Tablets: the weird middle ground?

[Honest]

Hey guys, I have a question that I'm sure has been asked before, but I will ask it yet again.

Apple recently announced their new 10.5 inch iPad, and it's pretty neat in my opinion. I was watching a review on it recently, and it got me thinking: are tablets obsolete? The reviewer I was watching said that if it wasn't an iPad, then yeah, they were. So I was wondering what your opinion is. And by tablet, I mean a pure tablet, not those 2 in 1 laptops you see everywhere.

 

[Percy]

In my opinion, tablets are good middle ground for those that just want mess around with apps and games, entertain themselves with those dank memes and YouTube videos etc. But what I see with the newest 10.5" iPad, Apple tries to take on the Microsoft Surface Pro line (I don't know if that is their main goal).

From the smart keyboard and the (pen pineapple) Apple Pen, it is obvious it is their purpose for it. And I heard that iOS 11 will mean a great deal for the iPad. So let's look towards the future and see what Apple has for its users.

 

[Lucario]

Tablets were a device created to fill a market niche that no longer exists. With smaller laptops and more powerful smartphones, there just isn't a place for a device not much smaller than small laptop but with only the power of your phone. The surface tablets are a weird case as I suppose they're kinda laptops as well(?)

 

[Raffy98]

In my opinion, it's true: with smartphones becoming more and more powerful tablets are losing market share and I'm experiencing this myself.
I have a 5 years old iPad 2 and when I used to have one of those cheap phones I was using it a lot because that phone didn't even have apps, but now that I have a decent smartphone I don't use it that often.

 

[Tsutarja]

While smartphones are definitely becoming just as powerful as tablets, there is one distinction I can see between a phone and a tablet, and that's size.

I can definitely see from Angie's point-of-view in that phones are definitely increasing in screen size and speed, but I cannot fathom why a 10" piece of electronics would want to be put into a pocket. I cannot ever seen phone screen sizes going to 9 or 10 inches, and if they do, refer me back to this post to let me know that I'm an idiot.

Additionally, tablets are there for people who do need the bigger screens and possibly multitask as well, but also not necessarily in need of a full-sized laptop computer. They're also much better as something you can hold in your hand without it weighing down on you, versus carrying a laptop in your hands. Plus, you wouldn't need to have a bag around you either.

2-in-1s are a nice concept as well, but I find them to be a little bit big (sans the Surface). They are definitely great to have if you want to consolidate down on how many devices you take with you as well. However, I do not think the Windows OS is portable enough yet for to be used as a mobile OS. If more people knew about dual-booting, and if there was a nice Android ROM available for use inside of a Windows-based (x86/x64) environment, then sure I'd be all for that.

 

[Starry Windy]

Personally, I think tablets can still sell well for those who want a bigger gadget size. Granted, it may be too big to fit on the pocket, but seeing any texts like some articles on the net, or watching videos on huge screen might be a huge deal for some.