While most commentators view the iPad as an oversized iPhone, it's really a question, whether people will accept it, as a suitable replacement for netbooks ("they're just cheap laptops", said Steve Jobs).
I think this is really a question of software. If you compare specifications of any iPod, with competitive mp3 players in the same price range, iPod loses in all respects. But once you hold the iPod in your hands and use it, you see why this is the best seller - it's simple and intuitive software wins the users. And without good touch screen software, iPhone and iPod Touch would never made it this far.
As Apple's CEO Steve Jobs stated, the iPad is intended as a device between the smartphone and the laptop. The iPad copies iPhone's basic user interface and physical design, but there are significant differences, beyond the 9.7? screen and a fast Apple-designed processor. Applications on iPad, look a lot more like computer software. It's photo application, for example, looks more like iPhoto on a Mac than the photo app on iPhone. Most of the core iPhone applications have been rewritten and it even runs all current 140,000 iPhone apps.
While we haven't seen the promised music and video streaming services, Jobs showed off their e-book reader app with a built-in online book store.
Visually, it looks much better than Amazon's Kindle, but still leaves plenty to desire for. New York Times representatives showed off their digital newspaper, that seemed a lot better than Kindle's version. And iPad's touch screen software, allows you to flip pages with a gesture.
Compared to Kindle it lacks in functionality and has much smaller catalog. In addition a back-lit LCD screen can be tiresome for the eyes, compared to Kindle's ilk. This shouldn't surprise us, since Jobs is quoted as saying "no one reads anymore". A reflection of Apple's concern for the readers?
On the positive side:
looks awesome
feels comfortable and solid to hold
has all that cool software built in
amazingly low-priced (for an Apple product)
10 hours of battery life
it will use iPhone OS
On the negative side:
no multitasking:
While we can expect some limitations here, it's really all about the software.
The fast processor combined with flash storage, launches and shuts down any application in a moment. This reduces the need to run applications in the background. It does bring up some concerns. For example: Will we be able to chat over Skype while browsing? And will we be able to receive Skype calls on the same device? The iPhone certainly handles
no web cam
iPad SDK 3.2 documentation mentions a camera and there are rumors about iPod Touch getting the camera in June. It would seem, Apple is planning to hold off some of the key features, forcing the buyers to reach into their pockets again later.
no Flash support
Flash is going to find itself competing heavily with HTML 5 in time. Google's TestTube and Chrome experiments are a proof of this. Anyone familiar with Flash, can tell you it's a dog that has not kept up with modern computers.
On the other hand, we are not there yet and Flash today is just too popular, to be ignored like that. This will heavily cripple the browsing experience, not to mention all the cool Flash games, we'll be missing.
no USB ports, no SD slot
the carrier for the iPad's 3G plan in the US is the heavily unpopular AT&T
it will use iPhone OS
The iPad is quite more than just a big iPod Touch or iPhone, even though it looks like one. But the question remains, will that be enough to get the buyers to embrace it and make it part of their daily lives?
This device will find some niche uses. If you are looking for productivity, you better stick with your touch screen laptop. But if you are a casual user, looking for active or passive entertainment on the go, the iPad might be just for you. Surfing the web on the couch, watching videos on public transport and viewing e-recipes in the kitchen, are some of the uses that come to mind.
Like with any other Apple's product, there will certainly be no shortage of people lining up to buy it.
While iPhone's brought us revolutionary touch screen software, this gadget still needs something cooler than a nice cover, to justify calling it "magical" or "revolutionary". But until I get our hands on one and see it in action, it's too early to judge.
However, one thing we can all be certain of:
This will be the most awesome toilet web browsing gadget. Ever.
