Microsoft reinvents the Trapper Keeper with Courier
September 23rd, 2009 § 1 Comment
The fanboy web is abuzz with the above conceptual video that demonstrates Microsoft’s proposed Courier in action. The Courier is a notebook-style tablet computer with gesture and handwriting recognition that uses the familiar activities of paper-based note-taking and scrap-booking as metaphors for how one would use the device. With all the speculation surrounding the forthcoming Apple tablet, some have suggested that Courier is a reminder that we shouldn’t take our eyes off Microsoft’s secretive work in the sub-laptop arena. But aside from the very well-produced concept mockup demonstrated here, what fascinates me about Courier is that it is built on a very different design metaphor compared to supposed mockups of the Apple tablet. That is to say, Courier emulates using a notebook . . . or dayplanner . . . or Trapper Keeper.
But is this the right design metaphor?
One could argue that this is the perfect blend of the familiar and the new that could open up a new category of mobile computing. But on the other hand, this could be limiting. Where the Courier demo excels at demonstrating the device’s exceptional on-the-fly note-taking and inspiration-gathering capabilities, it seems ill-fitted for media consumption. I can’t imagine using the device for entertainment content.
And herein lies a clear indication of how Apple and Microsoft will compete in the sub-laptop arena: Apple’s tablet will likely major in entertainment (no duh) while Microsoft will stake out mobile business and academic utility.
Stay tuned to see how this plays out. For now, I’ll take one of each.
Content convergence and the Apple tablet
July 27th, 2009 § 3 Comments
Yesterday’s Financial Times featured an article about Apple’s long-rumored tablet computer. There’s certainly no shortage of speculation about what an Apple tablet might look like and how it might function. But what I found particularly interesting was FT’s reference to Project Cocktail, Apple’s enhanced content negotiations with record companies:
The entertainment industry is hoping that Apple, which revolutionised the markets for music players and for phones, can do it again. “It’s a portable entertainment device,” said one entertainment executive. “It’s going to be fabulous for watching movies.” Recording industry executives said Apple planned to use the larger screen to offer new services such as interactive booklets and liner notes that come along with purchases of entire music CDs.
It seems Apple’s forthcoming tablet (along with the next evolution of iTunes) could foster a revolution of unprecedented content convergence. The embattled music industry seems poised to jump on this opportunity, and publishers could also have much to gain for jumping on board. With a proposed 10-inch full-color screen, gesture recognition, and full Internet connectivity, the tablet will undoubtedly be a Kindle on steroids. But that’s only part of the story.
Whereas the iPhone revolutionized what a phone can do, Apple’s tablet could revolutionize what content can do.
If Apple gets this service ecosystem right, partnerships between developers and content providers could usher in a new tide of tablet apps that blur the lines between eBooks, music, film, games, and social media. This may be too little, too late for the vast majority of newspapers, but it is encouraging to consider Apple’s forthcoming tablet as a generative platform for new business models for musicians and writers. Especially when you watch Chris Anderson struggle to offer Charlie Rose anything beyond advertising-supported and basic freemium schemes as solutions to the woes of newspapers and publishers:
