Hardware suppliers are preparing to release a range of handheld tablets that will go head to head with the iPad at the Mobile World Congress show.
Companies including Nokia and Samsung are gearing up to release handheld devices at MWC, in a move that could create a mass market for tablet devices, according to analyst firm Juniper Research.
The iPad looks set to expand the tablet market in a similar way that the iPhone expanded the market for smartphones, into a mass market for consumers although rumour is that few were likely to appeal to business users.
Tablets are the halfway house between a laptop and a smartphone, and for businesses the question is: do they really satiate either need? Only time will tell . . .