The lights are on
Before going in to the Apple event, I kept wondering if there was some sort of elite country club for people who cover these. May I’d get some brushed aluminum hipster keycard that opens a door to a room made of white lexon plastic. I’ve been to more press conferences that I can possibly remember at this point. Being at an Apple one felt just like all of the others, except smaller. For as much hype and as much attention the company gets, the conferences from companies like Microsoft and Sony for gaming are significantly bigger. Actually, now that I think about it, I can’t really think of anyone else who goes bigger than the game companies for these things. But still, Apple’s ability to get something hyped with little to no effort is astounding.So where am I going with this you may ask? Well the hype is my point. After I’ve had a few days to let it sink in and think about what I was holding, I feel like a have a good view. Is the iPad a game changer? The answer, at least in my view, is not possible with a yes or no. This thing is going to sell. With the aggressive price point and contract-free 3G plan, Apple has a fool-proof marketing plan. A lot of the press was pretty ‘meh’ on the overall product opinion but the reasons they point against the iPad are reasons I think a lot of consumers will either not care about or not know about when they buy it.+ Nice Hardware: This is very true. It’s light, crisp and has the Apple touch.+ The Apps: Apple was smart to make the iPad work with almost (we still don’t know what almost means, possibly the GPS apps) every one of the 140,000 App Store products.+ No Contract 3G: This is awesome (even if it is AT&T, gross) because you can just buy what you need. You could just live off the WiFi until you travel and then just buy a month of data.+/- Do I Need It: Well, do I? I really want it and can think of good situations where It would come in handy. But do I really need it?
+/- Games: While some games are awesome like Field Runners or Civ Rev, a lot of them just dont work without a controller.+/- No USB Ports: The device uses Apple’s 30 pin connector so it’s stuck syncing with iTunes. There is an adaptor but it’s for videos and photos (and it’s easy to assume .jpg only). +/- 10 Hour Battery: It would be awesome but Apple is notorious for over promising on the battery life.- No Multitasking: This is the major buzzkill for me. I cannot think of a single reason to exclude this. None.- Closed Platform: Basically if they don’t like an App, they can kill it. Apple fans have long yelled at companies like Microsoft or Dell as being evil empires but Cupertino’s on-going stonewall against open development is starting to show on their faces.- iTunes Only: So we can expect slow syncing with no ‘kosher’ alternative. Great.- No Flash Support: This is bad because while Flash may be an unstable platform that is CPU heavy, it’s a standard that cannot be ignored. So no Hulu for you. HTML5 aims to replace Flash/Silverlight but it won’t be anytime too soon.When I first laid my hands on the iPad, I was in lust. But now that I think about it, I’m glad that I wasn’t at the store because had I taken home a device centered around the web that didn’t support of the most common browsing plugin out there, I’d be pretty displeased.
1stttttttttttt
Anyways this looks cool and much easier to type with and look at vids than my ipod touch. but no flash and multitask gives me no reason to buy it.
no flash, no sell. simple as that xD lol Apple is all about the money these days. you can only use itunes, buy their apps, and run their programs basically( I say basically because there may be/are exceptions) Steve jobs is a marketing genius, but hes not user oriented, he's dollar oriented
like a small itouch.
So wait - we can't change the battery after a few years, can't use other software with it, can't develop for it, and don't get basic computer features like multitasking and Flash? I'd go with the HP Slate over this any day.
It seems like Apple stubbornly refuses to change and fix some of the major gripes against their products. Why should they? They own a mint.
Full disclosure: I was also deeply in lust with this when they showed the contract-free 3G and an awesome MLB app. I just think the beer goggles have worn off.
Regarding the almost with the apps part, they are excluding the apps that use a camera (for an obvious reason- the iPad doesn't have one). Honestly, as it stands now, I'd only buy an iPad to read magazines (I already have a Nook for my regular reading and my PSP for gaming), because of the full color LED screen. But, I don't think that one reason is enough to get me to shell out $500.
Just another product from apple that they want to charge over 600 dollars for. But of course they can do it, there is many apple fans out there that will buy anything apple. Oh wait, new iPod! It does one more thing that the other one didn't lets go spend another 200 dollars!
I'm glad you wrote this blog because it brings up a lot of good points. I've been thinking lately that I should get a netbook and when they announced this, I started considering it. I think this blog has changed my mind though. No Flash? Who the hell do they think they are? The no multi-tasking is also stupid as I am always doing several things at once. Thanks again.
Maybe in a few years. I wasn't caught in this wave of hype. I'll wait a few generations when they work all the kinks out.
I don't want one. I hope maybe the Ipad2 (If they think that the first one did so well they had to make a second one) will have less flaws.
Wow, it's an expensive paper weight. Only the most loyal and blinded Apple fans will shell out dough for this thing, even at the "no-contract" $500 price point. Other than the innovative iPod and crisp, clean product designs, I can not see what this obsession over Apple products is about. I have never been utterly dissappointed with PCs, at least not enough to pay double the price for equal computing power.
Even though I was never planning on grabbing this or any new Apple products (iPod's 3 years old, still going, and still not disappointed with it yet! See also: economic situation for middle-class America), it's still a bit of a bummer to see what could have been turn into what shouldn't be. Apple's got great potential, but whoever's managing it right now is really screwing it up.
This iPad reminds me so much of my friend Will: Reeks of potential but is too high maintenance and too satisfied with doing less than everyone else.
This is lame
APPS
"Almost", is likely excluding the GPS as you say - because there would be less reason to get 3G network coverage. AT&T Tried to tell me that I couldn't use my GPS chip on the Tilt unless I had their 3G network. They were wrong, and they knew it. Install Garmin, tell it to use the internal GPS and off I go without having to use the data plan from AT&T. the AT&T Navigon or whatever they call it now, requires the use of the 3G network - and it's proprietary. If Apple is still sleeping with AT&T or other network providers then they'll want some incentive to allow the device. Subverting their GPS assist gimmicks isn't going to make any friends.
BATTERY
I think I get the inability to change out the battery. It's about damage control. If you can't take it apart, it's harder to reverse engineer. On top of that, the product cycle of Apple is about two years. The batteries installed will last at least that long - no need to change it unless you're unfortunate enough to be one of those people that has something Apple would define as 'mysteriously' wrong with it. Lastly, if you are one of those people, then Apple wouldn't see it as a big deal for you to simply replace it - you've spent your money in the Appl Store, and unless you get another one - all of those apps are gone to waste (expect to see iPad only apps).
Closed System -
That's an Apple hallmark. It's why Woz isn't with 'em anymore and what has made Apple so rich to begin with. It was the reason 'it just worked' They have complete control over what is and isn't with their products. How long did it take for Apple to 'allow' other devices to utilize iTunes? After than how long was it before Jobs changed stances on DRM (sort of)? Bitching about it now indicates that people weren't paying attention earlier - there's no reason they'd change this. What makes this remotely interesting is that Appl has, like I said, always been closed system. MS and Dell were allegedly open systems that professed user control and 'suit to comfort'. If you go back and look at the Apple track record for control, you can find that the early Apple store wouldn't allow people to rate non apple products above 4 apples, and didn't allow them to rate Apple products at all (they'd rate it 5 apples on their own). When asked about (or better - publicly called out on), it they said "we feel our products are the best there are, so there's no need for anyone else to rate them". They've stopped with that, but they still have this ego about their products (and honestly... the design is losing luster... it was cool 5 years ago, but it's time to break off of the 'institute white', 'battleship grey' and 'void black').
The reason there are no USBs, at least the reason I believe, is partially for the same reason you can't remove the battery (prohibit reverse engineering) and partially to make you get more proprietary devices at a higher price point. Diapers are expensive - why? you HAVE to have them. An Apple KB Dock for the iPad will be expensive (in context to keyboards), why? You HAVE to have it to use a KB. In a year or two they'll open it up to other companies to get in on it, but they want to make sure they've gotten a majority of the product market first.
No Multitasking -
I think that this is because the A4 chip isn't a 'great' as Apple wants us to think. Multitasking is a resource hog and while it might be able to pull it off, we'd see a huge sacrifice in performance. Keep in mind, this is the first gen, so its going to suck hard. Second gen they'll add it and play up the multitasking as a mindblowing, cancer curing godsend that shows you colors you'd never know existed. It doesn't - like always, it just brings itself up to speed with the rest of the world. My HTC Tilt can multitask... with Windows Mobile 6.1 of all things.
HTML5 vs Flash
I agree in that HTML5 won't be a standard anytime soon. Apple trying to force this makes sense only in that they're trying to appeal to cutting edge developers, and in return can claim that they helped implement HTML5 into the mainstream furthering their self proclaimed clout on the market. Flash IS a standard that is widely used and like you say, CPU heavy - but like all things, flash has a place and purpose. Developers who deal exclusively with Flash as a platform aren't in my mind, going to make any headway with anything. It's a toy to them. It's like a hammer - I can use a hammer to fix a lot of things... it may not be the greatest tool for it, but when it comes to nails - a hammer is the tool of choice. If developers go back to using flash for what it's designed for, then we'll be good - just as if Adobe goes back and takes on the macromedia mindset of making things with a small footprint, they'll be good. Adobe has always had bloated stuff... Photoshop / Illustrator / InDesign = BLOAT, and then they have all of these little bloatlet programs on the side that latch on. In the end it's really a battle of ego.
Like I said in my blog post about the ipad - uninteresting.
As you pointed out, it's got appeal and Apple has a way of making people want it and get it without really giving you anything... that's their shtick.
What about StarCraft? Sure your Actions Per Minute won't be as fast on the Ipad, but it could work! BTW I talked about this in my blog.
I thought Tom Conlon over at Popular Science went over the biggest drawbacks of the iPad very well:
www.popsci.com/.../43167
The thing will sell, and it will sell a lot. Of this I have no doubt. But I'm afraid that it will become so successful, the "walled garden" approach will become universal. The day Microsoft adopts Apple's strategy is the day I switch to Linux.
Regarding the "almost all apps" part, I assumed that meant all the camera apps, but I suppose GPS might also be excluded.
I'm not really in favor of the iPad, I mean I thought when Apple announced something "big" it was going to be creative like the iPhone or Macs, etc. If Apple had announced it as a new product instead of really big and innovative, then people wouldn't be criticizing it so much. For something that is a huge announcement, it doesn't live up to it's potential because I don't see the point in me paying hundreds of more dollars on an enlarged iPhone with a few extra features and a few less features than the original.