Is this it?

Today’s technology world changes in the blink of an eye with new gadgets and devices on the horizon ready to fall into the laps of all the happy consumers who wish to part with their money.  However, it seems as if we in the realm of education struggle in supporting or implementing these tech gadgets as quick as everyone else and through that, we tend to get attached to devices or technologies that may no longer be en vogue with the mainstream tech market.

One of the best examples falls under the umbrella of Pen Based Technology, but most notably Tablet PCs.  Remember when Bill Gates predicted that 2007 was going to be the year of the tablet and everything would change in the world of computing?  Well, it’s 2009, and the tablet PC market still has failed to make a tremendous dent in today’s mainstream market.  To be fair, we at Purdue do see a fair number of tablet machines used in specific majors and disciplines across campus, with Engineering being one of the largest.  However, it seems that pricepoint seems to be a major issue when looking at these machines.

With the emergence of capacitive touch screen (iPhone, Android, etc) over it’s cousin resistive based touch screen (Pen Based) in the past year, it would seem that the nail is almost all but in the coffin of the Tablet PC Market… but wait!  Apple appears to be breathing new life in this market with it’s rumored iTablet/Large iTouch device that is going to be unveiled in September.

Will this device have a pen or will it be a multitouch screen a la iPhone/iTouch?  Will it be a real game changer in the tablet market and cause more people of the mainstream?  And here’s a biggy, how much will it cost?

With the emergence of a new tablet based device, will this change the way we use pen or touch based technology in the classroom?