Media Tablet Q&A: The Low Down on the Canadian Market

I had a chance to chat with Iain Marlow from the Globe and Mail this week about the media tablet market in Canada and its expected impact on the tech sector. Our Q&A session can be found at the Globe and Mail Website.
Questions include:

• Why or how has Apple succeeded with the iPad?
• You say tablets don't have to be an “iPad killer” to be successful. Can you elaborate on that?
• What lessons can we bring to tablets from the ongoing smart phone wars?
• It's a nascent market, with Apple being an early mover. What do we know about the tablet market so far – who are using the devices, what they are using them for?
• Others, such as Research In Motion and Samsung, have announced their own media tablets.What do you make of these competing products and how do they differ from Apple's?
• What sort of impact do you expect media tablets to have on software vendors?
• What sort of impact do you expect media tablets to have on other device categories?

Tweeting on the Rock

I tweeted on the rock this week, and the response I got was worth blogging about.

I was in Newfoundland checking out the startup scene, and while I was there I tweeted a simple 102 character comment on my iPad:

"In Newfoundland this week checking out the tech start up scene out east - hoping I don't get screeched"

My tweets are synched up with LinkedIn, so faster than you can say "Long may your big jib draw", I had two people reach out to me.

• Contact #1 from Toronto offered to set up a meeting for me with her associate that works out there in NL to tell me about what they're seeing out East in tech

• Contact #2 mentioned he was going to be out East at the same time and offered to meet up

I'm often asked by those outside the industry (and within the industry) if I find value in tools like Twitter and LinkedIn, so here is my response: "Yes". I would not have even thought to reach out to those who reached out to me. The value here was discovering connections and opportunities to connect that I didn't know were available to me or that I'd forgotten about, and thanks to my network on Twitter and LinkedIn, I was able to identify those opportunities in less than an hour...and all I had to do was take 10 seconds to let others know what I was up to through a simple Tweet.

I also think it's worth noting that I tweeted from my iPad. Why? It was faster than booting up my computer and determining if my wireless was going to work that day because half the time it doesn't on my laptop. And I wrote the draft of this blog on the plane on the way home on my iPad, which took up way less space than my laptop or even a netbook would have in my economy size seat, and emailed it to myself as soon as we touched ground with the swipe of a finger. Fast, simple, and created conversation on the flight home with the person next to me.

I'm often asked if all this Tweeting, LinkedIn business and playing with media tablets is time consuming. Used in moderation, it takes up no more time than a quick conversation at the water cooler on my floor, yet my reach through these tools is global, versus the 4th floor of my office building. And if used correctly for business purposes instead of telling everyone what you ate for breakfast, they actually become powerful and targeted information and communication channels that work for you, as they did in this case.

Just remember, tweeting to your 500+ LinkedIn and Twitter network that you're in NL for the first time kinda makes you a target for getting screeched, or so I've heard.