Telecoms operators are struggling get a meaningful slice of the growing tablet computer market due to consumers, daunted or confused by data plans, going directly to manufacturers like Apple to buy their cherished devices.

According to the latest research from Informa Telecoms & Media, the tablet market will explode over the next five years, with retail revenues increasing from US$34.5bn in 2011 to US$121.5bn in 2016.

Operators’ share of the tablet retail sales are being limited by increasing interest from independent retailers, such as Carphone Warehouse, Amazon and Tesco.

Then there are the challenges faced by operators in convincing consumers to take out data plans attached to these devices and a notable preference amongst consumers to purchase these devices direct from manufacturers, such as Apple.

“We already expect independent retailers to increase their share of smartphone retail revenues – our smartphone forecasts show the independent retailers’ share of smartphone retail revenues increasing from 29pc in 2011 to 34pc to 2016 – and we expect this trend to be even more prevalent in the tablet segment,” says Julio Puschel, principal analyst at Informa Telecoms & Media.

“Tablets will drive significant changes to the current telecoms retail business model. New entrants, such as Amazon and other consumer electronics specialists which have already a very evolved online and multichannel strategy, will drive online tablet sales even faster than online smartphone sales, which will force operators to review their multichannel approach,” adds Puschel.

Transforming the retail experience
Puschel adds that independent retailers are innovating and promoting significant changes in telecoms retail, such as modernising their stores to offer a better customer experience, product testing and offering specialised customer support that also focuses on consumer education.

As handsets develop and become more complex, presenting their features and benefits to consumers is more of a challenge for operators. Specialist retailers have to date proven to be better able to educate consumers by providing an enhanced, interactive shopping experience.

“Telecoms operators will need to watch the independent retailers closely to see how they are transferring their retail expertise to the smartphone and tablet market.

“They need to be able to offer an outstanding shopping experience that can match or outperform the independent retailers – not simply pushing device sales, but also demonstrating the services, content and applications attached to these devices,” Puschel said.

Source:http://www.siliconrepublic.com/comms/item/25531-telcos-struggle-to-sell/

SCIENCE fiction has always been the source of inspiration for future products that are currently in our midst, but there are two that have captured every techie’s imagination from the very start. From Star Trek to Star Wars, there are scenes that these two gadgets—or a semblance of them—were held by a protagonist: the personal communicator and the document pad.
Now, these two gizmos have been incarnated into what the realm of modern information technology has spawned: the tablet computer.

The past year will be remembered as a landmark one for electronic gadgetry as the digital landscape was inundated with tons of innovations. Such were the tablet computers, or simply the tablets. Undeniably, the stuff IT enthusiasts raved and craved for.

Question is, are you ready to jump into the tablet bandwagon?

Not to start a war-of-sorts among tablets, but this piece will offer potential owners a low-down of three tablets which could help in that big-ticket purchase of a nifty piece of digital gadgetry.

So how does one measure a tablet’s power to generate the “awe” factor? If beauty is in the eye of the beholder, then it’s up to the spender to pick which among the three best clicks (or in this case, inspires to want to “touch…” its screen, that is; clicking is already for an old technology to hard-core tablet users).

Consider the Acer Iconia A500, Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 and the Motorola Xoom.

Presentation

BEST described as how the product was made, with the intention of attracting buyers with its good looks alone. What is the casing made of? How many buttons are there? Does the glass glimmer or does it shine like black leather? Are there enough ports for all my other gadgets to plug in? Will the color exude the owner’s individuality? Will powering it up with accessories be easy? These questions will certainly be answered by simply inspecting the exteriors of a tablet.

Take a closer look at these—remember, a thorough physical inspection of the actual tablet will augur well for the buyer.

Naturally, along with the presentation comes the look of a tablet’s operating system or OS—considered its “face value.” Android, especially the Honeycomb variant, has been the OS of choice for most of the tablets in the market today. Main reason for this would be the user interface or UI, which incorporates the most basic application requirements, not to mention its intuitive nature for use in every touch-based mobile device.

Another undeniable fact is the availability of countless applications for the Android OS and its ease of access. From themes that change the look of your tablet to almost every game there is, for sure they are all available in the Android market.

Power

INCLUDES literally all the hardware that makes a tablet run like an F1 car does, from the processor to the memory capacity, and even the sensitivity of the touch glass. It’s what makes the experience with the tablet all the more enjoyable. This also includes the tablet’s capability to run all sorts of applications which a person might require, from office applications to gravity- or touch-based games (bet your friend’s tablet has “Angry Birds’’ installed in it) and even entertainment solutions for high-definition video presentation or streaming.

Review the specifications of these tablets on gsmarena.com and appreciate how powerful they are. And of course, how could one truly enjoy a tablet if it is beyond reach to acquire in the first place?

Price can yet be the ultimate criterion—despite considering the two previous factors—to make that big decision to get a hold of a tablet, or defer it for some time until market forces make it more affordable.

A cursory check through local Internet product sale sites will yield the following prices of the three brands:

Acer Iconia A500, 16GB model: both from pinoytechblog.com and yugatech.com, P21,900.

Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1: from pinoytechblog.com, P29,990; from yugatech.com, P33,999.

Motorola Xoom: from sulit.com.ph, P22,500 for the 16GB model; and from pricephilippines.com, P28,000 (32GB).

It seems that the Samsung Galaxy is on a league of its own when it comes to pricing, while both the Acer Iconia and Motorola Xoom are battling it out in almost the same range with a quick check on prices at kiosk dealers in Greenhills and St. Francis Square in Mandaluyong. The range of prices are lower by about P2,000 to, at the most, P3,000 for Iconia and the Xoom, but apparently the Galaxy even at bargain areas such as these still sell close to what was originally canvassed above.

Given all these information, here are some more points to ponder to the next would-be owner. In the final reckoning, it all comes down to what you really need in a tablet. Whether it is for work or leisure, consider these:

• For toughness that doesn’t compromise a smooth glide of the fingers on the surface, consider a tablet with a Gorilla-Glass screen.

• How much memory is needed would be determined on how much workload it will process (read: multitasking, like most of us do) such as for simultaneous usage of applications and software, thus doubling the amount of space you need in your tablet.

• Network options will be helpful if lifestyle demands online presence 24/7. A built-in Wi-Fi is a given to almost all tablets, while being 3G- or 4G-enabled for many is a must if Internet connectivity should be seamless.

Consider all these when acquiring a tablet. Test these gadgets now and touch-base into the future of portable computing.

Source:http://businessmirror.com.ph/component/content/article/52-technology/22446-touch-them-to-believe-a-quick-guide-to-tablet-computers