iPad, it will change things
We talked about the iPad last night on CAVEradio and while my #1 criteria for getting one is indeed still a stylus, I think something like an affordable, easy-to-use tablet PC will change how people interact with…well, just about everything.
The key is the word affordable. Sure, the tablet has been done before but it was expensive, bulky, and inconvenient. The iPad is in a position to solve all those problems. It set to be very affordable (around $500), it’s small yet not too small, and since it’s Apple, you know it will be easy to use and probably even a joy to use.
The iPad isn’t about function, it’s about form.
It’s just a computer. Nothing fancy there. It’ll do all the things an computer can do (except play Flash) but it’s how you interact with it that will change everything. I want a tablet so I can finally have a digital sketch book/notepad. But it will be more than that to a lot of people. Anyone that carries a clipboard can use a tablet to improve their work. Anyone that uses a PDA (not a smartphone) will get that and more. Anyone that deals with signatures and documents can use it to get digital signatures easily…legal people and governments. Even department store employees can benefit. Instead of inventory scanners they can carry a tablet and have direct access to ALL the inventory information as well as intranets and applications.
The iPad has a chance to become digital paper.
Being a gamer, I can’t ignore gaming possibilities either. Sure, the iPad just a big iPhone when you get down to it, but increasing power and size makes a big difference in games. Even non-video games can benefit. I play D&D almost weekly and I created an on-line stat tracker for my Blackberry so I don’t have to worry about losing paper between sessions. Something like a tablet can improve on that 100 fold. Being a touchscreen, you might even be able to do gaming ON the iPad, like the demos we’ve seen with the near-mythical Microsoft Surface table.
I want one
I want an iPad more than I want an iPhone. I still don’t want an iPhone, frankly. Would I take one? Sure, but I’m not going to go out of my way to pay for one. I can see myself getting FAR more use out of an iPad than the phone. And for 500 beans, the iPad might be the first Apple product to make its way into my home…once the 2nd generation gets released, of course.
The iPad isn’t a computer, it’s a a fancy e-reader and it’s expensive, bnut my biggest problem with it is that its a tablet. How in the world am I supposed to type a comment like this on a tablet? I can’t hold it my hands while trying to type (ever tried to write on a clipboard will halding it length-wise with one hand?) It would be increadible slow and/or awkward. It can only run programs designed for phoness, for games it will be just as awkward. It’s going have to be laid flat on a table and your going to have to hunch over.
Also, it when compared to my HP dm3, or even a netbook it doesn’t hold a candle. What IMO is needed for a quality expereience are input devices that are sperate from the display device, also the display needs to be elevated and self supporting. The iPad would be ok if it was 1/2 as much and you could navigate the entire web/games/everything with just finger swipes.
I’m pretty sure the iPad is a computer :) Find me an eReader that can browse the web in color nicely. Kindle can’t. Nook can’t. At this point, eReaders are worthless. Why give up $300 for a Kindle when I can get an iPad for $500 that does 10x more?
Typing will be a hurdle on any tablet. But I think like any touch smartphones, we’ll get used to it. Thankfully a tablet is 5x bigger than a phone so typing - even virtually - should be easier. There are a lot of other barriers for a tablet, but if anyone can knock those down, Apple can. Even if everyone buys them just because they’re “cool” (iPhone), that’ll change things too.
And you talking about the clipboard users is EXACTLY why tablets need a stylus. Agreed, you can’t hold it with one hand and type with the other. But you can hold and write. When you start talking about external devices, then you just want a normal laptop, which is what you have.
If anything, I see a tablet as ePaper.