Cometh the Tablet

Tablet computers are back! So whats new?

This year, Apple single handedly re-invented the tablet computer market, taking well known pre-defined norms, throwing them out of the window and starting again based on their successful iOS platform. Where does this new mobile tablet powered revolution leave us?

Here at Lucid we like mobile devices... Latest phones, iPods, Sat-navs, you name it, we've probably got it kicking around somewhere! When Steve Jobs announced the iOS based iPad earlier this year, he invented a new class of mobile device, bigger than a phone, smaller than a laptop, and somewhere in the middle power-wise. At first people doubted if there was room for such a niche product in the market, but sales figure seem to have shown that these 'coffee table' devices have both a place and a use in many households.

So what do these devices bring to the game? They are reasonably powerful, equipped with a functional browser, can play high quality video and many are always connected to the internet. They are perfect for casual browsing on the internet and portable enough to take anywhere. They also support a wide range of cheap and functional applications, extending the devices functionality in any number of directions.

Like it or not, iPads and the entire class of devices they represent are now a valid audience on the web and your sites should be catering form them. The good news is that the web browsers on these devices are already very good and are getting better as time goes by. There isn't a lot you can't do online with these devices that you can do on a normal desktop or laptop.

Regardless of whether the devices supports it, Flash is an issue. It'll either be slow and buggy due to the limitations of the interface, or not supported at all, in which case your users won't see your flash content - just an empty space.

Apps are something to consider if you have specific things you want to offer your users. They support complex functionality and can be used to provide a very tailored and rich interface to your services.

Think about ways your can provide a much more streamlined and immersive experience to your users through using apps. Apps are also good in reference situations where the user need to quickly find out some piece of specific information (e.g. timetables, manuals, etc.). They also work well in more viral or casual situations, a promotional game perhaps? Location based services also work well for these devices given their mobility, booking apps for local restaurant or car hire franchises would be a good example here.

There is still plenty to learn about what will work best with this new class of devices, but slowly things are getting clearer. There will be lots of new opportunities to communicate with existing and potential customers as these platforms and our understanding of them matures.