A Tablet a Day Is Not Enough for Your Business

"Live the revolution!" It was a battle cry that King Louis XVI of France heard ad nauseam during the French Revolution in the late 18th century. The people were tired of tyrannical rule and wanted the freedom to create, live and work. I say this phrase now, not in solidarity with ancient Europeans, but as a nod to what we are seeing in today's tech landscape. Businesses of all sizes are seeing the value and need for mobility and agility. During the infancy of the PC, we never imagined that the processing power of those early machines would be dwarfed by the portable devices we use every day. While some organizations believe that these devices are the preferred method of remote access for outside workers, others believe that the middle ground between the smartphone and the laptop in the future: the tablet. Continue reading here more about this article.

The introduction and explosion of the tablet are primarily attributed to Steve Jobs, who envisioned a portable, tactile, and easy-to-use device. In response, the Apple team created the iPad and consumers clamored for it. While tablet sales initially skyrocketed in the consumer market, business users were beginning to see value as well. According to a study commissioned by NPD Group, "of small and medium-sized businesses in the United States, 73% plan to buy tens of thousands of dollars worth of tablets in the next twelve months." (Hughes, 2011) Despite these findings, there is no universal agreement on the tablet device adoption curve in SMB organizations. According to InternetNews.com Senior Editor Sean Michael Kerner, "The tablet, in almost every case we encountered, is a third device. I don't see this replacing either the smartphone or the PC in a large number of organizations." . (Kerner, 2011)

So how will the SMB organization integrate tablets into its technology arsenal? In my opinion, having a lightweight and portable device is a cry of mobility. I remember seeing a Verizon commercial featuring a company that had a project manager using a tablet at a workplace, taking photos, and creating designs on the go. Other examples of early adopters can be found in the healthcare and financial services industries. Doctors can now carry tablets while caring for patients and review images such as MRIs or X-rays, medical or prescription history, and other pertinent information.

On the financial front, executives are using tablets for presentations and client meetings instead of carrying laptops. It is no exaggeration to extrapolate the use of tablets to other industries such as construction, construction services and contractors, sales executives, outside surveyors, or whatever else you can think of.

Now that we have established how companies will use tablets in their day-to-day operations, the next point to consider is which brand of tablets will be standard in the organization. Jobs gave Apple a huge advantage with the iPad, and since the initial launch, there has been slow progress from the competition to take advantage of that initial advantage. The Android mobile operating system finally made its mark on the market, and the first notable fighter was the Motorola XOOM. Since then, many others have followed, including the Samsung Galaxy and the Blackberry PlayBook. One notable name missing from this discussion is Microsoft. Ironically, in 2003 Microsoft dismissed the tablet as a "niche technology" when pressed for company-wide adoption. Back then, the Windows XP tablet operating system was not touch-enabled and was only incorporating a "pen" interface. Also, the cost of the device was between $ 1,699 and $ 2,739 or $ 150 more than a comparable laptop. Microsoft then concluded that pushing the business in the tablet direction may be foolish, and many hardware vendors agreed. Fast forward to the latter part of the decade and the revolutionary advancement of the iPad, and Microsoft was suddenly under the gun to make up ground and make it fast. In 2011, Microsoft released a preview version of Windows 8 that shared many of the same features seen in Windows Phone 7, including the Metro interface. More importantly, Windows 8 is designed to support touch, positioning it as an option for companies that have standardized Windows in their computing environment and prefer a seamless user experience across desktops, laptops, and tablets. Once it launches in late 2012, it will be interesting to see what impact Windows 8 will have on the market.