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Dell Exec Insists Apple's iPad Isn't for Businesses

Businesses won't accept Apple's iPad, Dell marketer Andy Lark says. Android is already "outpacing" Apple's iOS, Lark said. Besides, he said, the iPad and accessories cost up to $1,600 and enterprises prefer open systems. While Android is rising, an analyst refuted Lark's view, noting the "consumerization of IT" means users want Apple's iPad.

Apple's iPad  is nice for consumers, but will fail with businesses. That's the takeaway from recent comments by a Dell executive, who nonetheless praised Apple for creating the tablet  market.
Andy Lark, Dell's global  head of marketing for large enterprises and public organizations, told news media that Apple has "built up enthusiasm" for tablets, but, in the long run, "open, capable and affordable will win, not closed, high price, and proprietary."

Android 'Outpacing' iOS?

Lark said Google's Android open-source operating system  is already "outpacing" Apple's iOS, and the iPad's proprietary OS is insular and not appropriate for most enterprises, which, he said, prefer open systems.

He added that Apple's orientation is toward consumers, while Dell's approach to tablets is more enterprise -oriented. He said most of Dell's business  isn't in consumer products, and it has to take a "more diversified" approach that embraces Android and, in its smartphones, Windows Phone 7.

Aside from the iPad's proprietary system, Lark pointed to Apple's pricing. He said an iPad plus a keyboard, mouse and case can cost as much as $1,600.

His comments came the same week as a new report that says Android will become the leading smartphone  operating system this year. The report, from industry research firm IDC, projected that Android will move from second to first place worldwide, and will reach nearly half of all smartphones by 2015 at 45.4 percent.

The newest version of Android, 3.0 or Honeycomb, is optimized for tablets. First Motorola's Xoom tablet, and recently Samsung's 8.9-inch and redesigned 10.1-inch Galaxy Tab tablets, have featured Honeycomb, and other manufacturers are expected to soon follow.

'Consumerization of IT '

In addition, the IDC report noted that Microsoft , which has been steadily losing market share among mobile platforms, has been given a lifeline through its recent alliance with Nokia, the world's largest handset maker. Nokia has announced it's abandoning the Symbian platform and adopting Windows Phone 7. If Microsoft follows Apple, Android and Hewlett-Packard, a tablet-optimized Windows Phone 7 is in the cards.

Avi Greengart, an analyst with Current Analysis, said he didn't agree with Lark's assessment of the iPad's reception in the enterprise. The key reason, he said, is because of the "consumerization of IT," where products start with consumers and then are brought into the enterprise because employees want them.

He noted that Lark's criticism of Apple's pricing is "particularly egregious," in that consumer versions are usually "less than their enterprise versions." He noted that one can get an iPad 2 plus a ruggedized Otterbox case for about $550 or so. Additionally, a case and a keyboard -- if one wants a keyboard for a touch-based device  -- adds only about $120.

Interestingly, Dell isn't the only potential competitor who is bad-mouthing the highly successful iPad's prospects in the enterprise. An HP executive recently downplayed Apple's relationship with business customers, and a Microsoft executive mused aloud that tablets may only be transitional devices, soon replaced by more advanced smartphones.

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