One of the most common responses when the iPad was announced in 2010 seemed to be that the iPad was just a giant iPod Touch. While it might have started like a giant iPod Touch, the iPad has evolved over time to become my most used and versatile device.  Unlike the iPhone, which has continued to fight a war against many competitors, the iPad seems to remain top of its class and competes more with other computing devices than tablets.  

So how has Apple been winning this tablet war? 

Making the iPad different

The iPad has shared its code base with the iPhone since it was announced.  While it might be true that the device was a blown-up iPod, it was so much more than that.  Apple took the time to make it different.  

The most fundamental change was the keyboard.  Apple took the time to make a keyboard that was different than the keyboard that graced the iPhone.  Instead of simply enlarging the standard iPhone on-screen keyboard, the engineers took the time to build a keyboard that was closer to an actual physical keyboard. This helped to set the tone for the device:  while it used many of the assets of the iPhone, it was a different device.  

Contrast that to the way that Android built its support for tablet-class devices.  Everything on the Android tablet just seemed to be a much larger version of the phone version.  This might have made it easier for the developers to make one class of apps, but it didn’t. The user could get the same experience from a phone that it could from a tablet.  

Apple seemed to realize that screen size would allow its users to do more and created something different than the blown-up iPhone apps.

Leading with iPad Class Apps

The operating system wasn’t the only thing that Apple differentiated.  Apple also created another class of mobile apps with the iPad. 

While the iPad could run iPhone apps, Apple didn’t allow those types of apps to run in full screen on the iPad.  Instead, to keep the same proportions, they windowed those iPhones apps.  An iPhone only app would not run full screen on an iPad.  This could be off-putting and hard to navigate, which made its users want true iPad apps instead of Phone apps.

I hated it when I ran into an iPhone only app on my iPad.  I still refuse to use them.

It was a genius move for Apple to create that different class of apps for iPad. When Steve Jobs showed off the iPad, he showed off not only the device but how apps would work differently on the iPad.  

They were able to show off both the two-column view in email, which allowed users to control two parts of the screen at different times and the use of an almost full-sized keyboard when composing an email.

Then they went further. Jobs showed off the new iWork suite developed for the iPad.  Not only could you now use bigger apps, but you could get work done with these iPad focused apps.  Some may argue that it has been difficult to build anything using these apps, I beg to differ.  We wouldn’t be where we are now if those apps had been created and launched.  Today, they are more refined, but they helped drive the fact that the iPad is a creation device.  

If Apple could do this, there’s no doubt that developers would spend some time fixing up their apps. If developers didn’t spend the time to make an iPad-style app, the app would be banned to letterboxed-hell. This prompted developers to create apps designed for the iPad in mind, or at least add on to their iPhone app to make a tablet quality app.  It almost forced them to get on board or ignore the iPad entirely.  

Popularity

It helped that the iPad was hot on the tail of the iPhone.  It helped even more that developers were seeing so much success in the App Store.  

When the iPad launched, it sold almost as quickly as the iPhone.  People, myself included (although I hadn’t really planned on it), picked up the iPad in masses.  It proved that the device was something that people wanted.  

With so many iPads out there and so much money on the table, developers started to flock to the ecosystem. Apple made it fairly easy for developers to move their iPhone apps to iPad with just a little bit of work. Once that was done, they had a whole new group of users that would flock to their apps.  

Since the popularity of the system was there and the developers started to see more of an uptick in sales, the system continued to push forward.  As more advanced iPads came out, more advanced apps began to roll out. 

A New Way to Do Things

Having the ecosystem while offering users a new and oftentimes easier way to do things helped make the iPad what it is today.  Using the touchscreen and all the sensors that the iPad offered brought new apps and new ways to do things.

The iPad has become my preferred computing device because the apps are easier and more focused than on the Mac, while the screen is larger than my iPhone.  It can handle many different interactions, as well. I can go from comfortably reading, to writing, to drawing and designing a logo if I need to.  

There is excitement around the iPad.  It is a refreshing take on computing.  Of course, there has been push back as well. Some people can’t bring their workflows over to the iPadjust yet, but as the system matures, those barriers are breaking down and being rethought.  

And while many hated the “What’s a computer” ad, I think the ad was pretty on point.  What a computer is has changed.

Continued Pushed

Of course, the iPad lost some momentum.  Sales dipped, and investors started to worry about the future of the device.  It seemed that people were holding on to their iPads much longer, and the desire to upgrade devices wasn’t as strong as with the iPhone.

But that didn’t stop Apple or Tim Cook from being bullish on the iPad.  Instead of abandoning the device, they continued to push the top of the line iPad further by introducing the iPad Pro.  Today, the iPad Pro is getting closer to being a complete laptop replacement in terms of speed and use.  You can attach a keyboard to the device and it’s easier to travel with.  

Apple has also continued to update and create more types of iPads.  If you don’t want to spend top dollar to get the top of the line iPad, you can go for something much cheaper in the iPad line. Or if you need something in between that is slightly bigger than the standard iPad that you can attach a keyboard to, you can get the iPad Air.  

Apple also just branched the iPad off into its own operating system.  Its underpinning will still be based on iOS, but now we should see much more iPad focused developments every year.    The additions that Apple has announced this year should appease most iPad diehards like myself.  It has really brought answers to many of the drawbacks the iPad has seen in the past few years like a stronger Safari and being able to use a USB drive.

The Competition 

iPad isn’t the only tablet device. Its main competition goes from the Windows Surface tablet, Amazon’s Kindle tablets, and Samsung, which runs Android. 

Surface

Windows has really stepped up the game with the Surface line, bringing a full Windows operating system to the device. But it seems to be confused about what it is most the time. Is it a laptop, or is it a tablet? It runs the same version of apps that you get on a desktop, some of which might have been optimized for the touch interface. But it doesn’t seem to have the same quality of apps that an iPad has. 

Kindle Fire

The Fire has positioned itself at the low end of the spectrum. The devices are cheap, but they are mainly used for consuming Amazon’s ebooks, music, and video. 

The kindle operating system is based on the Android operating system. Of course, Amazon has redesigned it and made it their own. It has an app store which allows you to run Android apps. 

Android

There aren’t too many Android tablets out there anymore.  Samsung still makes some, and some other systems have built on top of Android, but those are hard to name.  

Google just announced that it would be canceling all hardware development on tablets devices.  Google hasn’t even been in the running as far as competition goes against the iPad, but it is still major news that they aren’t going to compete anymore.  

Wrap up

There is no doubt that the iPad is one of the most dominant tablet brands in computing.  With the news that Google has decided not to compete in the space says something about the authority of the iPad.  Apple keeps pushing the boundaries of what a tablet can do, and that’s why the iPad has won the tablet war.  

But that’s not necessarily a good thing.  Apple needs competition to push the device even further.  Hopefully, some companies will see what Apple is doing and push them to be even better.  Only the future will tell.