iThink iPad iNitial iThought!

My usual modus operandi is to wait. Wait until the dust has settled, the professionals and 'enthusiasts' have had their say and then have mine. And make it different: a different perspective, approach or in short a view adopted given the benefit of time. I like to mull things over, read opinion, see things first hand and reflect before delivering an opinion of my own. However for reasons I'm not entirely sure about I've decided to leap on the iPad bandwagon and release a few initial observations into the fury of comment, speculation and hype.


I like the iPad. Well what I have seen online and the facts I have been able to gleam from other media reporting. I won't buy it though, at least not at first. I want to and should I have the disposal means I probably would, despite the cautions I can see. 


First to the positives:

• I like the design and visual appeal. The Apple touch screen technology I think will differential it from other tablet products
• I understand the primary use case: to access and browse the internet within seconds
• Cater for the limitations of the iPhone: enhanced user experience when using for longer time periods due to improved screen size and ergonomical design    
• A platform on which to build for the future

The iPad is, in my humble opinion, and aspirational product. I want one because I want the feeling and status it would give me. That is a very strong and emotive reason pull on a product and combined with the pull the Apple brand can achieve for its products will make it a commercial success. 

Owning an iPhone I understand how the iPad build upon the concept. I've heard all the Dom Jolly related criticisms about using it as a phone and to be honest I think that's either naive or facetious! In time the iPad will cater for video conferencing and this is where the phone functionality will come into play. Despite the innovate drag, pull and zoom concepts that are expertly delivered into the touch technology of the iPhone when browsing Safari, you can not escape the reality that a bigger screen would help. Not necessarily sat on a crowded tube, but most definitely when sat on the sofa at home. I think it's the 'sat on the sofa at home' users that Apple are targeting. 

Despite my subjective attraction to the iPad I do understand some of the more negative coverage it has received. I think this has been summed up well by Russell Beatie (via @jackschofield) when he said that the people who were disappointed with the iPad really wanted a MacBook. I think that's valid and explains a lot of the criticism. No the iPad doesn't have web cams, the first version doesn't have 3G, there's no USB and SD interface and it's not an open platform by any means. In my opinion they're deliberate omissions. 

Future releases will have 3G (stated by Apple) and in my opinion cameras. But there are reasons it won't support USB or SD cards and that it isn't an open platform. Not exclusively but I think that reason is Google Chrome OS.

I believe the iPad will go up against Google's Chrome OS powered NetBooks. Steve Jobs' criticism of netbooks: slow and with PC software running them. Google's netbooks? TV like response from power to surfing. That impressive lead time already exists within the iPhone and stated for the iPad. If you consider the iPad from this perspective then you can understand why it doesn't support USB/SD cards and isn't an open platfrom: neither will Chrome OS be! By reducing the variety of components the operating system has to support, it makes it quicker to load, smaller and less prone to errors. In short, quicker to access the internet. It's all about the speed and the internet. 

Google stated that the Chrome Netbooks will be a secondary device in the home used for web surfing and other 'cloud' based requirements. The iPad will be used for web surfing and other Apple based uses. The benefit of both devices is that they accompany existing technology and increase user experience but the downside is that because they don't replace existing technology it becomes expensive.

Over time the third type of device that sits in between the smart phone and the laptop will become an amalgamation of the two and laptops will morph into specialist hardware for specialist tasks. Every home that owns hardware to access the internet will use an iPad, Chome OS netbook. Most homes won't need anything else. Cameras and other peripherals will adopt an open and universal protocol for transferring their data to these devices, most likely wirelessly and the days of USB connections and flash based storage media will be behind us. 

Until then, the iPad won't suit everyone but it will be a success.