The Tablet Revolution is Just Getting Started

Impressed with your friend’s new tablet? Tempted to join in? The tablet-mobile revolution is only getting started. The first modern computer tablet, the iPad, went on sale in April 2010. According to PC World, 19 percent of all Americans own a tablet.

Never in history has a consumer electronics product caught on so fast. The tablet is an unprecedented game changer. Let’s step back and take a good look at what’s really going on.

We are heading towards a world in which the middle class owns 3 screens. Every home has a personal computer for the “big stuff” like spreadsheets, heavy writing and video games that require a big screen. Today, most people have a smartphone. This second screen is smaller and lets us communicate with the world and read information while on the go.

The tablet is our third screen. Bigger than the smartphone, we can sit in the family room (or while eating) and read the news or play casual games. Tablet owners were able to place bets on the Olympics while drinking espresso. Logitech, Microsoft and Asus have already created tablet keyboards. You may not want to write a novel on your tablet keyboard, but it speeds things up when chatting or writing “to do” notes.

If you are a collector, you can walk around your home and look up your favorite books, movies or cd’s with your tablet. You don’t need to run back and forth between your computer and your shelves. Isn’t it nice to be able to read personal and shopping notes while on the go?

As they say in old Western movies, “you ain’t seen nothin’ yet.” Samsung, Apple and Microsoft (and probably Asus and everyone else) have new products slated for release in the coming months. Between now and the Christmas shopping season, expect the unexpected.

These are interesting times. Three screens will affect our lives like never before. Now, if only those Europeans could get their economic act together, we could party like its 1999 (like Prince’s song)!