Moreover, it's limited to running one app at a time, and the apps that it can run have to go through the Apple Nazis approval process. And finally... still no flash.

While I'd love to have a thin, cabinet mounted touchscreen in the kitchen I will not be buying this pile o' garbage.

Why all the haters?

Seriously, the shit has been flying since Stevie J announced it yesterday and nobody has taken a moment to appreciate it for what it is . . .

I see it as a high-end eBook reader with loads of goodies and internet connectivity . . .

For those of us who don't have an iPhone, this makes a ton of sense because I've been waiting YEARS for something that's not a laptop to do the 'tween' browsing when we're not at the desktop and not on the phone . . .

Anybody who's ever tried to send a large e-mail from an iPhone can appreciate a larger form factor . . .

As for multi-tasking, who gives a fuck?!?! Seriously, one thing at a time people . . . You want to do REAL work, do it on a computer, not an iPhone or a Netbook . . .

I consider this the worlds finest device for sitting on the shitter . . . Seriously no jokes here . . . This is the perfect lazy man's (or women's) in home entertainment device . . .

You can read a book, check the weather, play games, watch movies, communicate with buddies while you sit on your ass in a comfy chair, in an airplane seat, on the toilet, in bed, on a road trip . . .

Make no mistake, it serves a significant purpose and fills a void between leisure and work computing . . .

You have to evaluate it from a perspective of the voids in a given day when a computer isn't in your face and you'll find it there . . . Morning before work, over lunch, after work, while waiting . . .

It's very clever and people won't really get how to make sense of this thing till you see it EVERYWHERE and you will! I'm not saying it cause I'm a die hard Apple guy, I'm saying it because everything sucks till you get your hands on the thing and then all of a sudden there will be plenty of 'wanters' . . .

Disco :D

Thought I'd add something more to my earlier thoughts . . .

I really really really have thought about Adam's question of who is the target audience and the answer is, anybody who doesn't want an iPhone OR a new Computer . . .

This is good stuff here people, stick with me . . .

Think about your physical space for a moment . . .

You likely work at a desk with a computer that stays at your desk . . .

You MAY use your iPhone for 'light' checking in remotely . . . You don't do any real stuff, you can't send long e-mails, you can talk, check in on some websites but it takes a LONG time to really browse the page or type the e-mail . . . Because of the screen size, it's hard to use it as quick as from your desk . . .

You MAY own a laptop but only to do work or leisure computing from SEVERAL locations where you don't have a desktop or perhaps you just prefer having your computer with you all the time . . .

So far, no losers in this scenario . . . You use it WHERE you need it and you try to get the very MOST from it that you can given your location, your connection, and what you're trying to accomplish . . .

Where can you go if you're a computer maker? You can make the phone bigger and more robust OR you make the laptop smaller and more robust . . .

Apple's answer . . . Do both . . . Combine the concept of portable computing and connectivity with work and you end up with something that doesn't and SHOULDN'T do either what a phone OR a laptop does . . .

That's EXACTLY the space an iPad fits in . . . Finally it's something that solves the WHAT COMPUTER for WHERE . . .

You can do enough sophisticated stuff with it so you can get work done and from what I've seen, it looks like a snappy e-mail device . . . If you're on the go, you can Speak And Spell in your message and likely much faster than you can on an iPhone . . . If you're wanting the laptop experience, you can plop it down on a dock with a keyboard and have a laptop experience, no sore neck, all good . . .

Don't be so quick to rush to judgement on this thing because unless you are able to recognize the non-place times you need a thing like this, you won't understand how necessary it is . . .

Personally I give it 3-4 years and you'll see something closer to a Star Trek Tri-Corder that's a blend of the best of an iPad and an iPhone in size and fully featured . . .

Until then, I think you're gonna start seeing a shitload of these iPads and I'll likely be one of the first to get one you can all see from your desktop or iPhone while I'm windsurfing across the English Channel . . .

Disco :D

All great points Stu!

I can certainly understand how the average home user doesn't have a need for a "proper" computer. A device that can check facebook and play farmville will be perfectly sufficient for 80% of the users out there. My problem with this little guy, is that it's pretty expensive for a device that's basically a glorified e-reader. Apple seems to have a habit of releasing "half" products that are twice as expensive as more advanced counterparts. No camera, no SD card reader, no usb interface, no microphone...seriously? It just seems odd to me that Apple would have such limited scope for a "revolutionary" device.

As the resident Apple fan boy, I too was a little disappointed. But I have a feeling in the next 60-90 days my feelings may change a bit.

However, let me take this moment to tell you where Adam is wrong:

1) It does have a microphone.

2) Adam is building in the cost of 3G access where, unlike an iPhone, 3G is not mandatory as non-3G models are available. Also, even on the 3G models ...

3) ... the 3G service is not on contract. This is really interesting. In essence, you could pay for it when you need it.

4) I think this is Apple's netbook competitor. The iPad now gives Apple an answer to the question of, "what is your $500 option?".

5) The price of the base iPad 16 GB model is $499. The Price of the Kindle Dx is $489. The screen sizes are the same, however Apple offers a color screen and web browsing, games, mp3 player, movies, apps, etc. The Kindle is a book reader and nothing else. The storage in a Kindle DX is 4GB compared to the aforementioned 16 GB on the iPad.


The iPhone exploded once apps were introduced. Right now there are developers grabbing the SDK for this device and are already submitting their apps to Apple. Yes the app approval process is a total pain, but quite a profitable endeavor for good developers with great ideas. This thing is going to get a lot more interesting once we start seeing the apps that developers have created.

I agree with Erick about the background apps thing. That's getting a little stupid. Especially with this powerful new processor under the hood. I kinda like focusing on one thing at a time, however, there are times when I would like to stream Pandora while playing some Bejeweled.

I really liked my Kindle. But I thought there were things it was definitely missing: touch interface, better newspaper reader, color backlit screen, how it handled turning pages. This seems to address many of those.

I'm waiting for a bit. But mostly because I'm wanting to see additional content deals go down. Which I assume will be happening sometime in the near future.

Tony is on to something . . . Don't assume for a second the iPad will be as feature incomplete when it launches . . .

http://www.engadget.com/2010/02/02/apple-ipad-rumor-roundup-abraham-zapruder-edition/?s=t5

:D