Ignoring the obvious patent ridiculousness, I'm a little bit surprised and dismayed to see Apple going so hard after Android in this way.
1) As a consumer, competition in this space is overwhelmingly positive. You can already see a number of improvements Apple has made to iOS as a result of Android, and a strong Android OS will continue to keep them on their toes.
2) You have to wonder if it is even good for Apple to win in the long run. They have so much control over the iPhone ecosystem, getting too much market share in the mobile/tablet space would very likely garner unwanted attention from the DOJ. It is possible Android is a significant buffer against an anti-trust action similar to what Microsoft saw in the 90's.
This just tells me to go out and buy one of these, since Apple sees it as a threat. Which means its probably a decent device. They haven't pulled a stunt like this on all the other crappy tablets that have come out.
Like briandear mentioned, this is more directed towards Samsung in particular (although Android itself is a big part of it, and this is part of a broader war on Android), but at least part of the reason I think Apple is going after the Galaxy Tab so strongly is that is that, from a physical perspective, it looks quite a bit like the iPad. When a few of my co-workers got them and had them sitting on their desks, I sort of assumed that they were iPads - they very closely resemble them.
While I think Apple would still be pursuing them without the physical resemblance, at least some of the strong reaction you're seeing is due to it, so I wouldn't necessarily take their reaction as an endorsement of the Tab (although I have heard it is quite good).
My guess if it looked like the iPad but provided a sub-par experience, Apple would be laughing in their Ivory Tower about how cute it is they think rounded tablet edges make all the difference.
“I’m going to destroy Android, because it’s a stolen product. I’m willing to go thermonuclear war on this.” - Steve Jobs in 2010.
And to Eric Schmidt regarding patent licensing: ”I don’t want your money. If you offer me $5 billion, I won’t want it. I’ve got plenty of money. I want you to stop using our ideas in Android, that’s all I want.”
1) As a consumer, competition in this space is overwhelmingly positive. You can already see a number of improvements Apple has made to iOS as a result of Android, and a strong Android OS will continue to keep them on their toes.
2) You have to wonder if it is even good for Apple to win in the long run. They have so much control over the iPhone ecosystem, getting too much market share in the mobile/tablet space would very likely garner unwanted attention from the DOJ. It is possible Android is a significant buffer against an anti-trust action similar to what Microsoft saw in the 90's.