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Hey, Google, we need to have a heart-to-heart. The Google Tablet is a very neat device, and it has the potential to revive the tablet market. Being able to seamlessly convert the tablet into a smart display is like something out of every tech nerd’s dream. It’s just that, in order for this idea to really bring change to the tablet market, it’d need to have a Samsung or Apple logo on it.
Now, this isn’t to turn people away from this device. In fact, it’s a really nice device. You can read more about it here. Also, if you’re looking into placing an order for the Pixel Tablet, you can click here. If you’re looking for our general coverage on tablets, then you can click here.
Samsung or Apple will need to be the ones to revive the tablet market
The tablet market is a bit of a sad sight nowadays. It’s been limping along for several years while phones were eating away at its market share. A combination of smartphones getting better (and bigger), OEMs giving tablets less-than-premium specs, and the limitations of tablet software, have done a number on the market.
The only tablets that have been keeping the market afloat are the Galaxy Tabs and the iPads. Each year, they get better specs and new features, but that’s it. Even with these titans selling tons of tablets, the market as a whole has been shrinking.
Enter Google with an idea that could revolutionize the tablet market. In all honesty, companies like Lenovo thought of this idea first. The Pixel Tablet just amassed much more hype. The Pixel Tablet can smoothly transform from a tablet to a smart display by simply docking it on the charging speaker dock.
It’s an incredible idea, but…
Already, this tablet is more covered and more anticipated than Lenovo’s solution, and it’s not even out yet. Also, it’s Google’s hardware running on Google’s software. So, what’s the problem?
Well, Google’s a popular brand, but it’s not really a trendsetter in the mobile hardware division. We’re not expecting to see many cheap knockoff Pixel devices plaguing Wish or comparable platforms. The Pixel devices, for as popular as they are, only make up about 1%-2% of the smartphone market. Other companies aren’t likely to emulate the Pixel Tablet’s mentality because it won’t make up a significant chunk of the tablet market.
Who are the trendsetters in the mobile market? Samsung and Apple. There are so many devices in the smartphone market that emulate phones from these companies. Would we have had the notched phone without the iPhone X? Would companies have snagged the “Note” moniker if it wasn’t for the success of the Galaxy Note series?
Let’s face it, so much of the smartphone industry is thanks to Samsung and Apple- for better or worse. Samsung or Apple will need to make their own version of the Pixel Tablet and make a big show of it to make the rest of the tablet market take notice.
Leading the pack
Imagine an iPad that connects to a special iDock and enters “Siri Mode”. It’ll be a one-stop shop to control all of your Apple Homekit devices. Knowing Apple, it’ll seamlessly integrate with your iPhone and Mac computer.
Weeks after that keynote, we’ll see other companies coming out with their own iterations. There’s no doubt this hypothetical iPad will sell in high volume. It’ll most likely be more successful under Apple’s wing than Samsung’s, but Sammy’s iteration will do much the same thing with its ecosystem of Galaxy devices.
Undoubtedly, these devices will make the headlines. Again, it’ll be a bigger splash if Apple does it because any break from form that Apple does will be big news.
How will this revive the tablet market?
The tablet is in the wrong place in the mobile tech market. When it was still burgeoning, it was the ostensible middle-ground between smartphones and laptops. That was back when phones were so small and computers were so big.
Nowadays, smartphones are much bigger with near-tablet-sized screens, and powerful laptops are much smaller and sleeker. This puts pressure on the tablet market from both sides. “I can watch movies and get work done on my phone and take my compact laptop everywhere I go. Why would I need a THIRD device?”
Hey, markets grow and change over time- what can ya’ do? The best thing for the tablet market to do is move. Instead of trying to occupy the shrinking space between smartphones and computers, it could settle in the vacant space between tablets and smartphones.
That could be a smart move because the trouble with tablets is that they need a functionality that phones and computers don’t have. Phones can do pretty much anything your tablet can do, and your computer is most likely much more powerful. But, neither of those devices will make good smart displays; tablets do. This adds a must-have functionality to tablets.
Maybe Google can revive the market through software
Google doesn’t have the hardware to bring the tablet back from the brink of oblivion, but it might have the software. Google holds the reins on Android, and it’s been making the platform better optimized for tablets.
It’s possible that the company could add a native faux-docked mode for tablets to Android. Basically, this mode will emulate the docked mode in the Pixel Tablet and let it act as a smart display. When the mode is activated, the microphone will remain on and you’ll be able to summon the Google Assistant when you need it.
Maybe Google could push this to older versions of Android so that people can give life to their older tablets that have been sitting on their closet shelves. Adding this functionality to Android could entice more people to buy tablets because of the extra functionality (the same could work if the script was flipped and Apple did this with iPadOS).
It’s a nifty idea, but Google would be doing this at the risk of shooting itself in the foot. Doing that will give people less reason to buy the Pixel Tablet. We’re not sure that Google wants to do that just yet.
All in all
Google influences the tech world in its own way. Its software and services have revolutionized the tech industry over the past 25 years. However, Google’s just not the popular kid at the lunch table. If other companies are going to hop on this trend and revive the tablet market, then it will just have to be started by Samsung or Apple to make it happen.
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