Fact remains: Contrary to what the Applebots think, Apple did NOT invent the tablet computer, nor any of the technologies that go with it, and Windows tablets existed long before thew iPad. Apple simply took what others had invented before them, refined them, and put them into a package that sold well.
“The biggest potential pitfall to Windows 8 is that this mentality might simply get worse as they expand their core OS to encompass not just PCs, but also tablets and smartphones. p>
The reviews so far, including the review from “Wired” have been pretty positive. Plus, Windows 8, in its various iterations, will sell vastly more than the iPad and Apple Macs combined, with Windows 7 having already sold a staggering over 550 million in such a relatively short time.
FORBES:
“We expect Windows 8 to be a bigger hit than Windows 7, which has sold around 550 million licenses to date. Along with Windows 8, Microsoft will also be launching the Windows App Store, which will be the central repository for Windows software, and will allow users to access all available software from a single location.”
http://www.forbes.com/sites/greatspeculations/2012/02/13/microsoft-stock-going-to-32-as-windows-8-arrives-this-month/
No one claimed Apple invented the tablet. Apple made the tablet a viable and usable device.
As mentioned previously, previous attempts sucked. Universally. And hard. Why? A couple of factors: 1) The hardware wasn't up to snuff. 2) (and more importantly) The designers tried to make tablets do too much -- all things to all people -- on a device that was barely capable of doing anything at all.
What Apple did differently was that they put their own R&D regarding battery life, mobile processors, and high-quality mutlitouch displays and delivered a usable device that focused only on a limited number of tasks, but delivered them well. I remember a lot of complaints that the 1st-generation iPads were useless for content creators, as opposed to content consumers -- and for good reason, it was designed for the latter, not the former.
From a marketing standpoint, they were also able to leverage the wide library already available in the App Store to appeal to folks who already owned an iDevice or who wanted one but didn't need the phone and wanted something larger than the iPod Touch.
I mean, I have a Kindle Fire, and I like it. But I'm not going to pretend its anywhere near as good as a 1st-generation iPad, let alone a 3rd-generation model. On the other hand, without the iPad, there'd be no Kindle Fire. (Or Blackberry Playbook, et. al.)