An article in the New York Times this morning entitled “After iPad’s Head Start, Rival Tablets Are Poised to Flood Offices” does a nice job of discussing the impact tablets have already had on the world of computing. It also goes on the describe the changing landscape as real iPad alternatives finally begin to enter the market.
While the article notes that Apple’s unchallenged run into the tablet market is about to end it also does a good job of describing the impact Cupertino’s device has already had and its rapid, and somewhat surprising penetration, into business. The article notes that while Apple’s own advertising tends to position the iPad as a casual consumption device it is being used more and more by big and small business alike. And in the process companies have seen some unexpected benefits of adopting the device.
One example emerges from NBC Universal. One of the company’s execs is quoted as saying that during a recent meeting in Las Vegas a significant number of company executives brought iPads in place of laptops. That’s nothing so surprising at this point considering the device’s significant inroads into the enterprise market. This, however, was: according to that executive he would normally have had to dispatch two or three technology support people for such a meeting but because so many of the execs were using iPads he only had to dispatch one.
Say what you will about Apple’s heavy handed, draconian practices but they result in devices that are more reliable and easier to set up and maintain than most. That’s worth some.
And for the record, a year ago I would have brought my laptop down to Florida today. Instead I brought my IPad and am using it to write this post.
Via the NYTimes