Why the tablet is here to stay

In just a little over 12 months, the tablet, which has been around for a number of years has taken off, once again thank to the ingenuity of Apple.

Remember when the big computer companies wrote-off the iPad as just a big iPhone that couldn’t make calls? Those same companies are scrambling over each other to release their own versions of the tablet computer to try and claim some of the lion’s share from Apple.

Their challenge is that they are still pitching the old story about technology, processor speed, memory, size, weight, battery life etc. 

What they don’t talk about is the real reason tablets have taken off in the consumer and business market – Apps!

Another reason is that the tablet is the first real device that has no analogue predecessor. 

Smartphones are a natural replacement for original analogue phones and mobiles. Laptops and PC’s are a natural replacement for typewriters and filing systems.

The tablet is a category of its own, a pure digital combination of the smartphone and laptop.

It is also cheaper than most high end smartphones and laptops, providing instant access to our core requirements, email and the internet.

Couple this with apps that delivers digital content access to social media, personal media, consumer and business functionality all wrapped up in a shell with every improving flash memory, high quality displays, accurate touch screen interface, low power requirements and almost instant on accessibility and you can start to see why they are becoming so ingrained in our everyday lives.

Many businesses buy laptop computers to allow staff to access email and the intranet remotely, with some access to back end corporate systems. Many of these functions can be delivered via a tablet at a lower cost and less complexity. 

It is important to note however that the tablet is not a replacement for a laptop and it won’t be for a very long time to come. 

The laptop is not going away, it will continue to be indispensable for working, travelling professionals who need real computer power for serious graphics, coding, or complex changes to documents .  In these situations, you still need the precision of a mouse and a level of computing speed and memory that’s out of range for a tablet.........at least for now.

Companies and consumers are already delving into the use of apps to improve their productivity and many of these apps can be used as a “bridge” to capture information out in the field and send it in a format that can easily be input into existing back end corporate systems, removing many of the manual processes of paper, pen, data entry etc.

There is no substitute for direct real-time access to a business data-base. However this “bridge” process does open up the eyes of a business in understanding the many benefits of real-time access to information whilst conducting day to day business transactions away from the office. 

It also provides a business with "real data" that assists in formulating a mobility strategy to build a business case to demonstrate the financial benefits mobility can deliver.

We must also remember that we live in a constantly aging population. 

What does this mean? 

It means that anyone who is a little over 30 years of age and under grew up with the use of mobile phones and computers in their everyday lives, yet many businesses with customer facing staff still manage their business via paper and pen.

Providing digital access to your business via tablets may require much less change management than you think.