Whether you're a hardcore Apple fanboy, a devout Windows user or just interested in technology, you've probably heard about the supposed upcoming "Apple Tablet". Over the past 6 months, the hype and anticipation of this fabled device have dramatically increased. Recently, technology sites such as TUAW have been posting like crazy, with new ideas and concepts, so I thought it was high time I wrote about it.

First of all, I'd like to make it clear that this post is less about my wild predictions for the device (mostly because I don't have any wild predictions) and more about critiquing the current rumours and concepts.

Over the past few months, I've heard people talking about the hardware specifications, the operating system it will run, even potential marketing schemes, but it's all sheer speculation. As I'm writing this, there is absolutely no solid evidence that Apple is even planning on building a new device, let alone developing new hardware and software for it. Sure, there have been some seemingly odd patent applications (i.e. a recent application for a patent on a stylus) and even orders for new hardware, such as cameras. But hey, Apple have supposedly ordered large quantities of new hardware in the past that haven't resurfaced since their original discovery.

One of the first things that comes to mind when thinking about the device is the actual name of it. Many names have been tossed around - iSlate, iPad, Tablet, Slablet (as coined by Matthew J.C. Powell), iTablet - but, as with previous devices released by Apple, Inc., there has been next to no documentation (let alone official documentation) with even a remote reference to a new device, not even something as out-there as "iProd". Either Apple have learnt from past mistakes and are keeping this hypothetical documentation under wraps, or it just doesn't exist.

Something else that comes to mind when considering the device (from here on in referred to as the "Slablet") is the design. OK, we get that it's supposed to be a tablet, which is traditionally defined as a rigid material used as a writing medium, but people are predicting an "iPhone on steroids", a portable touchscreen device that will run a new flavour of OS X, an oversized, colour-enabled eBook reader. The list goes on. Bear in mind, most of these predictions are coming from the tech-news sites, not individuals, which means there are far more potential concepts out there. I know, I know. You may be saying that a large group of people are agreeing on a single design for the Slablet, but these people are getting their ideas from the tech-news sites, in the belief that because they're an accomplished site, they must get all the juicy information and the official specifications, but that just isn't the case. No one outside of Apple has the slightest clue as to what they're planning. They may not even be planning anything (although, I highly doubt that, given Apple's tradition of revealing some seriously cool shit around this time of year).

I'll admit that I've taken a look at some of the concept art and thought "Phwoar! That'd be a nice thing to carry around for my entertainment and web surfing needs," but these concepts are exactly that; concepts. They are the creative output of the left-brained tech-nerds out there. Many of this concept artwork has had a similar feel to it; it looks like a big-ass iPhone, has very few buttons and has the same sleek feel that most Apple products have these days. I honestly think Apple is more creative than that. If they eventually release the Slablet, I'm guessing they'll have a design slightly more imaginative than stretching an iPhone and putting a higher quality display on it. However, I think they'll be sticking with the sleek, almost-buttonless feel for a while longer.

Now on to the user interface (UI). The general consensus is that the Slablet will either have an OS X-ish feel to it, or an iPhone-y feel to it. Not a very detailed description of the UI, is it? Exactly! Nobody has any freaking clue as to what operating system the Slablet will run. People are hoping for the sleek elegant design we iPhone users have become accustomed to (big icons, easy on the eyes), but they don't want those pesky problems we still face every day (no multi-tasking, no Flash, no office applications). Then there are those who are expecting a touchscreen port of Snow Leopard, that's slightly more focused on cloud computing (Cloud Leopard?). The main problem I see with that is the fact that it's a 7" or 10" screen (according to even more rumours), with some seriously tiny buttons. Not only do I understand how hard it can be opening a link on the iPhone without zooming in, but I also have experience with touchscreen PCs, such as the HP Touchsmart. The Touchsmart I own has a 22" display (12" more than the largest Slablet), but it is extremely hard to use the touchscreen capabilities without opening things you didn't want to or closing windows when you wanted to minimise them. Granted, it is a completely different technology, but the idea is the same. "Just make everything bigger," I hear you say. That would ruin the operating system. Making everything bigger to accommodate for the awkwardness of clicking tiny buttons takes away precious screen real estate. Small, OS X-ish UI = bad idea.

What about connectivity? Only recently have people really begun to think "Shit. How's it going to connect to teh interwebz, so I can update my Twitter and Facebook?" Speculation states that Wi-Fi will be the predominant way of connecting with the world. But isn't the Slablet supposed to be portable? Unless you have a device such as the Verizon or Sprint Mi-Fi, you'll only be able to connect to the Internet when you have an Internet connection and a wireless router at your disposal, which is often hard to come by while on the road. You can't very well have something like the Amazon Kindle's Whispernet, which gives you a data connection without having to pay for a data plan. On a device like the Kindle - which is designed to download and display very small files, comprised mostly of text - that makes sense, but on a device like the Slablet, the data providers would be at a loss.

One alternative is to allow users to pay for a data plan, completely separate to that of your iPhone - that would become too expensive - then there's the possibility that you could simply put a SIM card in the Slablet (leaving Sprint and Verizon customers in the US out to dry), meaning you could pop the SIM card out of your iPhone and right in to the Slablet, but, according to yet more rumours, that would leave you without a phone, because the Slablet is apparently too large to make effective use of phone capabilities.

As of the moment, I'd say it's too early to know what Apple will do. It is rumoured (what's with all these rumours?) that Apple have scheduled an event for Wednesday, January 27. This would be a good time to officially announce a prospective tablet device, so when that day rolls around, I guess we'll find out.