Apple Musing

People keep on talking about the possibility of an Apple netbook or maybe an Apple tablet, sort of an enhanced and larger iPhone. My question is why think about it in isolation? Apple is always positioning products within their ecosphere of other products and services, a netbook and tablet would need to do the same.

Steve Job's product grid

Since Steve Job's return Apple main hardware products have always fit into a standard grid pattern.

Product Class	Intro	Consumer	Pro
Laptops	MacBook Air	MacBook	MacBook Pro
Desktops	Mac Mini	iMac	Mac Pro
Mobile	iPod Range	iPod Touch	iPhone
Wi-Fi	AirPort Express	AirPort Extreme	Time Capsule

Where would a netbook/tablet fit into this structure? True it could replace the MacBook Air, however while that product has its detractors it is still a very Apple like product and one I think they are going to stick with. The problems with the Air are not to do with the form factor but the level of tech inside (battery life, processor speed) and this will catch up.

The connectivity question

Another related question which surrounds Apple's laptop computers is when, if ever, they will build in mobile connectivity. A built in 3G modem is something that Apple's competitors have been pushing and something that Apple has shied away from. This along with the politics surrounding their relationship with AT&T seem to preclude them from including an unlocked 3G modem and while people will buy a locked mobile phone they may stop short of locking their laptops to a provider.

Instead it seems more likely for people to use tethering to connect their laptops, and the iPhone 3.0 release might provide the out that Apple need. Tethering is definitely in there, Apple has said that it is now up to the provider to agree support for it. Naturally what Apple would like is for you to tether your netbook/tablet to an iPhone. But a netbook/tablet is not a great form factor to provide a desktop replacement, which is how many people use their laptops. So are we expected to have all 3; iPhone, netbook/tablet and desktop?

The docking solution

How about a docking station that turns that spanking new netbook/tablet into a desktop? How about something like this, from an Apple patent.

Now what if the netbook/tablet contained a simple, battery saving, NVidia GeForce 9400M graphics chip, but the docking station added a powerful 9600M, the alternative already included within their higher range laptops. Then docking your netbook/tablet, would not only give you the correct form factor but also, through the power of Snow Leopard's OpenCL, give you a more powerful machine!

When docked it's connected to your network, undocked it's tethered to your iPhone. What this gives you is a new type of grid, a grid of where you use your machine and in a combination of 3 products fills each slot. The netbook/tablet plus the docking monitor provide the "On Desk" solution, the netbook/tablet plus iPhone provide the "Coffee Shop/Meeting/Train etc" solution and the iPhone along is the "Out Of Your Pocket" solution.

Of course this is all idle speculation on my behalf, but that's part of the fun that I want to have with this site. Hence the musing part of the site name :)