[dgallagher]

I'm trying to imagine what the Apple Tablet is going to be. What "breakthrough" feature does the Apple Tablet have to have to be game changing? How will it be any different than something like the Joo Joo? Besides a shiny case and slick UI of course. Why do we even need a tablet computer? What will it do better than laptops/netbooks currently on the market?

Microsoft's Courier looks game changing, especially compared to their current Tablet PC offerings. Very slick looking, albeit vaporware at the moment. I'd imagine Apple would have to be just as amazing, though possibly in a different direction than the student/business note-taking market Microsoft is targeting. Microsoft seems to be in a very niched market here.

[jsz0]

Most likely good third party app support. A tablet that is only a web browser is a bit boring. People really like convergence. An Apple tablet that is a media player, browser, and runs games and apps is something special. No one has actually tried producing a tablet with native third party apps that fit the screen perfectly and are designed to interact with a multi-touch input system. Additionally if they have these rumored agreements in place with publishers they're going to be able to offer a much more visually appealing experience. As usual with Apple it's not any one thing it's just a bunch of small things that all come together in a nice package.