I was passed a link today for a blog post talking about the iSlate, the unannounced, yet forthcoming Apple tablet that made me do a little New Years thinking. Mixed in with the standard end of the year, completion of a decade dreck that we are bombarded with, has been many information outlets giving their take on what the iSlate will be, including that it will even be named iSlate. I think that what need to be mentioned is that there has not been an official announcement from the company making this product, so none of what we read is based in anything more than guesswork, conjecture, rumor and wishful thinking. I would even wager that the name being floated (despite Apple owning the registration for the website) 'iSlate' is wrong. The last time Apple launched a new product with the 'i' moniker was three years ago with the iPhone.

Don't get me wrong, I am excited to see what they make. I never get my hopes up, in part because its not my product or company, but mostly, despite being a wee-bit fan-boyish about Apple products, I have never been one to go buy every new release on day one. I have had several Apple products, and only three have been first-generation, and none were purchased on "opening day." (The first iPod can still be found in my office, I had the first airport base station until its card flaked out five years later, and we still have out Revision A iMac G5 serving as our music and photo server in the office). But Apple is going to make what Apple is going to make. There have been some flops, the Cube for example, and despite being a proud owner and using it everyday, some see the AppleTV as a flop. But there have been some amazing successes that have changed the face of their particular market segment.

The wonderful thing about Apple, that so many have forgotten in the rush to make predictions of what is to come, is that Apple is really good at taking an existing product and identifying the must-have functionality at the consumer level. Take a look back three years to the release of the iPhone. Everyone knew it was coming even as Apple said nothing. Yet, no one got the predictions 100% right. Most, were not even in the ballpark. What hung everyone up was thinking about the iPhone like it was an iPod first, and a phone second. The competition rallied and said Apple had no experience making a phone, and would fail. But where they were wrong, and where Apple succeeded, was they made a consumer device, a hand-held communications tool that leveraged the on-demand connectivity of a mobile phone, with the power and user interface of a computer. There were many smartphone that came before the iPhone, I even owned a few, but no matter what features they had, there was always a list of feature I wanted, or things that it did not do well. Treo came close, HTC came close, but whether it was their lack of expandability, poor web support, slow interface or the lack of system and feature updates years down the line, they had a hard time finding a foothold with consumers. Blackberry has been successful for one big reason. They made a product that fit the needs of corporate America. No one loves their Blackberry anymore, most wish they could change it, but in many cases they are locked into what they have because of company policy. In the last few years, Blackberry started to make a push into consumer hands, and they had some great products for a Blackberry. But every consumer BB owner I know now has an iPhone. Why, because it just worked better. Because of the apps. Because if hooked into everything they were already doing with their main computers, and just acted as an extension of that.

Now that the iPhone has matured, what we have is a different way of communicating, working and computing on the go. None of the future-lookers saw the full size, touch sensitive (no stylus needed) screen coming, nor did they see how it would change the ways we interact with our devices. Apple made a product that already existed, and much like they did with the original iPod, they made it better and in ways that everyone else now has to play catchup with. Even the Google phone, or Android phones can only match the features of the iPhone, there is no innovation in those devices. Apple even went so far as to change the relationship between phone-maker, and phone service provider. Apple leveraged more control over their hardware than any other manufacturer to date has been able to wield. They have even gone so far as to provide frequent, and feature-adding updates, wait for it.... FOR FREE. I had the HTC Wizard through AT&T for two years before my iPhone, there were never any updates, especially from Microsoft, even in the face of glaring bugs that Microsoft even admitted to. Their solution, upgrade to the newer operating system, an option that required the purchase of a new phone.

What Apple has done as a company goes against so much of what business school teaches: be first to market, and you have an advantage. In their history, Apple has rarely been first to market, but they are the first to identify what makes the technology right for most people. With that knowledge, what can we expect from a tablet from Apple.

1. Wireless connectivity: Bluetooth, WiFi, 3G (or perhaps even the new 4G being offered through Sprint and Clear)
2. Thin, Thin and light-weight. Thin, light-weight and totally portable... but that screen better be durable, and able to survive a fall, because its going to happen.
3. Battery life will be good, but most people will be disappointed by it. Lets be honest though, we are usually only a few feet from a power source as any time so is this really an issue?
4. Multi-touch screen, with virtual keyboard, but even more importantly, I would not be shocked if it allowed for handwriting recognition with the use of a stylus. The technology has been in the operating system for years, just waiting to be used for something since it was last seen in the Apple Newton (I have one of these, and its still working).
5. It will have its own App-store, but also be able to run most of the applications you already run. We are talking integration with Word/Excel for users on the go. Its possible, but not likely, that this device could be capable of some video editing much like the current iPhone 3GS is.
6. Seen Avatar yet? Yes, then you will understand this next part: It will seamlessly integrate/sync with your current system. You have a web page, or a document up on your screen, and want to take it with you. Just slide it off your computer, and onto your Tablet. Just like that. This will work even better between two tablets, since it will be entirely touch-based.
7. Finally, this is not a replacement for anything. If you believe it is, then you are wrong. If you are doing heavy-lifting graphic or video work, you still need more power. You need most of that power on the go? Then you need a laptop. What this will do it bridge the performance gap between your powerful computer at home with massive amounts of storage, and your mobile life where you want access to some, but not all of your digital self.

When this device finally comes out, and when I need a replacement for my MacbookPro, this may be the device. I like portable. But, and this is true for most laptop owners, I don't need to full power, and full weight of that laptop. This is a device that is going to make us think back to when Steve Jobs first introduced us to his digital lifestyle idea, where he created a core group of computer that worked for the way we work and play. The Tablet, in whatever form it takes, will be the linking piece, connecting us to our more powerful dedicated systems at home, or in the office.

Then again, I am likely wrong, and it will either blow my mind, or be completely underwhelming, or it may never come. Its all speculation.