But he added that Apple certainly isn't unbeatable yet in the tablet business. "The market won't mature for a few years and, until then, it is still anyone's game," Enderle said.

Dan Olds, an analyst with The Gabriel Consulting Group, suggested that the iPad rivals focus on offering solid features rather that searching for that one killer app.

"Tablets are tweener devices," Olds said. "They're not really PCs and not PDAs. To catch on with consumers, they need to offer utility that can't be found in either [PCs or PDAs].

Olds added that he expects tablets to complement PCs and notebook computers -- "[it's] something that someone would take on a quick trip or keep in the family room. Because they don't replace other devices, they would need to offer a lot of flexibility and come in at the right price point."

Olds also noted that a competitive tablet must at least come in a small form factor and offer lots of connectivity options and basic productivity tools like word processing, calendar and e-mail applications.