It seems that on almost a weekly basis over the last couple months, there has been some rumors regarding an Apple tablet. The latest one I’ve heard had to do with the thousand dollar price tag. A thousand dollars? Let’s get real. The concept of a tablet is a little lost on me. Is it a phone? A computer? A media player? For a thousand dollars, it better do all three, and well. I sit and think about why someone would need an tablet in the first place, and I just can’t find a reason. Any one who would buy an applet already has a laptop and a cell phone that can access the internet. What can a tablet do that both of these devices can’t?

I’ve read some articles about how an Apple tablet will also serve as an e-reader. Honestly, we spend enough time staring at screens as it is, the last thing we need to do is read books on screens as well. Who even has a Kindle? Whenever I get course readings assigned to me that are on the internet, I’m thankful I don’t have to go out and pay a hundred bucks for a book, but once I get down to doing the readings, after 10 minutes I can’t keep my eyes on the screen anymore.

So assuming the people in the target audience for a tablet already have a cell phone to make calls and access the web, a laptop to view their media and browse the web, and physical books to read, why would someone purchase tablet as anything else except as a novelty item? There have been reports that an Apple tablet would be able to function as a word processor, but I couldn’t imagine trying to write an essay on a touch screen device. I honestly don’t see the need for an applet, there’s nothing new about the technology that it will have, so why waste time and money doing the R&D? Chances are the product will come out sometime in the next six months or so, so i guess we can just sit and wait for more information before jumping to hasty conclusions. A tablet draws similar comparisons to the launch of the Segway a few years back. The company thought that it would have a massive market, but the product never took off; nobody wants to look like a tool whipping around town on a futuristic scooter. Come on Apple, you’re better than that.