Jason Buscema

I should find this shockingly disturbing however for some reason I’m not the least bit surprised. That “some reason” is because the people providing the means to jack someone’s cell number is none other than our friends at AT&T.

Think of someone you really hate … now hope they use AT&T so you can steal their mobile number, then lock their account. From this point on, we’ll refer to this person as “the sucker”.

All you need is a business account with AT&T. Sure, to get a business account you will need to give them your federal tax id number and undergo a credit check but that’s not really a big deal. Once you have an AT&T business account, you can take over the sucker’s personal AT&T number without their prior permission or knowledge. The only two pieces of information you will need to know is their mobile number and their name. Real tough to get I know.

How to do the deed:

1. Call AT&T’s business line (Assuming you can stomach calling AT&T in the first place)
2. Tell them you want to transfer a personal account/number to your business account
3. Give them the super secret information (the sucker’s name and mobile number)
4. Answer whatever questions they have about rate plans, etc.
5. That’s it! You’re done.

Now within a short period of time, the sucker’s mobile number will be transferred to your business account. AT&T will not make any attempt to verify this request with the sucker. Once the number is on your business account, you have full control over the sucker.

Sounds impossible, right? I’ve done this now with three different employees of ours over the past week. In my case, I told two of them what I was doing but I didn’t have to verify anything with AT&T. The third employee I simply forgot to tell him I was going to transfer his mobile number to our corporate account. When the transfer was done and I informed him, he was shocked and upset that it went through without his permission. I was as well. So I called AT&T business and they told me that business accounts do NOT require verification from the personal user to transfer the account.

INSANE!

All the rumors point to an eminent release of a tablet device from our friends at Apple. Being a fanboy I can’t wait to see what they come up with but I’m struggling to find a place for it in today’s market. Don’t get me wrong, I’ll be all geeked up when Steve Jobs takes the stage in his blue jeans and black shirt to tell us what we’ve all been missing.

The part that I struggle with is where this device fits in. I would imagine it would be lined up somewhere between the iPhone and the MacBook Air. But what benefit will this new device have that either of the above mentioned devices lack? Is Apple really going to break into a new segment and own it with their original design and software? Usually they do just that. Look at the success of the iPhone for example… There were plenty of smartphones out there before Apple came onto the scene but they all were lacking from a user experience and software standpoint. The iPhone owns the smartphone space and others are struggling to catch up. Saw what you will about the AT&T exclusivity.

Artist rendering of a MacBook Touch (Lori M Grant)

Is the Tablet PC market really a viable market for Apple to own? From a gadget factor, an Apple Tablet would definitely stand out and be something some folks, me, will rush out and purchase. From a size factor it would be need to be much like the MacBook Air and much larger than the iPhone. From a functionality standpoint it would need to include WIFI but also mobile service as well. There is no way from a form factor the Apple Tablet would replace the iPhone and from a power and functionality standpoint, it would most likely be lacking when compared to the MacBook Air. So why bother for Apple to roll it out? Can they really come out with a product and own the weak tablet pc market space?

One big mobile device…

The Apple tablet needs to have mobile capabilities outside of just WIFI. Does this mean another exclusive agreement with AT&T or does Apple looks to Verizon to service this device? As an existing iPhone user I would be ok with a minimal monthly charge to my account, say $10/mo, which would allow me to use either the Apple tablet or my iPhone under my existing AT&T account. The current AT&T 3G won’t cut it for me either on this device. I need more speed and more reliability then currently offered for the iPhone. The biggest downside with the iPhone is unfortunately the AT&T service. I don’t see Apple committing another device to AT&T anytime soon.

Potentially great markets for an Apple Tablet…

Gaming: An Apple tablet device has the chance to be a serious gaming platform. With the support of the already successful iTunes App store, an Apple tablet could become a very serious threat to portable gaming devices. The increased size over the iPhone and iPod Touch would be a welcome improvement for gamers, however go to big and the portability factor is gone.

Entertainment: An Apple tablet would be a great video playback device offering much more real estate than the iPhone and iPod Touch. Again with the iTunes App Store users could purchase and rent movies and shows to watch on the device. This feature on it’s own though isn’t enough to support to device, especially at a rumored $600+ price point. If this functionality was only 10% of what the device really did then the portable DVD player market could see a big dip. With airlines like Virgin America now offering free WIFI, a WIFI enabled tablet, with killer battery life, would be something I would purchase for my travels alone. Flying is boring and I need lots of distractions.

Design/Arts: Assuming the larger screen size and touch capability, this device could be a great tool for artists and designers. The Wacom Cintiq product line offers screens artists can draw on however they are tied to an existing workstation and are not portable. The Apple tablet would most likely need to offer a stylus for the artists in addition to using one’s fingers for movement. Apple has been very against the use of a stylus so I don’t think we’ll see this anytime soon. I’m not convinced designers will want to simply finger paint with this device.

At the rate of sounding like Steve Ballmer, I don’t see many executives latching on to the rumored lack of a keyboard. An onscreen keyboard is nice, aka the iPhone, but most execs seem to still like the tactile feedback of a keyboard. Perhaps Apple takes a page from RIM’s Blackberry SurePress and offers an onscreen keyboard with tactile feedback. The MacBook Air has targeted executives, at least in my realm of advertising and design, and has done pretty well in that segment for Apple.

If the goal is simply to make something cool that some people want, Apple will easily hit the mark with a tablet device. However, I’m not sure an Apple Tablet will give user’s something they really need, or can’t live without, with the existing product line already covering the spectrum quite well. Other than the entertainment realm and pure coolness factor, I don’t see a great space for an Apple tablet device currently. I hope Apple will prove me wrong!

As a geek, I want one now! Do I need it? I’ll let Apple decide that for me. Perhaps the tablet is nothing more than a leapfrog to something else only Jobs and crew have in mind for us mere mortals.