AMD Exec Envisions Hybrid Devices Replacing Tablets by 2016
Consumers are going crazy for tablet devices these days. It started with Apple's iPad, which is still the best selling tablet line out there, and continues with the influx of low-cost Android slates from name-brand vendors like Amazon, Barnes & Nobles, Asus, and so forth. Tablets have become so popular that Microsoft went and re-imagined Windows for touch input on-the-go. It seems unlikely these mobile devices are going anywhere, or does it?
At an AMD event the other day, AMD U.K. Retail Business Development Manager Andrew Muscat told T3 that the market will shift away from tablets and towards hybrid devices. Muscat fully acknowledges that slates like the Nexus 7 and iPad mini are super popular, but he also says they're limited in functionality compared to hybrid laptops.
"You're going to see a shift I think. While tablets are good you're still restricted when it comes to content creation; there's always going to be a need for notebooks," Muscat told T3. "I think it's moving a lot more towards taking tablet technology and effectively turning it into notebook technology."
Muscat gives the tablet form factor another two to three years before it yields to hybrid laptops. Is he crazy in thinking that? You'd have a hard time convincing BlackBerry CEO Thornsten Heins of that. At the end of last month, Heins made a similar prediction, stating in an interview with Bloomberg that five years from now, there won't be a reason to own a tablet.
At an AMD event the other day, AMD U.K. Retail Business Development Manager Andrew Muscat told T3 that the market will shift away from tablets and towards hybrid devices. Muscat fully acknowledges that slates like the Nexus 7 and iPad mini are super popular, but he also says they're limited in functionality compared to hybrid laptops.
"You're going to see a shift I think. While tablets are good you're still restricted when it comes to content creation; there's always going to be a need for notebooks," Muscat told T3. "I think it's moving a lot more towards taking tablet technology and effectively turning it into notebook technology."
Muscat gives the tablet form factor another two to three years before it yields to hybrid laptops. Is he crazy in thinking that? You'd have a hard time convincing BlackBerry CEO Thornsten Heins of that. At the end of last month, Heins made a similar prediction, stating in an interview with Bloomberg that five years from now, there won't be a reason to own a tablet.
