Are tablet computers the future of computing?

Tablet computer

Do you have a tablet computer? If you answered yes, why did you buy one? Are you the type of person who loves the latest hot gadget, or did you buy one for its portability? I bought one in December 2011. I already have a smartphone, a desktop, a laptop and a netbook computer. I am not the type of person who always needs the latest gadget. So why did I buy a tablet computer? I am also a photographer and bought the tablet primarily to show my portfolio to clients and use as a marketing tool. The fact that the tablet doubles as a handy e-reader was a bonus. The reason I recently bought it was due to the lower prices now available. My experience with the tablet in the past few months has been very positive. I can honestly say I love it! I can’t do everything with it that I normally use a computer for. I still use my smart phone for emails, I use my desktop for all photographic editing and file management and I still use my netbook when I need to do portable word processing or spreadsheet work. So why did I buy a tablet computer? As I already mentioned the main reason was because of the reduced price.

My survey on the use of tablet computers

Before I bought my tablet computer I was already thinking about the way people use computers, smart phones, and tablets and I was curious to see if there was a possible trend for portability and convenience over the traditional stationary computer use. In order to test my curiosity I developed a short survey and administered it using the NPolls App. This poll was conducted on December 15^th, 2011 and sampled 100 people. This survey is not representative of any particular group, unless you count the people who have the NPolls App and want to participate in regular polls. The premise for this poll was that smart phones and tablet computers are slowly replacing the traditional roles of desktop and laptop computers.

Below are some of the results from the poll survey, if anyone would like to review all questions and results please feel free to download the following file (NPolls results). The breakdown of respondents are: 53% female and 47% male, which is the actual demographic breakdown in the population. Regarding age, 75% of all respondents are between 15 and 39 years of age.

No.	Age Range
9	<15
35	15-24
40	25-39
14	40-54
1	55-65
1	65+

Table 1: Age breakdown of survey respondents

The breakdown in gender probably says more of who took the time to answer the poll, rather than the questions asked. The largest group for both genders is between 25-39 years old (representing 40% of the entire sample). Anytime you breakdown data from a small sample you are limited to what conclusions that can be reached. Having said that it’s still interesting to identify any differences with a small sample and see if they are consistent if a similar study is conducted in the future.

What do you use your
smart phone for?

Female	Age Range	Male
7	<15	2
19	15-24	16
20	25-39	20
7	40-54	7
0	55-65	1
0	65+	1
53		47

Table 2: Breakdown by gender and age groups of survey respondents

I asked questions relating to what devices people use such as desktop, laptop/tablet or phone/smartphone for the following computer work such as: Email, using the internet, edit/create images, word processing and spreadsheet work. Here are the results:

	Email	Using the net	Edit/create image	Word processing	Spreadsheet work
Desktop	13	24	34	38	43
Laptop/tablet	44	62	56	68	67
Phone/smart phone	63	36	24	13	4

Table 3: Number of respondents regarding each question asked in the survey. Figures in bold are highest value in question.

To briefly summarize the results, overall people used their laptop/tablet computers for the majority of tasks. While phone/smart phone use was first for emails, and second for using the internet. The results above appear to be what I was expecting to find.

Some computing work still needs the use of a laptop or desktop computer that have larger hard drives (HDD), extra RAM, added comfort with sitting at a desk and the extra processing power (faster CPU). As a photographer who needs to use powerful editing software and access to all my photos and backups I only use my desktop when doing any editing or adjusting. Even though I have smart phone, netbook, and tablet computer I always use my desktop for serious photographic editing. I realize I may be the exception and I think this very simple survey speaks to that distinction. Where the majority of people will be using smaller and more portable devices for the majority of their 'computer' work, this is where the mainstream is going, small portable devices where people can fulfill the majority of their computing needs.

All the right technology at the right time 

The incredible rise in popularity of tablet computers started me thinking about all the technology that has finally come together to make tablet devices affordable and practical. Here is a simplified list of all the technology that has allowed the rapid expansion of tablet and other portable devices:

The ubiquitous nature of Wi-Fi has
permitted the proliferation
of small computing devices

• Better longer lasting batteries
• Ease of use through simple graphic user interface (GUI)
• Faster processors (CPU)
• Use of Solid State drives (SSD) replacing traditional Hard drives (HHD) (permitting much faster operation in a smaller size)
• Wi-Fi hot spots in many more places (also increased speed of Wi-Fi connections)
• 3G and 4G SIM card capability 
• Cloud computing access
• Use of a touch screen, removing the need for a mouse, stylus or keyboard thus making the device mush lighter and faster to use
• Reduced price of tablet computers 
• The use of Apps

Apps – Food for the tablet computer (Or the rise of the Uni-task program)

An App (or software application) is not only a miniature program but think of it more as a segment of a much larger software package that we are used to. With traditional computers people had to spend hundreds of dollars on an entire software package such as Adobe Creative Suite or Microsoft Office and install most of the programs. But how many people actually used all the features in an entire software package?

Are large multi-program software
packages becoming obsolete? 

Tablet computers look and act less like large smart phones but more like small computers and the benefit of Apps in low price and low memory usage have the ability to change the computing experience into a much more user friendly and personally tailored to the individual user. The key word here is tailored. The arrival of the personal computer heralded the age of mass computing in the 1980’s but the software and portability aspect of computers has just recently arrived in the past few years. Portability has always been a problem until the past 5-10 years when battery longevity has come of age (and there are better batteries yet to come). Now with the arrival of Apps, the individual can personalize their computing device and only pay and install those programs that he/she wants to use.

Open source Android programming code has changed
the rules with the way software is made, sold and used

The main message to marketers and companies is that the masses want to use computers that are convenient, simple to use and affordable. This is not a profound revelation, but the point I'm trying to make is that all aspects of computing and portability need to be considered for the complete experience, including software. No one could have predicted the meteoric rise in the use of Apps, nor the sales potential. The open source Android system which allows anyone to create software for portable computing devices has the potential to change the way corporations make and sell software. Not to mention the way people will expect to use programs from here on.

In the 1990's cell phones allowed people to be truly mobile for the first time and when email was added to phones this definitely freed people from the old 'computer terminal'. This trend in portability continued with laptops but only recently with the spread of Wi-Fi hotspots (and 3G and 4G capable tablets) could people be mobile and still stay connected. The trend observed by the survey data above suggests that people want more portability and total connectivity with the internet. Not only are tablet computers very hot and popular now, the reduced prices and increased computing power combined with large number of Apps, might be the keys to their increase in popularity and could be replacing laptops soon as the dominant computing device.  

The $50 tablet computer - A game changer

The Akaash Tablet by Data Wind - made in India

Earlier last year the Indian government issued a tender from all manufacturers of tablet computers to build a unit that the average Indian could buy. I don’t know the reason why the Indian government chose a tablet device over a laptop other than the simplicity of use of a tablet. The potential for one billion extra people on the internet contributing, searching, communicating and socializing can only be a positive thing. The company that won the contract is a UK based company with roots in Canada, called Data Wine, it is managed and operated by two brothers of Indian descent. They were able to make a device for $50 and the Indian government will subsidize each unit costing only $35. The initial goal is to put a unit in the hands of every student who can not afford a computer.  For more details click here to read the story in the Globe and Mail.

Considering for the moment the potential of this table on India alone. Imagine one billion more people accessing the internet, communicating and contributing, you get a billion more ideas, and more creativity. As market researchers we get a billion more opinions to track. Add to that the Android open source programing code think of the potential of this on 1 billion more people writing programs for Android systems.

Will Asia be where the real computer revolution will occur?

To leave you with one final thought, just imagine what will happen when China starts developing and producing their own tablet computer less than $50, then a further billion people can contribute to the creativity and energy for all humanity. Then the real computer revolution can start.