It looks like the tablet bubble has finally arrived. Starting in 2012, companies such as HP, Acer, Asus and Dell are planning to gradually drop out of the tablet game altogether, according to information obtained by DigiTimes. Manufacturers believe they don’t have any advantages to compete in the tablet market and are looking to exit stage left.
The DigiTimes report was quickly rebuffed by Asus and Dell. According to ZDnet, both companies flat-out deny any reports they are exiting the tablet market. Despite this denial, I can see why the original report may be true. Battling the tablet behemoth Apple is one thing, but to also compete with Amazon and Barnes & Noble, with their unbelievably low prices on hardware makes it damn near impossible. How can they compete with the Kindle Fire which is just 200 bucks and the upcoming Nook Simple Touch which is supposed to cost $99? These PC manufacturers can’t sell their devices at these rock-bottom prices and still make a profit and if you can’t make a profit, why bother doing it?
Even if they could lower their prices, HP, Acer, Asus, and Dell don’t have the content to compete, and this is where Apple, Amazon, and B&N excel. In order to be successful in this new age of tablets, the makers will have to carry their own ecosystem, which is something Apple and Amazon nailed from day one. HP, Acer, Asus, and Dell would have to license content, which would take even more money off their precious bottom-line .