The "iPad killer" is pretty much a figment of the geek press' imagination. They had their pop at Microsoft, failing miserably, then when Apple started rising to the top of the heap, turned their sights from Redmond to Cupertino.
With more iPads in circulation that every other tablet put together, 25 billion apps downloaded and a bank balance that would allow them to buy Canada, Apple will have to make some serious foulups to enable the competition to get much more than a foot in the door.
The key thing is that every time they change something, they improve it, drastically. You're right. The first owners of the iPad 3 won't be beta testers. They will have a complete, finished, quality product that will last for years. But the real beauty of Apple products is that last years model is still useful. While constantly improving their products, they also prevent older equipment from becoming obselete overnight, quite a feat when you think about it.
With more iPads in circulation that every other tablet put together, 25 billion apps downloaded and a bank balance that would allow them to buy Canada, Apple will have to make some serious foulups to enable the competition to get much more than a foot in the door.
The key thing is that every time they change something, they improve it, drastically. You're right. The first owners of the iPad 3 won't be beta testers. They will have a complete, finished, quality product that will last for years. But the real beauty of Apple products is that last years model is still useful. While constantly improving their products, they also prevent older equipment from becoming obselete overnight, quite a feat when you think about it.