After all the press hype, people are starting to wake up to the fact that Apple's new 'Tablet PC' might just be a giant iPhone.

The latest rumour is that the Tablet is going to be more about media playback and "light communications" than serious mobile computing. The rumours seem to indicate that the tablet is a lot like a large iPhone 3G/3GS. It will come complete with a curved back, 3G networking option, and will have a 10.7" touchscreen with "720p or thereabouts" resolution.

Rather than being a mobile computer it will be serving up media much like the iPod and iPhone and perhaps Apple's own ebook store. Apple will announce the device in January but will not release it until its chums in the tame US IT press have generated enough hype for the gear. The beast will run iPhone OS, not Mac OS X or a touch-enabled variant, which means that developers have time to prepare or modify iPhone apps to run on the device and its higher resolution.

Apple has been also working with an  iTunes LP format would coincide with the Tablet and is designed for watching movies.  LP is coded for a screen size of 720x1280 pixels. All this is rumour and speculation until Apple releases something. However if the Tablet is just a giant iPhone then one has to question if it is going to be worth the $800 price tag that some have put on it.

An iPhone or iPod touch fits in the pocket while a tablet with a 10.7" display is far less mobile. You might as well carry a small MacBook, or even a proper laptop which you could buy for that price.