Acer, Toshiba To Take On IPads With Windows 8 Tablets
Acer Inc., Toshiba Corp. (6502) and Asustek Computer Inc. (2357) will unveil tablets running Microsoft Corp.'s Windows 8 operating system next week, people with knowledge of the matter said, challenging the dominance of Apple Inc. (AAPL)'s iPad.
Context & Ripple Effects
The Windows-on-tablets push has been building for months: back in October 2011, Dell was already gearing up Windows 8 devices as its Android efforts disappointed, and this report extends that bet across Taiwan's biggest PC brands. The stakes are visible in the confirmed data — an Onswipe measurement put the iPad at 97% of tablet web traffic as of late 2011, while Acer's own alternatives have struggled, with its Iconia Tab A510 Android tablet priced at $449.99 against Apple's grip and cumulative Acer Chromebook sales projected at just 25,000-30,000 units through end-2011.
The Bloomberg report is sourced to people with knowledge of the matter, so the unveilings remain unconfirmed until shown next week — but the breadth of pickup (USA Today, CNET, The Verge, Fast Company among others) shows how much attention any credible iPad challenger commands ahead of Windows 8.
First-order effects
- Acer, Toshiba and Asustek gain a Microsoft-backed slate to pitch against the iPad, giving each an alternative to Android lines like Acer's $449.99 Iconia Tab A510 that have not dented Apple's traffic dominance.
- Microsoft gets its flagship OEMs committed to touch-first hardware for Windows 8 before launch, addressing the criticism that Windows had no credible tablet answer to iOS.
Second-order effects
- Apple faces its first multi-vendor Windows tablet wave rather than a fragmented Android field, forcing the iPad's competitive frame to shift from app-share arguments to enterprise familiarity with Windows.
- Component and silicon partners tied to the Wintel supply chain gain a second high-volume tablet design track alongside ARM-based Android slates, splitting OEM roadmaps between ecosystems.
Third-order effects
- If the pattern holds, tablets move from an Apple-versus-Google contest toward a three-OS market where PC incumbents hedge across Windows, Android and Chrome — with each vendor's loyalty to any one ecosystem becoming provisional.
- Sustained OEM commitment would make Windows 8's tablet reception a referendum on whether Microsoft can extend desktop software gravity into post-PC hardware, shaping how regulators and rivals read its platform power.
The trend: The Wintel ecosystem is converging on the tablet form factor ahead of Windows 8's release, turning the iPad challenge from isolated Android experiments into a coordinated multi-vendor push.