Last night I flew what had to have been the shortest flight on record from Seattle to Phoenix.
No, the plane wasn’t exceeding the sound barrier. It was simply that I had an amazingly engaging conversation with the person sitting next to me.
After boarding the plane, I noticed a Toshiba Tablet strapped in with the magazines in the chair next to me. So I started asking its owner some general questions about how he used his Tablet and what he thought of Tablets in general. It didn’t take long before I realized he knew Tablets well–really well. (In fact, it quickly became obvious the he also was quite knowledgeable about Pocket PCs and SmartPhones too. Way beyond me.)
Eventually, I learned I was chatting with Dale Coffing of PocketPCPassion and a frequent mobile expert on Tech TV. Things were beginning to make sense. Dale is an amazing mobile enthusiast and expert. (Oh, check out the Motorola MPX that Dale has–yep, it’s one of only a couple live working versions anywhere. Thanks, Dale for explaining to me the different models. I finally get it. Whew.)
This was rapidly turning into more than an ordinary stranger conversation about Tablets. In short order, Dale was sharing his views on Tablet marketing, features he’d like to see, and various issues he had with his first gen Tablet. As if by plan, I had a Toshiba M200 with me, so I unpacked the M200 and showed him its new features–the new display, card slots, pen positions and so on. He was also curious about the new Service Pack 2 beta features in RC1–particularly the new killer TIP. He was looking forward to installing RC1 when he got home. It’s obvious to me Dale’s a strong advocate for the Tablet and if I were Toshiba I’d do whatever it takes to be sure he has one of the newer Toshiba Tablets.
On the marketing side, Dale has a unique perspective on the market. As a Tablet user he understands the Tablet, but he also is able to place its marketing within the broader mobile market of Pocket PCs and SmartPhones. He has an extremely compelling argument about positioning Tablet solutions first and foremost rather than focusing on hardware.
Turns out Dale enjoys speaking all over the world sharing his technology passions and expertise–to end users, companies, developers and even some big retailers. I understand he may be speaking at Tech Ed. If I go, I’ve got to make sure to catch his sessions.
What a pleasant flight this was. I swear the 2-1/2 hour flight was only about 45 minutes long.