Apple does have a legitimate history of releasing products that have changed the way we live our lives... but the hype behind the tablet computer (the iPAD) has been absolutely absurd.
1. It will not save print media
- The cat is out of the bag... newspapers will never have the revenue they once did. Sure, the WSJ, NYTIMES, and other newspapers are trying to turn back the clock, and charge for their content, but blogs that provide said information for free are so plentiful, expecting substantial numbers of people to pay for it is ridiculous. Newsday, one of the largest newspapers in New York has pulled in exactly 35 subscribers in 3 months since they switched to a pay format. 35!
2. It will not save books
- The Kindle is apparently a sales sensation... too bad AMAZON currently sells their e-books at a loss. And the sooner e-books become popular with the public, the sooner they'll be pirated and be available for free through other sources... the same problem currently plaguing the music industry.
Of course, people point to iTUNES as an example of Apple re-programming people to pay for something that they are used to getting for free. But while iTUNES may be wildly successful for Apple, its revenue is a drop in the bucket compared to what's downloaded through alternative, illegal file-sharing programs.
3. It will not replace your laptop
- I hate typing on a virtual keyboard. It's slow, its laborious, and you can never hit the stupid key you want to hit. Sure you're willing to sacrifice some of that for the portability of an iPHONE or iPOD touch, but if you're willing to carry something the size of the iPAD (10 inches across), why not just bring a netbook and get some actual work done?
4. It might change the way you play video games
- Something even Apple didn't anticipate was that the iPHONE and iPOD touch would become wildly successful video gaming platforms... Could the iPAD become the next great portable gaming device? Now this, i could see happening.
Really, what the iPAD has going for it is the Apple brand name. If HP, Sony, etc., released this exact same product, it would be greeted with a pretty hefty dose of skepticism. But because its Apple, people are willing to give it the benefit of the doubt and presume it will change the way we live our lives (like how iPODS and iPHONES have).
That being said, i see the iPAD as being another accessory in the house, as opposed to the all-in-one device, revolutionary wonder it's currently being sold as.
Does it double as a frisbee?
San Francisco, California (CNN) -- Punch lines about hygiene products flooded the blogosphere on Wednesday only moments after Apple Inc. announced it would call its new touch-screen computer the "iPad."
"The mocking goes along the lines of: Yes, the iPad is small, lightweight and slim. But can you swim with it?" wrote the Los Angeles Times' tech blog.
The term iTampon -- a riff on the fact that the iPad can be taken to sound more like a maxipad than a slick new computer -- was the third most-talked about trend on Twitter on Wednesday evening.
Some female bloggers wrote that Apple seemed not to have any women on its marketing team.
"With "iTampon" quickly emerging as a trending Twitter topic, it's probably safe to say that many women found themselves cringing as they asked, 'Do any women work at Apple?' " wrote Annie Colbert on the blog "Holy Kaw!"
It will not impact anybody's life significantly, yet it will sell like hot cakes.
I think you guys are missing the boat a little bit on this one. Is it revolutionary in the sense that the iPod was? No. Is it revolutionary in the way that it proposes that people will interact with media? It may be.
This depends on a couple things. One, is the inevitable huge number of sales this will generate. The second is that Apple has once again correctly realized that how one interacts with a device can be as if not more important that the bare specs of what a device "can do." For instance, I read RSS feeds, the NY Times, New Yorker articles, journal articles etc electronically. I haven't subscribed to a newspaper in years. Yet I absolutely have having to view 1/3 a screen at a time, or even holding a notebook for a very long time. I do it because a) I have to, in the case of journals; and b) because it's cheaper than buying the damn publication. Apple has realized that the somewhat intimate interaction people have with books, holding it in your hand, curling up on a chair/couch, turning pages, simply cannot be replicated on a traditional computer. The iPad, with it's touch gestures, will come as close as it gets.
I think the whole 3G thing is a total waste of time because you're right, it won't replace a laptop and who really needs to buy an ebook on the go when they are away from wi-fi? But at the end of the day, I'll probably be able to do most of what I do on a computer at home on the cheapest wi-fi enabled iPad: browse the web, read e-publications, edit my calendar entries, check email (maybe 85% of mine doesn't require a response) etc. If I have to type or do photo editing, then I'll use my mac hooked up to a large, calibrated monitor. I may not jump at the first gen model, but I can definitely see one of these sitting on my coffee table and if it does do the above for 5 bills, that's a steal. As an aside, I have not seen a claim from Apple that this would replace a laptop.
my bad, that should say "hate" having to read things a third of a page at a time.
Moreover, in the age of piracy iTunes has been somewhat of a saviour for many given the massive volume of sales it generates as well as the relative generosity towards artists who can often arrange a cut that far exceeds what they would get through traditional CD sales.
I'm not young and hip enough to appreciate apple products. So I agree with everything Anthony says.
am i the only one snickering at the word? "Hey did you change your IPAD?"