Apple's rivals scramble to match iPad

SAN FRANCISCO, USA: Now that Apple Inc's iPad is finally born, Hewlett-Packard Co, Dell Inc and others are preparing to introduce their own tablet computers, facing an uphill battle to win over critics and consumers.

By being first to hit store shelves, the iPad is already defining the tablet market on its terms: a battery-sipping media consumption device with access to unique content and programs from Apple's sprawling applications bazaar.

Now, HP, Dell, and potentially Nokia Oyj, Sony Corp and Samsung Electronics, are putting the finishing touches on tablets of their own. Their challenge may be less in developing a device than in crafting content for it.

"Just because this works for Apple doesn't mean it will work for these guys," said Kaufman Bros analyst Shaw Wu. "They have to be prepared to try something different."

Apple already rules the music player category and the high-end of the computer market, while the iPhone has changed the way people think about smartphones.

In the nascent tablet segment, the fear is that Apple will again dominate the category so completely that rivals can't catch up. That could be devastating, considering the market for tablet computers is expected to explode to as many as 50 million units in 2014. according to research group In-Stat.

To succeed, analysts say, Apple's rivals will need to look beyond hardware to a universe of specialized services and media, which will truly drive tablet adoption.

But they are already at a disadvantage. Apple, with its iTunes Store, has years of experience working with record companies, film and TV studios, game makers, and thousands of designers of small programs and utilities called apps.

"You can't just come out with a device, that won't cut it," said In-Stat analyst Jim McGregor. "Apple has brought an entire solution. it includes the content and the apps."

'THEY WOULD BE ROADKILL'

The iPad has also succeeded in vacuuming up much of the media oxygen in recent months, and devices from competitors may struggle to find breathing room.

Analysts advised against trying to imitate the iPad, suggesting instead that they offer what it doesn't.

"Find a niche and fill it," said Yankee Group analyst Carl Howe. "They need to find gaps in what Apple has done and fill them."

Dell said its first tablet offering, a 5-inch device, will indeed help set it apart from the pack. Its tablet will double as a smartphone -- unlike the iPad -- and will launch with a wireless carrier in the next three to six months.

Dell is talking with partners to bring electronic books, video and music to its tablet, which will be the first in family of devices, some with larger screen sizes.

Neeraj Choubey, general manager of Dell's tablet division, said he was "underwhelmed" by the iPad.

Dell's device will run on Google Inc's Android operating system, so it will be able to access thousands of apps in the Android Market, which, although much smaller than Apple's App Store, would still give Dell's offering a relatively rich ecosystem of apps.

HP, the world's largest personal computer vendor, will also release a still unnamed touchscreen "slate" later this year. The device is roughly the same size as the iPad and will run on Microsoft's Windows 7, but HP has provided few other details. It declined to comment for this article.

Both Dell and HP's tablets will support Adobe Systems Flash software -- meaning they will be able to access popular Web sites such as Hulu -- and have cameras, things that the iPad conspicuously lacks.

Analysts say Nokia is also working on a tablet for later this year, and a Sony executive has expressed interest in the market.

And although the tablet category has just come into existence, there is already something of a "netbook effect" at play as small companies such as MSI, Notion Ink and ICD look to offer low-cost, lower-performance tablets.

Analysts say Apple's rivals intentionally waited until after the iPad launch, so they could see what they would be measured by, and at what price.

What's more, some said that rival tablets could benefit somewhat from all the iPad hype, as the device acquaints consumers with a product category they know little about.

"They couldn't have launched before, they would be roadkill getting out front," said Roger Kay, president of consulting firm Endpoint Technologies. "Apple had to set the bar for others to try to pass."