You'll need to put your best thinking cap on before tackling this one: That Chinese firm responsible for the iPhone-clone-esque tablet PC, that predated the iPad by several months, is crazy angry at Apple for copying them. And may sue.
Read that again. Get it? Okay, I'll try again: A company unashamedly rips-off Apple's iPhone design and look-and-feel and bolts it into a Windows tablet PC that's technically not too dissimilar from other similar tablet PCs. Apple then releases the iPad--a device that's been in the making, on and off, for over 20 years, and which builds on Apple's already wildly successful device designs (mostly the iPhone). The Chinese firm accuses Apple of copying it's design, and threatens to sue if Apple tries to sell iPads in China.
The news has surfaced over at Shanghaiist again, where they even have a quote from apparently incensed president of the Shenzen Great Long Brother Industrial company, Wu Xiaolong: "I was very angry and flabbergasted when I saw the news of the iPad presentation two days ago... It is certainly our design. They've stolen because we present our P88 to everyone six months ago at the IFA [in Berlin]."
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Meet the Chinese iPad Clone From Three Months Ago: Apple you do seem to inspire other manufacturers to fits of jealous device cloning, don't you? Here's news of two iPad clones, one of which actually pre-dates Apple's gizmo. We're pretty certain which direction the inspiration flowed though.
Over at Shanghaiist they've got the down-low on a tablet/slate PC manufactured by Shenzen Great Long Brother Industrial Co. which actually went on sale back in October 2009--the P88. That's it in the picture up there, and slap me if it doesn't look like the iPad's Irish twin.
The similarities don't stop at looks though: The device has a roughly 10-inch screen, fast processor (a 1.6 GHz Atom versus the iPad's A4 1GHz unit--the A4's actually more powerful), and similar weight (1.03kg compared to Apple's 0.73kg). It's actually cheaper than the iPad, though, at around $440 compared to the iPad's entry level $499. And for that $440 you seem to get more than Apple delivers--it's got a 160GB hard drive, 3 USB ports, VGA and RJ45 sockets, and a card reader.
Impressive. But here's two things you don't get with the P88: Battery life and genuine Apple design and UI. The P88 lasts a mere 1.5 hours unplugged from a wall-wart, compared to the iPad's promised 10 hour power. And since it sports Windows XP, the user experience differences to the iPad's slick interactivity will be obvious to everyone
Erm, Wu? It's not your design, mate. Your P88 looks just like a bloody big iPhone, running XP, and with an absolutely dreadful battery life. You may well have patented it in China (or at least you've begun that lengthy process) but I suspect Apple's patents are teeny bit more reliable on this front. And thank goodness you're admitting you "must follow the law," but I have to say that if you do go ahead and "sue them this Spring" if Apple sells iPads in China, then you're going to look like a right twit. If you'd come up with a totally original, compelling and consumer-exciting tablet all of your own design, then you'd probably not have anything to be so angry about. And we wouldn't have this intractable Gordian Knot of a who-designed-what-first patent problem to think about on a lazy Friday afternoon.
[Via Shanghaiist]
