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Lenovo recently discussed with CNET that their experience shows businesses and even many private customers don’t want a slate only PC with no physical keyboard. The informal interview coincides with the recent launch of their ThinkPad X201 Tablet convertible notebook and is certainly fueled by the attention on Apple’s slick new iPad.
Lenovo has shown enterprise customers mock-ups of slate devices that would be business-appropriate, but no one was interested due to the lack of physical keyboard. They even went as far as to ask high school kids:
Majapuro said Lenovo even got feedback from high school kids. “These were 14-year-old kids, who, I thought, would be most willing to try a virtual keyboard but they said no, we want the physical (built-in) keyboard.”
Although, somehow I doubt they asked high school kids if they wanted a super slim, stylish device that “has an App for everything” and will automatically elevate you to cult status, free with every purchase.
You can have a convertible netbook, a dual-screened giant workstation, a true convertible tablet and even a 14-15 inch multitouch laptop, but no slate (from Lenovo) for you.
Source: [CNET]
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One wonders who conjured up this research.
Compaq demonstrated years ago that you can successfully build a slate with a physical keyboard option (TC1100). Why did Lenovo intentionally omit this from their presention, hmm?
I agree with Lenovo and Rice. You MUST have a keyboard, but it can be detachable. Lenovo has their U1 (correct?) that has this option, although it is not a Thinkpad and is woefully underpowered.
There had been days where I exclusively used my X200 in the slate position. As a student, I can atest to the usefulness of having a detachable keyboard. It makes the overall computer lighter, thinner, and easier to handle in cases where you are just taking notes and traveling from class to class. The keyboard can be left at home for those long essays. I wish that Lenovo comes up with a TC1000 modern counterpart.
When my T43 dies or I get fed up with it getting slower and slower, I an planning on getting a slate from someone else, and then a separate Trackpoint keyboard from Lenovo. This is because nobody wants to make usable laptops anymore, with screens with enough vertical working space: they constantly just keep cutting slices away from the top of the screen. Thus I’ll just get a slate that I can put into portrait mode — at least TabletKiosk has 12″ 4:3 slates, which will have quite nice height in portrait — and then attach a trackpoint keyboard (a small laptop-sized one — I’ve always thought the numpad to be useless).
Lenovo’s decision not to come out with a slate shows lack of vision and courage among Lenovo/Thinkpad executives. Once Apple makes a hit with their iPad, then everyone else will come out with their own version of slate. The gang at Microsoft will work overtime to compete with Apple on slate. By then Apple may have locked up the market. Shows lack of boldness among the pc industry.
Don’t forget that iPad is just an oversized iPod Touch and as such not the same type of device as a real slate running desktop operating system. So to lock the market you are talking about Apple first has to come up with a slate running OS X, not iPhone OS.
After having played with an iPad, I agree with Yak that the iPad is, basically, a large iPod Touch. However, the strides they are making in slate usability are notable. I agree with the research here. I run a small law practice and my office is effectively is my x200t and my portable scanner. I have no need for a slate only device. Also, the OS limitations of the iPad effectively remove any business application for the iPad beyond being a device to assist in giving presentations, something I would expect my convertible tablet to be able to do anyway.
What I would love to see is an appropriately feature rich Thinkpad that has the design feature of the U1. That way, I can carry the slate into court, jot my notes, prepare documents, and return to my desk, or closest coffee shop, and type away as needed. Put the guts of my x200t into a slate that docks into a portable base with a keyboard, that docks into an Ultrabase, and I would be sold on that kind of product so quick my x200t would become homeless. That is, of course, provided the user experience is up to par.