Apple Dumps Design Partner for Copying iPad

Apple has ended a nearly 10-year working relationship with electronics design firm SurfaceInk because the company created its own prototype of a tablet computer.

SurfaceInk's CEO, Eric Bauswell, confirmed that Apple has severed ties with his company because Apple saw SurfaceInk's dealings with other companies, such as Palm and Hewlett-Packard, as a threat. SurfaceInk, in Apple's view, could potentially share technology with competitors. SurfaceInk has what's called a turnkey business, which means it creates its own products and licenses them to various companies.

However, many experts are also pointing to a more specific reason for the split: Just months after the iPad's release, SurfaceInk showed off its own tablet prototype . Bauswell said the tablet was only supposed to display the company's design abilities, but Apple did not like seeing a competitive device from a business partner.

The strange thing is that SurfaceInk's prototype was not that similar to the iPad. It has a 12-inch display, which is 2 inches larger than the iPad's, and runs on a customized Linux platform instead of an Apple operating system. As you can see in the video above, there is very little about the prototype tablet that seems similar to the iPad .

Predictably, Apple has not returned any media outlet's requests for comment.

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