Nobody’s taking credit here for the iPad brand here, so don’t worry about any conflicts between Apple and Intel. Instead we have at look at the past and we go back to 2001 when Intel released the Intel PAD, internally known as the IPAD. This was an ARM-based touchscreen portable device, used for browsing and media playback.
The product was shown as a mockup at CES 2001 first and it was considered a promising Web Tablet, however one that never made the shelves. The IPAD was already being mass-produced and boxed when the Intel management decided to can it, even though there was already an ad for the product in the New York Times.
The reason for quitting? Pressure from Intel’s OEM customers and the huge price tag: $500+, that killed the slate, although a second-gen IPAD was being readied. Intel was already working with Mattel at the time, the famous toy maker we all know and love. This is quite a sad story, but at least we can learn from history and past errors, although stories like these keep happening. Remember Microsoft Courier and the Kin One and Two phones?
