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“Ever-improving networks and a big hardware announcement that will send handset prices plummeting both point to smartphone growth in 2011 that could totally eclipse anything we’ve seen before.” – Fortune Online

While this article from Fortune Magazine focuses on the practicalities of the see-saw battle between the iPhone and the growing army of Android-powered devices, all I know is that I can feel the momentum building; and not just in the public domain but in my own house.

Even I feel as if even I am approaching the tipping point at which open Android apps will match, and maybe surpass, the exquisite but closed matrix of creativity from Steve Jobs and company.

We’ll see if I really change my mind. One thing for sure: it will be a close call.

Tablet Computing: A History Of Failure

Jay Yarow | Jan. 25, 2010 in Silicon Alley Insider

Tablet computing has a long history, and none of it is particularly great. From the Newton to the CrunchPad, tech companies have tried to sell a simple slab that can access the web, deliver email and maybe some gaming. On paper it sounds great, but the execution to date has been disappointing.

Check out 16 tablets through the years →

When Apple takes the wraps off its entry into the market this week, it’s expected Steve Jobs will produce a product that undoes over a decade’s worth of tablet flops.

How can Apple get it right, when others have gotten it wrong? Read the full article and see.

• Focus on building great software. The iPhone’s revolution was its brilliant software which made using the phone a pleasure. (The iPhone’s software serves as the base for the tablet, according to a report from Boy Genius Report.)

• Get the user interface right. So far, tablet computer has either been a bad extension of an operating system built for a desktop computer, or has required an awkward input device, such as a stylus. Apple’s multi-touch “gesture” based user interface may be a breakthrough.

• Redefine the tablet computing ecosystem. The Wall Street Journal reported a bunch of details about the tablet last week. The essence of the report: The tablet is supposed to be a new way to consume media, not just a touchscreen edition of your laptop. Apple can complement its hardware with digital movies, TV shows, magazines, books, music, games, third-party apps, and other media — which prior tablets haven’t done.

Right now, we picture it sitting on the coffee table — good for web surfing, reading and gaming. Or on the plane. It sounds nice, but it’s hard to envision that being worth $700-$1,000 to mainstream buyers.

So that’s the last detail we are all waiting for with the tablet — the price. We have an idea about what it looks like, how we might type on it, what media will be available for it, but we’re still not sure about how it’s going to be marketed or how much it’s going to cost.

Who is this thing for? Apple tells us on Wednesday. If it gets it right, then it has a success. If it gets it wrong, it joins the list of failed tablet devices

.Posted via email from practice (redux)