iPad

So what's the big deal with the iPad? Isn't it just a big 'ole iPod Touch? A watered down netbook? It doesn't even have a camera for webcasting or chat! If I wanted an e-reader, doesn't Kindle have a vasty superior library? I never jumped on the iPhone bandwagon, so I'm not an app-buying fool. No Flash ability or printing? I don't get it....

 

Well, that was before test driving one. It's definitely an Apple product 'cause it's sleek and solid, while being minimalist and simple. Still, a big iPhone without the phone. But, I never realized how cool that would actually be. First off, I'm not a laptop fan, never was. I don't like the layout. Keyboard is too small, but more importantly the mousing is IMPOSSIBLE. The battery burns your lap and that's especially bad if you have gonads. It's best feature is playing movies, but you can get that from a portable DVD player costing hundreds less. The iPad fixes these problems. The touch screen eliminates the ineffectiveness of laptop mousing. Finger navigating through web pages shouldn't seem revolutionary, but to this laptop-hating-guy, it is. You basically hold the iPad, so it doesn't heat your junk. My buddy had a cover on his, so I'm just assuming that it would be heat-free on your lap.

 

Bigger apps? So what? Well, I tried the bigger version of several games and it makes a world of difference. Not a scaled-up bigger, but iPad optimized versions. Totally different experience and that means better, in this case. I can see board games being very cool on this thing. I don't have an e-reader, but the iPad version was cool; and I heard you can get the Kindle reader to work on it to further open-up the availability of books. The note taking and drawing apps seemed very cool as well. I'm an artsy-fartsy guy at heart and this appealed to me. Ironically, this is where a stylus would really be best (sorry Steve Jobs, I know that's heresy). My iPad buddy said a "finger" replicating stylus is out now. I'm nearly sold.

 

Flash seems a huge downer as well as no-multitasking. I like having Twittter going in the background when I'm browsing the web. I'm not really sure how many of my sites use Flash, but for sure that would be Hulu. Bummer. Apple's need to make you buy all content is at heart and that's disappointing and yet understandable from a greedy capitalistic sense. Are these hurdles too much to overcome?  Hmmm.

 

At the end of the day, my desire to get one of these bad boys is party because my buddy has one and I'm jealous. It's a cool device. I'm not crazy about spending as much money in apps and I do on hardware (like the iPhone morons), but that's the Apple business model. And that's the appeal. Entrepreneurs saw the potential in the iPhone, and TONS of people made apps. I gotta believe the cash hungry developers will do the same for iPad. The apps out now are cool, but limited.  However, I know for a fact that even cooler apps will come out. And it's this promise of future coolness, which tips the scales for me.

 

I want one.