The filing suggests that this new patent is for a device that would have a detachable touch display. It would also have a base station for the standard keyboard. Seems like Apple’s answer to the Surface RT and Surface Pro from Microsoft, doesn’t it? Microsoft was the leader in the hybrid market with the Surface Pro and Surface RT. However, Microsoft baked a pie only half as tasty as Apple did with its MacBook and iPad. When Microsoft was gearing up for the launch of RT and Pro, Apple CEO Tim Cook said, “Anything can be forced to converge. But the problem is that products are about trade-offs, and you begin to make trade-offs to the point where what you have left at the end of the day doesn’t please anyone… I think to make the compromises of convergence, so – we’re not going to that party.” It needs to be seen if Apple is able to pull it off.
