CIO — Initial reactions to the iPad earlier this year may have been mixed, but Apple's (AAPL) elegant tablet PC has since caught fire, racking up a devoted following and monster sales.
Between March and June, over 3 million iPads were sold worldwide, and new data from market research firm iSuppli shows that the iPad will dominate the tablet market by almost three to one until 2012.
Meanwhile, all the major computer vendors are working on a tablet. Some are running Google's (GOOG) Android mobile OS; some are running a proprietary OS such as RIM's rumored BlackPad and Hewlett-Packard's (HPQ) planned consumer tablet running WebOS.
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But can a Windows 7 tablet really break ground against the mighty iPad? In a recent report titled "The Windows 7 Tablet Imperative", Forrester research analysts J.P. Gownder and Sarah Rotman Epps write that Microsoft can compete with the iPad, but it must make an impact quickly and work with hardware partners to match the iPad on design and price.
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In fact, the report states, a successful Windows tablet has become crucial for Microsoft given that "tablets represent the next wave of mass-market consumer computing devices ... demonstrated by the iPad's proficiency in eReading, music and video consumption, and a variety of entertainment-oriented apps."
The main way to a successful Windows 7 tablet, according to Forrester, is through the use of "curated computing", which the research firm defines as "a mode of computing where choice is constrained to deliver less complex, more relevant experiences." In other words, have a simple and streamlined user interface that is easy to navigate.
Curated computing is something the iPad does very well, writes authors Gownder and Epps, and must be embraced by Microsoft if it wants to compete in the tablet space.
Here are Forrester's four keys to a successful Windows 7 tablet.