One of the many rumored renderings of what the Apple Tablet will look like (From Huffington Post)

For the better part of this year (particularly the later half), a lot of talk has been going around EVERYWHERE– be it on blogs, news outlets, TV– about a new Apple Tablet device. Rumors depict a 9 to 10 inch iPod touch (including multi-touch, something no Mac has done before) powered by Mac OS X Snow Leopard, accompanied by an iTunes-like store for books, magazines and newspapers (to fight the Nook, Kindle and all other e-readers as well as “help save” print media).

We have never mentioned anything in previous posts about the Tablet, though the rumors have circulated for years now, primarily because the disussion appeared to to be grounded more in hope than in fact. But with recent increase and detail emerging about the theoretical device, I have joined the ranks of believers and am convinced that it is finally coming…. very soon.

So what has changed my mind so much that I really want a device like this and believe it’s coming so soon? A lot of things.

Magazines/Newspapers/Books

Over the past couple of weeks,  editors from some of the biggest newspapers and magazine companies have either mentioned some sort of Apple Tablet or major touchscreen digital reading device. We’re talking a mention of a “Apple Slate” from an executive editor from the New York Times, and a Time Inc. and Condé Nast demos of reading their magazines (in this case Sports Illustrated and Wired, respectively) off a larger multi-touch screen. Yeah, these guys are pretty big players to say the least. Here, check out SI’s demo:

As someone that reads SI every week, to have an experience like the one demoed– video clips, interactive layout, up to the minute scores, fantasy updates, news– as well as a cooler look that keeps the awesome pix and great articles SI is known for, this is just, wow. Seriously, this just blew me away. If what was shown in the video above is anywhere near the experience one of these devices offers, then sign me up on Day One. For those who doubt that the device in question is from Apple, notice the similarities between the demo device and the iPod touch, as well as the pop up windows when talking about managing your fantasy team and Kurt Warner– observe the blue scroll bar strongly resembling the Safari browser? Giveaways of an Apple Tablet, in my opinion.

There is also talk that Apple is in discussion with book publishers to get their content on this device, and the infinitely more flexibility and features expected to be available on it make this a far more appealing choice than a Kindle or Nook.

Patents, Trademarks and other legal stuff

Like any high-tech, new product, the Apple Tablet is sure to leave a paper trail of patents filed over the years for the various technologies it employs. Indeed, among the tons of patents Apple files for its vast reservoir of new ideas, patents indicative of a large Apple touch device have traveled the internet over the past few years, though recently they have been piecing together to potentially form very handy and diverse functions on such a tablet device. Look at this Gizmodo post of an Apple patent, and tell me it doesn’t look a teeny bit similar to the device used in the SI video. Particularly, look at how the SI video copies and emails a photo of Hideki Matsui and the last picture of the post with the the wheel. Look similar to you as well?

Notice the similarity between the wheels on the top and bottom. Both designed for use inside content (like scrolling or in SI’s case, sending out a pic)

And in respect to securing a trademark for the product’s final name, Apple just picked up the name “TabletMac”, which seeing, as there is no current Mac with touch capabilities, could very well be another point for the existence of the Apple Tablet.

An awesome, portable computer

There are many different rumors going around on what will truly be powering the Apple Tablet (or iTablet, TabletMac, whatever you want to call it). But whether or not Apple gives this the full OS X treatment, or just the scaled down one used on the iPhone and iPod touch, if it’s given such a large screen size and even decent power, you’re talking about a device excellent enough to serve as a portable computer. If built with an Intel Core 2 Duo processor, a 160-250 GB hard drive or solid state drive, a 9 or 10 inch multi-touch screen, key features like 3G (with some rumors saying the device will be on Verizon; others, AT&T) and all your other standard laptop parts– you’ve got a sleek, sick portable Mac. I know I’d be more than happy to use as my regular computer and take to school everyday (especially considering its the support for books, magazines and newspapers, it might prove the perfect school device).

Change the Core 2 Duo processor and Snow Leopard for a processor that is like/faster than the iPhone 3GS’s and runs the iPhone OS with all it’s apps, and again– perfect device for school and travel. Sleek, slim and just another device that would be perfect. Oh, and look at this patent which seems to be a handwritten “notes”  recognition application Apple filed:

Apple patent for handwriting recognition using you a pen to take write on screen (perfect for notes). (From Engadget)

Speaking of Snow Leopard, one of the things quietly updated in the latest Apple OS was the onscreen keyboard, which, well take a look for yourself:

Snow Leopard’s new onscreen keyboard (From Cult of Mac)

Hmm,  how very touch-friendly looking….

Wrap Up

There are tons and tons of rumors on what this mythical Apple Tablet is, and if/when it will launch and for how much. My personal thoughts/wishes? Soon. Apple is know for making BIG product announcements in January (*cough* MacBook Air, iPhone *cough*), and well this is a HUGE product if it is even a fraction of what we’re all thinking of. And hey look at that, January is just a month away.

Price? That I personally can’t even come close to guessing, since the hard core specs on what this will be (a bigger iPod touch, a tablet MacBook?) are so up in the air. But, lemme just say, if Apple prices this, as some are suggesting, in the below $1000 range, your gonna wanna save up and hold on tight to that holiday gift money– you will really want this.

Ok, so there’s my thoughts on the mythical Apple Tablet, and keep checking back as we’ll make sure to keep you up to date on the all the latest news and info. What do you think this Apple Tablet will be? You think it will even happen or is this just some widespread rumor based on some Apple fan’s dream? Would you get one? Let us know in the comments.

The Barnes and Noble Nook eBook

We’ve all probably been to Barnes and Noble a couple of times over the past years– either by choice or for something for school reading. What if told you that soon those trips won’t be needed and you can have every book from there physical stores in your pocket? Interesting, yeah? Its true. Today, book giant Barnes and Noble have announced their entrance into the future for books with their new eBook called the Nook. This is ready to take on Amazon’s hit Kindle, and boy did Barnes and Noble do a great job with this device (case in point, look up at the pic– wow is right). And that top pic is only part of the story– read on to learn all about Barnes and Nobles new eBook and how they plan to continue to change books as we now know them.

Ok, so obviously this thing looks a whole lot nicer than Amazon’s Kindle 2. Like the Kindle, you got a nice 6 inch e-ink (aka electronic ink, or a screen that doesn’t use a lot of power and provides an experience that is similar to reading a book on paper), and a very thin, portable design (about the size of a paperback book). And while s the Kindle’s got that full QWERTY keyboard going for it under the screen for notes and searching for books, the Nook has a 3.5 color touchscreen to do all that and more. This acts as a keyboard when needed for the aforementioned tasks, and even does other cool tricks like letting you go through your book collection in a “Cover Flow” like way. I really like this design a whole lot better than the Kindle’s and pretty much any other eBook out there. Oh, and you can also buy a bunch of accessories and designer covers to customize this to your style.

The Nook in “Cover Flow”

Now let’s go to some of the more spec type details of the Nook. Like the Kindle, this also has built in 3G for downloading books, magazines and newspapers anywhere you are (thanks to AT&T), but unlike the Kindle, it even throws in built in WiFi, with free WiFi in all Barnes and Noble bookstores (no shock here).  There also is 2 GB of built in storage for about 1,500 eBooks (yeah, that’s a whole lot of books), and you can add up to 16 GB through the microSD slot to take a whopping 17,500 books where ever you go (there goes the library).You also get a built in Mp3 player, 3.5 mm (regular size) headphone jack and a speaker so you can put some music on here, and a PDF and image viewer where you can create your own screensavers and keep some pix on your Nook. All this powered by Google’s Android OS, which is interesting and cool at the same time (though no you can’t browse the web on here, which would look pretty bad on the current e-ink screens. Apps though are unknown at this point if you’ll be able to just load them on).The battery life is also said to be pretty good– 10 days with wireless off (though lower than the Kindle’s claim of 14 days with wireless off).

Pix on your Nook

Best of all is the bookstore for this beautiful device. Over a million books are ready in Barnes and Noble’s eBook store, with free samples available for trying out a little bit of the book and even 500,000 free eBooks available. Again, wow. You also get the previously mentioned ability to get magazines and newspapers on the device, so there should always be something new for you to read. The bestsellers and new release books will, like the Kindle’s bookstore, also be priced at $9.99. Throw all this with a built in Miriam Webster dictionary and your English class should become a lot easier and more interesting.

If that isnt enough to make this a solid device and Kindle rival, Barnes and Noble also makes free apps for PCs, Macs, BlackBerrys and iPhone/iPod touches (and soon Windows Mobile and possibly Android), that allow you to download and view your stuff on the go. Barnes and Noble decided to really tie that into the Nook experience, automatically syncing up your notes, highlights and where exactly you left off across all these devices (the Kindle also has a feature like this, but right now it only works with other Kindles you own, iPod touches and iPhones). But they even take this one step further using a new feature called “LendMe,” which let’s you actually lend out your digital book to someone else with either a Nook or another eBook device.  How long you’ll be able to lend the books out we don’t know, and this will only be with books that publishers allow to be shared (something Barnes and Noble is trying hard to push to get everyone on board).

This is a pretty sick eBook in my opinion (and I’m not even a big book reader– though this definitely makes me more interested in reading more often), and something I think has a lot of potential to really give Barnes and Noble a nice spot in this eBook race. The Nook will be available in November for $259, and you can pre-order it today from Barnes and Noble’s site.

Can you–bookworm or not–see yourself getting one of these? What do you think of its potential?