14 DAY TRIAL // The Apple iPad may not be the “flashiest” device out there, but it has already managed to prompt a fair number of companies to start working, or accelerate their existing work, on their competing devices. Among them are names such as MSI, HP, ASUS and ExoPC, each determined to use the iPad's lack of flash to their advantage. Unlike these four, however, one company seems uninterested in the emerging slate market, having resolved to keep pushing the ultra-thin laptop segment, at least for 2010.
According to Digitimes, Acer Taiwan President Scott Lin said that, while devising an iPad-like device wouldn't be a problem, such products didn't fit into the company's business model. Lin said that designing a tablet posed no technical difficulties for the Taiwanese hardware maker, but, even so, Acer had no plans of entering the tablet-PC race, at least during the ongoing year.
Digitimes also notes that, according to Lin, those wishing to rival Apple are “unlikely to be able to replicate its result simply by copying.” Closed platforms have always been limited, scale-wise, by the niche market they adhere to. Apple has years of experience with its own niche, making the iPad's success feasible, whereas those planning to compete do not. Lin also noted that few companies had experience in operating online stores and, while Apple could support its device through the iTunes ecosystem, others might not find enough online content to give their devices a practical use.
The Acer Taiwan president did say that the iPad was unlikely to have any impact upon the notebook and netbook markets, considering the completely different user groups that the respective products targeted. The company expects that 50-60 percent of its total notebook shipments for 2010 will be made up by large-size, traditional notebooks. Netbooks are seen at around 20% and ultra-thins are set to represent 20-30%.
Acer shipped about 31 million notebooks during 2009 and plans to actively promote ultra-thins with a thickness of under 2cm as one of its major 2010 products.