Note: I left out Amazon and Kindle. Amazon will end up selling a lot of the products like the iPad and other tablets in its store. Kindle will evolve into a tablet, even with apps and media. Kindle has really put ebooks at the forefront of many mobile users, Amazon isn't what I call a traditional tech company. But hey, I wish Bezos best of luck. Competition is good.

iPhone 4.0 - Multitasking And iTablet

There's talk that on the 27th, Apple will unveill more than just iTablet.  Whatever happens that day, we are potentially looking at what also comes next for the iPhone platform.  After the iPod Touch came out, Apple stated that there could be other devices from Apple based on this modified OS X.

So, we come to iPhone 4.0.  One of the features some users are hoping for is the ability to run apps in the background.  As an Android device owner, I have to say that the ability to have whatever music or podcast stream in the background is something I like to see on the iPod Touch or the iPhone.  At the same time, it's been a year since we also received push notification.  For some apps like ones that provide push notification for IM messages, Apple has negated the need for these apps to be running in the background while saving battery life.

But with the iTablet, push notification may not be enough. And I'm hoping Apple will be able to allow some apps to run in the background, regardless of how that will affect the battery life of the tablet, iPhone, or Touch. I have some ideas how I like to see it implemented.

• Full background.  I like Apple to provide this option.  It'll certainly kill battery life of the device in no time.  But it's about providing the user to decide what can also run in the background.  
• Limited multi-tasking.  Allow the user to restrict the number of apps in the background.  Some apps such as those that provide IM functions may not draw a lot of power.  Though I can't see why anyone would want to do this when push notification works well enough.  
• Allow certain functs to run in the background.  Streaming music is fine but there's no need for a 3D game to be running at top speed when you switch over to another app.

I was watching a replay of Portland-Washington game from Monday when I had to switch out of the app to check my e-mail.  When I came back to the app, I had to try to find my place in the game again.

I like the iPhone OS to simply pause the automatically pause the game when I switch over to another app.  Then when I come back later, I can resume watching the game.

On the tablet, it would be nice if Apple offers a split screen mode where two to four apps can be running at the same time.  I'd settle for two apps, I'm not greedy.

These days, kids like to be able to multi-task.  I hope to see Apple keep up with the times and allow its mobile platform the ability to have some form of multi-tasking.  The iTablet is being dubbed a media device.  That means music, video, print, and the Web.

At the very least, music apps should be able to run in the background.

How Apple Can Make An iPhone Nano

Here's how Apple can create an iPhone nano without going to a smaller screen than the 3.5" now used on the iPhone.

• The whole face of the nano will be the screen except for the top where the user can listen to phone calls.  The speak can be moved further up to where the grooves are allowing apple to save almost 1/2" from the top of the current iPhone.
• Use the 3.5" and remove the home button or move it to another location on the nano.  If Apple wants to keep the home button, the ideal location is the side area on the right side of the nano.
• By moving the home button, the nano can shave off about 1/2" from the bottom of the iPhone.
• By saving about 1/2" at the top and at the bottom, Apple can create a nano that is 3.5" or so in length.  
• A frontal webcam is possible and I remembered a patent by Apple where buried in the screen is a reflective webcam.
• Apple can create a longer length nano but also make it more narrow and still maintain decent resolution.
• With Apple's advanced battery technology like what we need in the Macbooks and more efficiency gained from chips and the iPhone OS, we can still expect to see usage increased or at minimum, maintain industry level in battery life.
• There maybe some compromises in features for the nano compared to the iPhone given its smaller body.  But Apple innovation should be able to bring certain iPhone features to the nano in subsequent upgrades.  For instance, Apple might not be able to add a webcam to a first generation iPhone nano but might be able to make that feature in the second generation nano.