Call it the iSlate, iTablet or plain old Apple Tablet. Whatever its name, just what is Apple’s “latest creation” for? Is it an eReader? A computer artist’s dream machine? Or just a fancy but fat media player? Dive in and we’ll break down just what the so-called iTablet could do for you.
Creatives
MIDI controller for Garageband
An Apple Tablet with iLife at its heart is surely nailed on and would give creative types every reason to scrabble for their credit cards in anticipation. A MIDI controller for Garageband would be an obvious feature, letting you record your tunes on-the-go, hooking up instruments before sharing your work with your pals or even uploading it to your own blog.
An artist’s futuristic fancy
Apple’s invite to see its “latest creation” has an awful lot of paint splattered over it. Surely using the iTablet as a drawing tool would help take niche art apps for the iPhone to a whole new level, giving creatives a new approach to digital drawing. A beefed up Photoshop app would let designers go mad with multitouch and even reinvigorate ageing print mags with radical new designs, especially if you can download such titles direct to your iSlate.
iMovie tablet
The most obvious use of iLife on the Apple tablet. Imagine loading up your home flicks to the iTablet and then tweaking them via multitouch before sending them straight to YouTube via one touch access. The iPhone 3GS can already do it, so a fully-specced version of iMovie loaded onto the iTablet makes perfect sense.
Photo collages
iPhoto already offers scrapbook like collages thanks to Faces. But pulling together an altogether more creative collage on your iTablet, pulling in pics via multitouch from different apps would bring such a device to life.
Apple Tablet: the ultimate rumour guide
Intellectuals
e-reader
The most talked-up aspect of the Apple Tablet has been its e-reader skills. But for that, it’s going to need one hell of a screen to stop your eyes burning bright after reading your favourite mag or the latest thriller for an hour. If it can offer access to the world’s best magazines, newspapers and books in a far more accessible way than current e-readers, allied with a decent panel, it could be the iSlate’s biggest draw.
The ultimate research tool
Easy access to book archives and the web, coupled with extreme portability, could make the iTablet the best research tool going. If it’s less cumbersome than a laptop and doubles as an e-reader and web savvy slab, then getting information for your latest paper or essay could be easier than ever. Chuck in a beefed-up Wikipedia iPhone-style app alongside handwriting recognition skills and you’ve got a winner.
Apple event official: iSlate to be touted next week?
Businesses
Low-cost do anything machine
Many businesses shy away from Apple, but an iSlate or Apple Tablet could prove to be the perfect way to cut down on IT costs. Perhaps you could attach such a device to a monitor stand, hooking it up with a Bluetooth keyboard and mouse, before detaching it and taking it on your travels, docs and deets all neatly stashed.
OS X Snow Leopard fully-loaded
The debate about whether the iTablet will pack OS X Snow Leopard or a variation of the iPhone OS still rages. But for productivity alone, Snow Leopard would make sense, with easy access to iWork or just MobileMe for working on-the-go. Not only would it draw in punters who want a work machine, it’d also lay down the gauntlet to Google Chrome OS.
Got any juicy Apple Tablet rumours? Then make sure you tell us now.
