The Tablet?

Apple clearly has something under the wraps to mystify customers and to open wallets worldwide. Knowing Apple, this product will be revolutionary. You may hate it, but I guarantee you, it will spawn many competing companies to release a similar product. You may despise the iPhone. But it led to phones you may LOVE. The Pre, the Droid, the G1, the Eris, the Behold, and the upcoming google phone. All the other companies wanted to compete. I predict a media tablet, with a PixelQi screen for eBooks and periodicals, and a camera. I also suspect that it will have a built in 3G modem, with both Verizon and AT&T compatibility, from Broadcomm's new CDMA/GSM hybrid chip. And, I've got a feeling it'll use a chip from PA semi, a chip designer Apple purchased 3 years ago for reasons that remain unknown. The rest is unknown to me. But all I can say, I have exactly $1000 allocated, right now, to buy that tablet on FREAKING OPENING DAY! An unboxing video will be posted on YouTube the same day.

There is also a rumor on the streets of the tablet having multiple finishes, according to the Wall Street Journal:

Looking to build on the momentum of its iPhone and iPod, Apple Inc. will unveil a new multimedia tablet device later this month, but isn't planning to ship the product until March, say people briefed by the company.

While the device's ship date hasn't been finalized and could still change, people briefed on the matter said the new product will come with a 10 to 11-inch touch screen—which would make it closer in size to Apple's line of MacBook laptops than its smart phone.

Apple was working on two different material finishes for the device, one of these people said, ...

Some other information from them as well:

One of the people briefed on the matter added that Apple was working on two different material finishes for the tablet, though it was unclear whether the Cupertino, Calif., company was just testing them or planning to come out with multiple versions of the device at different prices. 

And:

Analysts currently believe an Apple tablet will be priced at about $1,000, possibly including a subscription to a nationwide Wi-Fi wireless service. The tablet is expected to be a multimedia device that will let people watch movies and television shows, play games, surf the Internet and read electronic books and newspapers. People briefed by Apple also say that the company believes it could redefine the way consumers interact with a variety of content. Textbooks and newspapers, for example, could be presented differently through color screens, a touch interface, and the integration of live up-to-the-minute information from multiple sources.

Via www.bitefromtheapple.com

Update on Jan 20, 2010 at 5:33 PM by Robert Mozayeni

Remember how I predicted the use of a GSM/CDMA hybrid chip? Well, looks like 9 to 5 Mac agrees with me.