We tend to attribute to multitouch some magical properties that single handily caused the iPhone to win. But this is forgetting that there already was a pretty convincing path to success in the Palm Treo. Having a pocket computer with connectivity was already very desirable when the iPhone debuted. The power of multitouch was that it enabled a workable screen keyboard, in combination with autocorrect, which in turn doubled the available screen area. This was such a compelling advantage, together with allowing you to use your fingers pretty naturally, that everyone had to change their interaction model.1
But Apple also did base iOS on Unix, just when processors became fast enough to support it even with the tight power budgets of a phone. At the time the competition was still using 16bit processors, and had operating systems that had much less abstraction and robustness. It was this double that prevented the phone competition from responding in a timely manner, and allowed Google with a PC background to establish Android.
When we look at shipments, we see that it took until around 2010 for the old manufacturers to suffer declining sales. That was actually a three year window in which Nokia or RIM could have responded. A window in which you had to implement two huge redesigns, and also embrace and establish an app market. And that turned out to be too big a task for RIM and Nokia to undertake by the time they finally came around embracing the change.
- As you can see from keyboards for the iPad, to the still widely available notebooks, multitouch is not such a compelling advantage when your computer is essentially only used while on a desk. The keyboard no longer needs to compete with screen space, and you can comfortably use a mouse or touchpad on a desk, removing almost all the advantages of multitouch. In addition, the indirect keyboard / mouse model allows for a significantly denser presentation of information. ⏎