The Apple iPad iAlmost iDoes it iAgain

So the word for today is iPad. After years of speculation and countless rumors, Steve Jobs at Apple announced today the birth of the iPad. Actually, it may be more accurate to say that the iPhone has evolved into the iPad – almost.

Based on the press coverage I think Apple fans have a lot to be disappointed about with this device. I also think that besides the new form factor – Apple is really playing it safe and hasn’t done much to truly inspire people with something new and exciting (yet).

Here is a compilation of stories and information which I have reviewed and based my opinions on:

• The operating system isn’t the same as the iPhone -but it isn’t OS.x either
• 10″ Multi-Touch screen
• Pricing will be $499 for 16GB, $599 for 32BG, and $699 for 64GB includes WiFi (similar to the iPod Touch)
• Optional 3G Cellular wireless is $130 extra and will give you access to AT&T Cellular for $29.99/month for unlimited data access
• Users can download any existing iPhone applications. Applications can run in a iPhone size window or can utilize the whole screen
• A special iPad Software Development Kit (SDK) will be available for developers to write new apps just for the iPad
• The WiFi only model will be available in March, the 3g version will be available in April
• The iPad will sync with your computer via iTunes in the same way your iPhone or iPod does
• http://www.engadget.com/2010/01/27/apple-ipad-first-hands-on/
• http://www.apple.com/ipad/

I would not go so far as to call this device a failure, but I think this has fallen very short of revolutionary. Here’s why:

1. Let me remind you that the iPod and iPhone STILL do not have a user replaceable battery – neither does the iPad
2. It took the iPhone 3 years to get even the simplest of features like copy/paste and MMS. The iPad doesn’t run multiple applications at once (no multi-tasking).
3. No camera on the device. No video conferencing for you. No cool camera/scanner/face recognition option like the Dell Latitude Z
4. With everything that this device does -WHY NOT have Cell Phone capabilities? You could take the Sim card out of your iPhone, plop it into the iPad and use a bluetooth headset.
5. I think they could have made the bezel (the black area around the screen) smaller. It would be 10x cooler if the screen went closer to the edge of the device.
6. Cellular Data service is only available through AT&T… and we all know how big their network isn’t.
7. Did I mention no multi-tasking?

What I think makes the iPad cool:

1. From the Apple marketing video, the interface does look very cool for performing every day computing tasks (email, calendar etc).
2. The form factor is cool. Thin=Win
3. In my opinion, is a more friendly option than a Netbook for a secondary computer system
4. The Hi-Res screen does look really awesome
5. 10 hour battery life (they note that this is while using WiFi, expect less with 3G Cellular enabled.). Also – it will be interesting to see what the capacity is after 1 year

 

In conclusion:

I think that all of the hype this device has stirred up, and the lack of some really cool features will open the door for other companies to enter this market (quickly). At CES this year, there were a lot of new devices which had a tablet look and feel. I would not be surprised if other Mobile Operating Systems show up on similar devices (Android, WebOS, and Windows Mobile 7), lets hope they are already working on this stuff. Do I want an iPad?Yes – but I think that is just the nerd in me. Will I spend MY money on one – NO. I will wait to see what other venders release and what other enhancements Apple has in store for iPad 2.0

I’ll update this post with real-world hands on video when I find one.

---

Did you enjoy this post? Why not leave a comment below and continue the conversation, or subscribe to my feed and get articles like this delivered automatically each day to your feed reader.

EricClemens.com | Powered by WordPress | ElegantBlue is a custom theme by Nathan Rice