With the launch of the Apple iPad, we can finally put to rest long running rumors of the Apple tablet. We've been talking about the possibility of an Apple tablet for nearly a decade with an early MacRumors forum poster from 2001 even labeling a rumored Apple PDA at the time the "iPad". Most surprisingly, this rumor predated the launch of the iPod by 6 months.
Given the large number of tablet predictions leading up to the iPad launch, we aren't going to bother rehashing every single report. Unsurprisingly, the New York Times and Wall Street Journal had the most specific and reliable information about Apple's plans, while analyst reports remain widely varied and unhelpful.
Here are a few of the more interesting reports that turned out to be correct:
- Apple must be behind the Delaware corporation IP Application Development, LLC (IPAD) which applied for international trademarks on the term "IPAD" in the weeks leading to the launch. Given all the media attention on Apple, the company is clearly making efforts to hide its moves with dummy corporations.
- Alex Albrecht of Diggnation may have been right that the Apple tablet was priced "shockingly low". A somewhat vague, but memorable rumor that seemed to come true with the launch price for $499 for the iPad.
- Mobile Analytics firm Flurry's analysis that approximately 50 iPhone OS based tablet devices were in testing was correct. They pinpointed iPhone OS 3.2 as well as the ability to run existing iPhone applications. We had some doubts about their conclusions at the time, but it turns out they were right.
Finally, with all the rumors about a 10-11" screen for the Apple tablet, only one report accurately pinpointed the fact that the iPad actually houses a 9.7" screen. China Times predicted that Apple would launch a 9.7" device by the end of January. While this fact alone may only be of passing interest, the same article reported that Apple is also preparing to launch a 22-inch touchscreen iMac in the second half of this year.
So, if we believe they knew about the 9.7" iPad, then we should also believe that multi-touch will be coming to the Mac line later this year.
