A 16-year-old’s view of Apple’s iPad: iFail

Tonight when I picked up my son in Petaluma we started talking about the Apple iPad and he told me he thought it was a “fail.” This reaction was interesting coming from Patrick (he was first in line in Palo Alto for the iPhone and has been an Apple fan for as long as I remember.)

Anyway, I asked him if I could record our conversation, he said yes, and this is the result. It’s in two parts, because when we uploaded the first part we got a lot of reaction on Twitter so followed it up with a second part. Here’s the two audio recordings, sorry for the poor quality, we recorded that while driving.

Part I.
Part II.

His major points are:

1. That it isn’t compelling enough for a high school student who already has a Macintosh notebook and an iPhone.
2. That it is missing features that a high school student would like, like handwriting recognition to take notes, a camera to take pictures of the board in class (and girls), and the ability to print out documents for class.
3. That he hasn’t seen his textbooks on it yet, so the usecase of replacing heavy textbooks hasn’t shown up yet.
4. The gaming features, he says, aren’t compelling enough for him to give up either the Xbox or the iPhone. The iPhone wins, he says, because it fits in his pocket. The Xbox wins because of Xbox live so he can play against his friends (not to mention engaging HD quality and wide variety of titles).
5. He doesn’t like the file limitations. His friends send him videos that he can’t play in iTunes and the iPad doesn’t support Flash.
6. It isn’t game changing like the iPhone was.

Anyway, revealing conversation with a teenager who got extremely excited about the iPhone (and saved up to buy his own) the day he saw that.

What do you think?

147 thoughts on “A 16-year-old’s view of Apple’s iPad: iFail

  1. Pretty much on the money, I would also want to add that the “iPad” name in itself is a iFail too. However, the good part is the hardware, maybe Apple could start using it in their future device.And did you miss that the iPhone has the dullest home screen ever? And so does the iPad. Why can't Apple create a interactive screen like the N900 or the Droid or Nexus One, makes life so much easier.

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  2. Pretty much on the money, I would also want to add that the “iPad” name in itself is a iFail too. However, the good part is the hardware, maybe Apple could start using it in their future device.And did you miss that the iPhone has the dullest home screen ever? And so does the iPad. Why can't Apple create a interactive screen like the N900 or the Droid or Nexus One, makes life so much easier.

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  3. Your son must have a good job to be able to afford all those toys 😉 His points are clear and make a lot of sense. Nice one!

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  4. Your son must have a good job to be able to afford all those toys 😉 His points are clear and make a lot of sense. Nice one!

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  5. I think you've got a pretty tech-intuitive kid on your hands. His reasons are valid for his demographic but there's also demographic cross-over validity. Well put.

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  6. I think you've got a pretty tech-intuitive kid on your hands. His reasons are valid for his demographic but there's also demographic cross-over validity. Well put.

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  7. He makes some excellent points there, and the one that applies to most people is #5, apple needed to make this more of a wide-range, versatile tool, not just a giant iPod touch. To me, tablet means an OS that can actually do something. I think they should have made a tablet OSX. That would have made this product a home-run.

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  8. He makes some excellent points there, and the one that applies to most people is #5, apple needed to make this more of a wide-range, versatile tool, not just a giant iPod touch. To me, tablet means an OS that can actually do something. I think they should have made a tablet OSX. That would have made this product a home-run.

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  9. Your son is dead on. If he hasn't purchased his iPhone yet, I think you should be chipping in since he did do the interview 😉

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  10. Your son is dead on. If he hasn't purchased his iPhone yet, I think you should be chipping in since he did do the interview 😉

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  11. i agree with him, but you have to remember this is there first model! give them 5 years and this will change the world! these will be everywhere… i mean look where things have changed from first ipod ever to itouch in like what 6 or 7 years??

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    1. the only thing that could make it worth all the money in my oppinion is if they made a slightly bigger version and used them to replace big textbooks and stuff in school.

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  12. i agree with him, but you have to remember this is there first model! give them 5 years and this will change the world! these will be everywhere… i mean look where things have changed from first ipod ever to itouch in like what 6 or 7 years??

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  13. cheers to your son Robert, he is so right.Plus, no flash (best web experience ever?) and no multitasking.Seems like the competitors have a good chance on the tablet market right now. One thing is for sure, this is not a game changer of even netbook killer (sorry, you know i had to say that)

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  14. cheers to your son Robert, he is so right.Plus, no flash (best web experience ever?) and no multitasking.Seems like the competitors have a good chance on the tablet market right now. One thing is for sure, this is not a game changer of even netbook killer (sorry, you know i had to say that)

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  15. Yeah, it's neither fish nor foul (at least the iPhone is a phone) and will have trouble establishing its own niche.Look more like a Fisher Price version of the iPhone.It could be used as a classroom e-learning tool but would really need to have enough smarts to connect to the schools network and the other students, as well as have priority input from the user and teacher.I am not optimistic about its viability

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  16. Your son is so right about it not being a game changer. It's only one step removed from many other devices. It's a bigger iPod touch. A netbook without a keyboard. A kindle with a color screen.When the iPod came out it was a whole new paradigm over how to buy and listen to music. There's nothing really new in the iPad.

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  17. It’s not wide-screen. 1024×768? That’s sooooo 1996. Where’s the battery door? Do you have to use bluetooth to print from it (and that means buying yet another printer)? No camera? There’s so many things wrong with it that I wouldn;t be surprised to see someone scream, “April Fool’s!”

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  18. I do agree with a lot of those points. The iPad is not much more than a large iPod Touch, and is mainly a “casual computer,” as Mark Rolston of Frog Design said (http://online.wsj.com/article/SB100014240527487…). Some of those points will likely be addressed by the apps. The others highlight the major issue with it; the iPad overlaps with what a lot of people already have. John Gruber of Daring Fireball was right on when he said the tablet would be what people get instead of a MacBook. Yes, it doesn't do the serious computing, data entry, and such that a full laptop can do. But, it covers the basics and provides a much better experience than a comparably priced device. It may be a new category according to Apple, but it's not a completely new, unaddressed use. Now the Microsoft Courier…I do think it has the potential to address a lot of the use-cases you highlighted in your post earlier about Ballmer's unimpressive tablet demonstrations. The iPad and the Courier (according to that demo) are great examples of the function finally following the form of the Tablet. (http://alecperkins.posterous.com/function-follo… )It's not the most revolutionary device ever — certainly not when compared to the iPhone — but, it does finally push tablets toward a finger-friendly interaction paradigm that gets away from the limitations of all the previous ones. I bet that the iPad will, in the long rung, help acclimate people to the tablet form-factor.

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  19. Your son is right – these are nearly the same reasons why the iPad hasn't won my heart. Interest, yes; wallet, no. I'll give it a bit to mature in the market and let Apple update it w/ new features. The first *anything* always is inferior to their second update to it. ~joe

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  20. he is completely right… for his perspective. I do not think it's designed for him though. all of his points are related to that. It is more about a home personal computer for 90% of america that does three main things on its computers: check email, browse web, and do a few word docs. sorry tech people are not gonna want a 1ghz laptop replacement…

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  21. All I have to say is that a mass-market device (like this) cannot appeal to all demographics of the market.I can still remember people heavily criticizing the original iPhone and despite the fact that it was $600 on a contract and it couldn't do the basic things that a $50 is good at, it was a huge hit . I expect Apple will sell around 6-7 million iPads in 2010.I look at this product as a positive step towards post-PC devices and form factors. Ask your son to compare the iPad to any other tablets in the market.

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  22. Robert, Your son is completely right – today. I think if Apple sticks with it and continues to evolve it (unlike the AppleTV) it can become the next great computing platform. For me, a guy the same age as Jobs, it so reminds me of the device of the future as envisioned in the 1960s (Star Trek and 2001).

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  23. Short memories. The *first* iPhone was way limited and took a beating in the press – heck, it didn't even have copy and paste. It sold ok, but the second gen was the one that really took off (albeit still without copy and paste).If there was no iPhone to precede it, we'd be getting pretty excited about the iPad.Apple's first gen products are always short of what they should be. Don't write off the iPad just yet. And once the apps start coming, it will be a different animal.

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  24. Completely agree. He's got great points, specifics about how it does not hit the market he identifies with. His points further illustrate that the market between the smartphone and the laptop is not huge and the device does not do enough to define that middle market. To be a game changer, the new product has to help define to the market that they need the new product and this device does not do that.

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  25. I think that many on this site as well as on the blogs are missing the point of this device. All of the other devices mentioned, including the Entourage do neither of their things very well. Jobs has capitalized on the 140,000 apps that already exist for the device. Most app developers should find it relatively easy to adopt to the new screen size with existing applications. The beauty of not using OSX is that expectations are lowered, just like on a Netbook. Let's face it, if you're an uber-geek, this product is not for you. Steve could do nothing right since the iPhone. All of the hype, some generated by Apple, ie. The $1,000 price tag but most from uber-geeks themselves, would have made anything short of parting the red sea a let down. Engadget, TUAW etc., set themselves up for this. I mean really come on, Solar Powered tablets?? Video conferencing (on what battery life, even in OSX)? Flash (although that was embarassing during the keynote address)? I think that Steve already drove Flash into the ground when he stated that it was useless on portable devices.This is definitely aimed at the eReader community. If Amazon plays along and releases a Tablet version of Kindle, all will be well with the universe.

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  26. The iPad is a touch-screen version of Larry Ellison's Network Computer of 13 years ago. As Steve Jobs came to the rescue for the recording industry with the iPod, training a generation of kids to stop swapping mp3s with friends and strangers for free and to pay even more per song for music than previous generations, so too is he coming to the rescue of the print media industry. If adoption becomes significant, watch as major news media disappear from the web and become subscription only through the iPad.

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  27. The iPad is a touch-screen version of Larry Ellison's Network Computer of 13 years ago. As Steve Jobs came to the rescue for the recording industry with the iPod, training a generation of kids to stop swapping mp3s with friends and strangers for free and to pay even more per song for music than previous generations, so too is he coming to the rescue of the print media industry. If adoption becomes significant, watch as major news media disappear from the web and become subscription only through the iPad.

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  28. Very creative post Robert, I love the perspective. Those are some good insights that I hadn't seen outlined. It's nice to get outside the “tech bubble” a bit. Great work.

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  29. Very creative post Robert, I love the perspective. Those are some good insights that I hadn't seen outlined. It's nice to get outside the “tech bubble” a bit. Great work.

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  30. I agree with him 1000 percent! Of course, I have neither a Mac nor an iPhone. One of the a-list tweeters, whose name I forget, said he had a demo unit and it had *two* cameras, one on the screen side for video conferencing and the other on the non-screen side for use as a camera. So was he making stuff up?So … the next big thing is Google's “ChromeOS Netbook”. I'm hoping Google will outdo the iPad in a major way – like, for example, all the media playing goodness over the web plus VOIP, videoconferencing, *business* use cases and a $200 price point with 2 GB of RAM and 2 Genuine Intel x86 cores.Or better yet – Microsoft wakes up and realizes that smallish computers should run Linux and not Windows, MacOS or a slick PDA interface and team up with Novell / SUSE and Intel / Moblin to beat ChromeOS to the punch. *That* would make it a horse race, and I'd be riding the SUSE horse in a heartbeat!

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  31. I'm not sure I would count Robert Scoble's son as “outside the tech bubble.” I don't think hip young men are going to be the primary users of the iPad. I'm envisioning it tucked into the side pockets of comfy recliners, displaying calendars and to-do lists in wall-mounted docks in kitchens, and resting on nightstands. And the iPad will fit just fine into most purses.I have an iPod Touch and an iPhone (and a half-dozen other iThings). Love 'em, but the screen is too small for a lot of the things I'd like to do. For my parents' 50th anniversary we got them each an iPod Touch. They love them, but iPads would be much better for almost every use in their cases. I think the iPad is going to be exactly what a lot of people have been waiting for. It's just that the lines in front of the Apple store the night before they come out might include more motorhomes than tents. 🙂

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  32. “But, it covers the basics and provides a much better experience than a comparably priced device.” I dunno. One of the hugest things for casual users online right now is Flash games. If it doesn't play Farmville, Mafia Wars, or the other social web-based Flash games, it's not going to be of much interest to most people.Flash is the deal breaker for the casual gaming case. I think Apple will fix this by 1Q 2011 at latest to pick up that market.-Erica

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  33. just remember how many people bought the iphone because its an iphone. it will be hard to tell whether its gonna be a fail or not, until the marketing campaign kicks on. i think the app development scene will skyrocket, especially in the 3rd party department, ie cydia. you could almost use it as a big phone lol, connect to your home wifi, ( voip enabled by your isp), a simple third party app named syphone and your on your way. but with apples cunning marketing strategies, i think you will find an ipad in just about every computer illiterate families house

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  34. Your son is not the target market. He’s already got the laptop. This is for people who need more display space for their Cocoa Touch apps.

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  35. My advice to a 16-year-old: typing is still a basic skill.Seriously, this may be an item not bought by teens or the ADD-addled. Its focus is on reading, writing, viewing. It's a Kindle Plus – and the Plus is actually significant. But I enjoy watching people wringing their hands because it doesn't multitask.

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  36. A lot of those games, such as Mafia Wars, have apps for the iPhone. The iPad may not have Flash, but it does have the hundreds of thousands of apps already made for the iPhone OS. Also, it's likely the iPhone OS will never get Flash, as HTML5 features such as canvas and video become more common in Web app implementations. Apple is probably exceedingly wary of performance with these mobile devices, even with their supposed kick-ass A4 chip. HTML5 is much more performance-friendly than Flash. Plus, it's not proprietary and controlled by a company that's not Apple. Apple loves the idea of controlling the whole experience, which would be hampered by allowing Flash.

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  37. The main items that I will wait for are:Photo CapabilitiesHD Video CapabilitiesRun Multiple things at once.Printing CapabilitiesiSite For Video Chatting And SkypeIt looks like they are going in the right direction. The iPad is quite Amazing, I just want it to add more all in one features, like the ones I mentioned.I would even pay more money, if it did have the above items.

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  38. Absolutely right. If it would replace my netbook and I could write on it then I think it would be very attractive but at the moment it is just another piece of kit. My iPhone and my netbook cover my mobile requirements pretty well so I can't see why I would want to shell out more money for this. Definitely not convinced yet.

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  39. I dont fully agree. A lot of the gaps will be filled in by apps. I think this device is more app reliant that the iPhone & there are more possibilities for developers because of the screen size. I dont think it competes with the Xbox. This will give physical proximity + virtual gaming like PSP. The price tag is also reasonable with no lock in.

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  40. I'd agree with your son in the short term; what has me excited is the long term innovation of the product. I haven't purchased an apple product since the PowerPC in 1997, and haven't used a Macintosh OS since December 31 of 2009, so I can't speak to comparisons with the iphone and macbook. However, if you can cognizance a piece of paper as a haptic display the ipad is certainly more important -and fiscally viable- than immediate selling points. Jobs wants this everywhere; on your kindergartner's desk catching assignments from her teacher — a binding in your daughter's book bag — to whatever it is that we are building here. Think of the incapability of the PC in comparison to mainframe in the early 80s.

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  41. All points taken….also, would like to add what is the Ipad basically for ?….what is the market its trying to get into ?…..cellphones, net books, computers etc……or is it aiming at a different product altogether…

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  42. I think HE IS WRONG. Flash IS coming, even though it is going to be in an unusual way. Textbooks WILL come if the demand is there. Handwriting recognition Will come via Apple update or 3rd party app.

    The camera, I agree should have been included. But as for not buying it because he already owns an iPhone and a Mac…. One of the first things they said at the event was this product was designed to fill the gap in the market between the two. I have PC laptops, and the awesome Sony Ericsson Satio 12.1mp smartphone. The iPad is designed for users like me! I never got an iPhone because it has no decent camera, and although I will be getting a Mac, i still NEED PC’s as they are what I make my money on. iPad is a fantastic product, I will be reserving one today

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  43. Good points, but he's basically saying it's a fail because it doesn't do “everything” in it's very first version. I think the game changers will come in future versions

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  44. I think Patrick is right on the most points, whereas I don’t think 16 year old students are apples target group for this product.
    Some of the complains might be solved by apps. But no web-cam, no flash capability, no multitasking, no GPS… that’s really disappointing for me as well!

    Did I mention no flash?!

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  46. Good for your son. His agenda: his rating scale. I recall back in the day of Zenith IBM compatible PCs, they ran an advertisement with a grid of evaluation criteria, and showed their machine was superior. When I weighted the grid for me, I chose another brand.iPad is simply as Jobs said, “Better than a netbook” for the things I need it to do. I was debating a new iPod touch (my 1st gen does not do voice “in”) or jailbreaking an iPhone (when 'o when will that lousy deal with AT&T end?) to get Skype on a mobile device.Yes, the lack of a camera is a mistake. One I can live with… the bigger concern on anything Jobs offers, “How do I get enough RAM to actually use the thing?” It was very tedious, doubling the RAM in Mac Mini. I can just imagine the look on my wife's face as I disassemble the iPad.

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  47. My 15 year old fanboy sone is pretty excited about it. It's not much more than a big ipod touch, but what could be better than a big ipod touch? My guy also saved up to get the first iphone, and bought a macbook too – I think this product is pretty gorgeous, and just raises the bar. And I think a little time will tell. The hype was so huge, I don't think anything could have matched it….

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  48. Just remembering how Robert, you said the value of the iphone is the apps. Remember that post? How the iphone was sticky because your life ran on it. This thing uses those same things. It takes the value you perceive in the iphone and extends it. That's pretty amazing. Can't wait to see our responses in a year

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  49. Just as when the iPhone came out there were lots of articles explaining how it would fail because it didn’t have this or that feature, so with the iPad. Steve Jobs is looking well into the future. Touch is going to be the future of computing and the iPad shows us the first glimpse of the road ahead. Until yesterday I couldn’t see that I would want to give up using a mouse to navigate a screen, but now I begin to see Apple’s thinking.

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  50. I don't think that the iPad's target group is primarily highschool kids but rather grown up's who tend to spend longer in front of their computer instead of the TV.

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  51. Valid points; Apple could have unveiled more than an over-sized iPhone. I'm sure that developers will innovate and increase the value of the iPad but it had the potential to offer so much more!!

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  52. All points seem to echo my reaction; it's just a big iphone, why would I buy it? BUT when I think about buying a Kindle, the iPad makes that purchase look ridiculous. why on earth would anyone buy a Kindle ever again? for (admittedly more money) the price you might as well get something you can read books on AND do all sorts of other stuff. Apple definitely just ate Amazon's lunch…

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  53. Whilst there may be people who don't want one… You don't have to sell one to everyone to still make money on it. My parents with an average age of 60 see it as an easy access device. I could see them getting one in 60 days alongside a surprising older demographic which seem to be expressing an interest despite not being heard on the young dominated internet forums.

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  54. Hie people !! Well those points seem to have sens but don't forget that it is the first version of the Ipad. When Apple lauched Iphone a lot of apple's fans (and more generally technology savies) were a bit disappointed about some technical features. What did Apple ?? they took the point and improved the iphone. Now we are at the 4th generation, 2-3 years after the initial launch (2007). Personnaly I believe that Apple will react very fast to what consumers will say about Ipad. And improve it following this way.

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  55. Heck at that age, all I talked to my Dad about was….nothing. Insightful comments that raise issues that should have been identified at the start of product development.

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  56. Not everything is driven by 16 year olds! The G3 version, depending on plan affordability could be the first affordable, user-friendly computer for my 78 yr old mother in law!
    For me, I have been using a 5.5 lb lenovo tablet for the last 4 years. While I enjoy the handwriting recognition, I would give it up (depending on how good the iPad typing is on the screen) for the iPad in a minute.
    I travel a lot, this thing make sense. The bookstore and e-reader built into the device are huge pluses!

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  57. What do I think? I think your job is in danger – Patrick is good 😉 Personally, I'll be buying an iPad on day 1 – Can't wait to optimize our service for it and build new functionality for it.

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  58. Exactly what my son said. To me it seems more like a concept than a finished product. It has to have text books, without a doubt. It has to be able to use flash. It has to recognize handwriting for note taking. Until it does that, it is a toy that is nice looking but not even as good as my iPhone (which I absolutely love).

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  59. Chad, who is this 90% of America? I know a few classes of people that aren't tech saavy:1) Those who don't like technology. Never had them.2) Those who use tech at work and have a laptop for work. Now they need a second device that really does no more than the device they have to have for work?3) Those that have a laptop that the family uses. This is often the laptop for paying bills, writing reports, doing Quicken, etc… Not sure if the tablet is going to be a better device for them.4) Single people who occassionally use the computer to check email and maybe use the web for Facebook. These people will probably benefit — but I think they're more like the 10% case. The problem here though is these people are probably the ones who least want to use a touch keyboard (although they'd be happy to be rid of the mouse/touchpad).To me this device is for Apple technophiles. There's enough out there to make the first batch look like a success.

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  60. I do hope Microsoft does release the Courier. I think the biggets drawback with the iPad is size. Can't see myself walking around with it.

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  61. I do hope Microsoft does release the Courier. I think the biggets drawback with the iPad is size. Can't see myself walking around with it.

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  62. Your son is wrong, but his reaction is not surprising. I think, rather as with the iPod, it takes hands on use to help people understand the sheer intimacy of the UX with this device. In the promo video, it is clear that this is going to become the most 'personal' computer to date. I believe that this will be the true 'computer for the rest of us', i.e. the remaining billions of computer-phobes and avoiders, and of course everyone who wants to carry some fun, and light productivity capability with them, everywhere they go.As with the original iPod in early 2001, people took a long time to get it. Once they did get it, the iPod became the indispensable device for 250 million buyers…. and counting. Even the after-market for the iPod is a multi-billion $ industry. I believe you will find the iPad achieves even greater success in less time.Consider the rather poky, clunky, 5GB, monochrome 2001 iPod cost 499 in 2002 $s. That's a lot more in today's money. Now compare its spec with the entry level iPad 16GB wifi, at a 2010 price of ooooh $499. Absolutely astonishing value in features, style and functionality terms.So I think your son is wrong, but so what? It's his opinion. Let him try one for an hour, on his own, and ask him again.As to the twerps like Tamar Weinberg and others, with their self-congratulatory, derogatory comments about another great innovation from America's greatest exemplar of success and user-centricity …… I know just where the 'lame' adjective should be applied.This is an amazing, deeply personal device. As a UI designer, I recognise what it will mean to the billions who never felt comfortable with a computer. Most of all, it will come to be seen as the first computer that combines genuine, off-the-office-treadmill, human-scale productivity while also being great fun to use. This was a brave thing for Apple to do. A huge commercial risk, in fact. I think users and AAPL shareholders alike will find great merit in it.Don't judge it until you have real, personal, experience with it. In an adult that is plain dumb.To the adults here who dismiss it, sight unseen I say, shame on you. Your snarky comments speak volumes about your own personal failings, your risk-cowardice, your easy terminal-cynicism as a first response to everything, your jaded views, low self-worth etc etc. 'fess up now. You know it's true, else why do you advertise your shameless lack of integrity by commenting on something you have never seen or used? Says a whole lot about you. Don't you know that? Eeeesh!As for your son, his response was honest, if not informed by hands-on knowledge. I have a similar experience to relate. In 2001, I bought my teenage daughter that first iPod. A week later she gave it back saying 'thanks dad, but no thanks.' Today she has an iPod Classic and an iPod Touch. It was the tidal wave of interest that followed in 2002, 3, 4 etc that made her a fan.Every honest adult who consumes media, must acknowledge that Apple is their only champion for value. It is changing grasping industry after grasping industry to secure deals for its customers that put them firmly in charge of what they buy and how much they pay for it. In phone deals, in music, movies, tv shows, books, magazines, newspapers etc. IPad is but the first-gen example of the device that puts so much power into the hands of the consumer. And so many of you somehow failed to understand this? Ouch! Get aware guys. I'm giving you pearls here.*Embrace the iPad.*It'll make you Prrroouudddd!* (Especially if you are American)This rant was inspired by Al Pacino's performance in Scent of a woman. (*with acknowledgments to Bo Goldman)It's meant to be FUN schtoopid! Hooo. Ahhhh!

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  63. Maybe. But if my mom can't play Mahjongg and my dad can't watch Youtube, they'll never buy it. And there won't be an app for everything. They're the prototypical casual Internet users. This will be another niche device that gets very popular in certain groups but doesn't take over the world.-Erica

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  64. Whats sad is that even as wholly flawed as this iPad offering is, it will blow Microsoft Tablet PC efforts out of water, as it has the consumer cool factor, ease-of-use and ready infrastructure, and thousands upon thousands of third parties.Tablet OSX would have been ideal, but then that would start at $1500 upwards, so they had to knee-cap it to bring it into the consumer reasonable range. Here's what they should have done, Tablet OSX, new UI, preferred-supplier OEMs (3 or so) as to scale it to the economic reasonable. of course that business plan is something the transhumanist-worshipping San Fran smuggy elite cultic Appleites never seem to understand.I don't see the netbook market dying, next gen here, and with 2 or the rarer 4 gig chips, can make it scream for most people, slow maybe if you are insane and try to render video or heavy graphics stuff, but then it has a full OS, you can actually work with it, and costs are half of what iPad does.The mood from even the Apple Cult is mixed….not AppleTV-level cold, but pretty close. iFail for sure, but it won't be Microsoft-fail levels either.

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  65. As for textbooks, some publishers put theirs online and students log in to use it from home. So, the heavy physical textbook stays in the locker for use in the classroom. The online version is used to do homework. Touch netbooks would be great to replace the paper textbook altogether.

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  66. My thirteen year-old nephew was dancing around the house yesterday, in anticipation of getting his own iPad. (He didn't even know Apple was announcing anything new.) It's exactly what he wants in a day-to-day computer… it does what it's supposed to do, at a speedy clip. on a big-enough screen, with the same touch interface that he's accustomed to with his iPod. And unless he jailbreaks it, he can't really screw it up the way he routinely does his Windows PC.Yeah, he's still gonna need that old laptop when he wants to do heavy video editing, but that makes up about 10% of his total computer usage. The kid practically lives on Youtube and various social networking sites, and there will be no better way for him to access that stuff than the iPad anytime soon.I'm seriously not kidding, by the way. He was DANCING WITH EXCITEMENT.

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    1. “The kid practically lives on Youtube”???

      Isn’t he going to be disappointed when his shiny new gadget doesn’t support Flash?

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  67. Just want to point out that YouTube already has a dedicated iPhone OS app, and they've started an HTML5 beta which doesn't use Flash at all. I agree though, that the apps are absolutely what will make or break the iPad, more than even the iPhone or iPod Touch. I don't think it'll take over the world, but I do think it's got more to it than a lot of people are saying.Also, I'm willing to bet playing Mahjongg in a well made app would be a much better experience than with a mouse. Of course, the key is again the app.

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  68. Yeah, I figured someone would say that. The thing is that you can't go to Youtube.com and view videos. If someone sends you a Youtube link, it probably won't work. Forcing a change of user behavior=FAIL. Also, I haven't used the app on the iP*, but the Youtube app for my phone is clunky and doesn't work well. Not a great user experience.-Erica

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  69. Yeah, I figured someone would say that. The thing is that you can't go to Youtube.com and view videos. If someone sends you a Youtube link, it probably won't work. Forcing a change of user behavior=FAIL. Also, I haven't used the app on the iP*, but the Youtube app for my phone is clunky and doesn't work well. Not a great user experience.-Erica

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  70. When you go to youtube.com (it redirects to the mobile version) or a site with a YouTube video embedded using Safari in iPhone OS, clicking on a specific video opens the YouTube app player, then sends you back to the browser. Links to youtube.com in Mail send you straight to that video in the YouTube app. (The YouTube app on the iPhone OS is pretty well done, often easier to use than the main site as it's lacking the clutter.)

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  71. When you go to youtube.com (it redirects to the mobile version) or a site with a YouTube video embedded using Safari in iPhone OS, clicking on a specific video opens the YouTube app player, then sends you back to the browser. Links to youtube.com in Mail send you straight to that video in the YouTube app. (The YouTube app on the iPhone OS is pretty well done, often easier to use than the main site as it's lacking the clutter.)

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  72. Oh, you've got a wise young man there! Pretty smart for his age. iPad may not have met the expectations of the younger generation but don't you think this gadget may work just fine for the elderly? Maybe, let's just wait and see until its release.

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  73. It's been a while since a YouTube video doesn't work on my iPhone and I watch a TON of video. I really don't think that's as big a deal as you might thing. I remember when Firefox came out and tons of websites didn't work with it. Now that isn't a problem at all anymore. The same will be true here.

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  74. I think your son, who already has a laptop and so on, is not the best target for this tool. Moms and pops and those who don't have laptops and whose dads aren't tech gurus are a large market.

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  75. Patrick's a natural, hope he continues doing tech review stuff.iPad doesn't sound bad, it just doesn't change anything. I was inspired though by watching the video. We need something revolutionary in the computing industry. Writing up a post tomorrow on a revolutionary computer that is converging on invisible, it will use state of the art gesture, neural interface, and a projector (glasses or a wall). Think of a light headset with a pocket device like an iPhone. Now if I can find someone to build a prototype I'm in business ;)I'd rather save money for a new “phone” once the 4G network spreads out more. Here's to hoping I can share a 4G plan between my desktop/smartphone/other devices.

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  76. Never used an iPhone, I see. Flash is unnecessary with Youtube, Vimeo, and Dailymotion, and over the next year, the same will be said for all the other video sharing sites. FLV is dead, and everyone is moving to h.264, which the iPhone/iPod/iPad can play just fine.So no, he won't be disappointed at all.

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  77. wow. this is so much better than that droid post. very real world. i think u will be right on this one.

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  78. I think your son sounds like a 16 year old that no one would take seriously if not for his name. But hey, nepotism isn't against the law.Most 16 year olds don't have a macbook and an iphone. The iPad is going to sell like hotcakes. Make sure you reinterview your son when he's proven wrong. Part of growing up is realizing you never had a clue.

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  79. I have a macbook. I have an iphone. I have a windows laptop. I have a bunch of linux and freebsd boxes too. I’m still considering it, mainly because I do spend an awful lot of time staring surfing the web, listening to music, and watching youtube videos. The larger form factor is somewhat compelling for those, as well as for ebook reading.

    If your already have a macbook and an iphone, you probably don’t find netbooks very compelling either. Yet, netbooks have been selling incredibly well, even though to a first approximation, they aren’t particularly good at any of those tasks.

    I’ve seen a lot of geeks talk about how the device is a disappointment. We heard the same thing when the iPhone came out. Yet, Apple has sold 40+ million iPhones to date. There is something that people see in the combination of features that perhaps the average geek pundits aren’t seeing.

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  80. A point…in schools we are moving to the cloud with less and less reliance on the “school's network”. Many schools are becoming Google Apps for Education schools and using the Google Apps for their work and collaboration. I see the iPad as a realistic tool in a 1-to-1 initiative for students. We still need computers that are “blinged out” for the multimedia production and processor-intensive applications, but this will be a player in the K-12 market, IMHO.

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  81. I beg to differ. The print media industry will forever be changed because of iPad. It will deliver us the future of hyperlinked newspapers and magazines and revitalize a dying industry. Remember, Apple is always thinking in the future. Sometime real soon many people on this board dissing the iPad will be wondering how they ever lived without it.

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  82. hmmm… While I agree with your son being of the same Gen as him, I just don’t think the iPad is targeted at the Gen Y Hip-and-savy crowd.. I’m not rly sure what mkt it is targeting right now, but I think it’s the business/baby boomers crowd (large font, lots of business files to read, practical apps enlarged etc.) + the die-hard Mac device fans and/or book lovers. Somehow I’ve always felt the iPhone was a perfect device except it wasn’t really good for reading ebooks/large files nor was it appealing for ppl with bad eyesight. But I’m still not rly sure what Apple’s game plan is.

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  83. Handwriting recognition? Why would you want to use a stylus to write on this thing? Why not just use paper and a pen for that?

    I don’t think the gaming purpose of the iPad was to replace a gaming console, but rather to offer the App Store’s offerings on a device with a bigger screen and more powerful processor.

    You will eat your words about this not being a game changer. The iPad will change the way we look at ultraportable computing, especially for casual users with a need for something more portable. I think it will also push the iWork suite into the mainstream, since I doubt Apple will allow Microsoft to release an iPad version of Office.

    For my views on the iPad, check out my blog at http://insidemikesmind.wordpress.com

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  84. Excellent thoughts.Although I believe that 2. – 5. will be cured by time/ new versions. 1. is the crucial one! Why?There will not be enough room for a smartphone, a tablet, and a laptop side by side as shown in Steve Jobs' introduction. What is going to stay then? Definitely the smartphone. We need to talk to each other over a distance! How about tablet versus laptop?My feeling is those two devices have to converge into one – a tablet to-go with proper monitor and keyboard connectivity for office/ home.Which somehow brings us back to the early 00's PC tablets. Only better. We'll see 🙂

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  85. You guys are killing me!!! Chill with all of this left brain thinking and pointing out all of the things that iPad doesn't have or do. If you are a real tech geek, you should buy one when it first hits the streets. Why? The killer-app or killer-use hasn't even been thought of yet. It is going to come from those who have the device in there hands and actively seek ing out creative ways to utilize it. I bet within 3 years the iPad will be use in ways that will have you saying “I never ever would have thought that the iPad would have been used to _________” . Buy one, start using your right brain, and fill in the blank. Techville will thanks you.

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  86. It's compelling enough to be a very good ereader and put other ereaders out of business. You can better resolution, color and functionality. You can't view graphics and diagramsn like charts well on the the Kindle. You can use the Kindle in the dark like in your bedroom before you go to bed. Plus with the iPad you can watch movies and use one of the tons of appstore application. It's a very good ereader but not meant to replace your laptop/netbook/notebook.

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  87. “6. It isn’t game changing like the iPhone was.”iPhone doesn't do 1 through 5 either. I am curious to know what was about the iPhone that he considered game changing?

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  88. Excuse me? It totally changed the game. Finally gave us a mobile device that made the web/internet usable on. Every cell phone company is STILL being disrupted by the iPhone, even three years later!

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  89. I disagree with this:”I believe that this will be the true 'computer for the rest of us', i.e. the remaining billions of computer-phobes and avoiders, and of course everyone who wants to carry some fun, and light productivity capability with them, everywhere they go.”The iPad's design requires that it be used with an existing computer. So it can never become a main computer.However, I think it seems what people are really debating is what a tablet really is. Should it run a desktop OS and function as a touchscreen notebook with, or should it run a specialized touch OS?To answer this, you would have to ask yourself a basic question. If it should run a desktop OS, then how will it handle all the existing apps written for a desktop OS? Most of them will be either unusable or a pain to use. How do you play games that require a keyboard? How do you use a spreadsheet? Producer of such a tablet would have to rely on existing desktop application makers to modify their interface to work with a tablet. The only viable choice for OS would be Windows 7, and most developer don't want to risk writing code for a platform that seems to be somewhat up in the air – the touch interface on Windows 7 isn't exactly like a finished product.Apple is placing its bets on the specialized touch OS. For three reasons. The first is it can count on apps written specifically to take advantage of it, and thus such apps will provide a superior user experience. The second is that it already has a specialized touch OS supported by thousands of developers who have created over 140,000 applications for the platform. The third is that there are over a 50 million users already familiar with Apple's iPhone interface. So yes the iPad is supposed to be a large iPod touch. That is what Apple is betting the tablet is. Google is also betting along the same lines, but they even allow less functionality. Chrome OS is supposed to be just a browser running Linux. When you consider the form factor, the weight, and the battery capacity of tablets, you realize that Win 7 with a touch interface slapped on top intended to run all existing desktop apps is not the way to go. Besides, there is nothing wrong with a large iPod touch. The iPod touch is actually a miniature tablet which because of its small screen does not lend itself to many tasks. I think a lot of people will change their minds once they see, in three to six months, the sort of apps will be developed for the iPad. There will be a lot of professional and business apps. According to Amazon the Kindle is doing extremely well. Yet in a couple of months you will be able to buy a device that costs only $10 more that the Kindle DX but does a whole lot more.

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  90. “I doubt Apple will allow Microsoft to release an iPad version of Office.”You are joking? Apple would love Microsoft to release an iPad version of Office. Last time they were so keen, they signed Apple's intellectual property rights away. The reason Apple developed iWork in the first place is because Microsoft was dragging its foot releasing crippled version of Office for the Mac, and Apple needed a decent reliable source for such productivity software (in fact, that was the reason they brought or bought so much application development in-house.)

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  91. That was a rhetorical question. However, to me, it was actually a device that made all the features of a mobile phone intuitive, usable and accessible. The web browsing is great too, for a smartphone.The tablet, however, is a big deal to me. iPad is not meant replace a laptop or a desktop, as so many here and elsewhere are suggesting, so that their mother or grandmother can overcome her fear of computers. It is meant to be a large iPod Touch and will require a computer (Mac or PC). You can disagree with Apple as to the proper definition of a tablet. But Apple sure has plenty of support and infrastructure behind it to make it a success as a consumer device as well as a business device.

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  92. $200 will get you just that: “2 GB of RAM and 2 Genuine Intel x86 cores.”No screen, no battery, nothing else. I wish to win the lottery 80 times and become a billionaire.As for Microsoft partnering with Novel/SUSE to make it a horse race, they can just buy them since Novel still bears the scar of the knife in its back. And the only viable partners with Intel/Moblin would be hardware makers. Microsoft cannot make a dime off of Moblin or SUSE anyway.

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  93. Well you can play all of that. To be polemic: flash is dead (long live !flash but Adobe and all their investment in SVG or other stuff — their player sucks on apple products so they get punished).Remove flash video players (is happening), and remove conceited flash site design (menus, photo overlays and other stuff JQuery does better) and you lose 90% of flash on the web. The other 10% are games which granted can not yet be replaced by HTML5 but it's close!Those 10% are largely and happily replaced by my kids on the OS X Mobile platform by something (gah, dozens) of games from iTunes.Everything is amazing and everyone here is bitching and moaning.

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  94. I'm finding your premise to be untrue. I even use ClickToFlash (a flash blocker for Safari) and load the actual video file on YouTube pages.Guess what?! My laptop doesn't start it's engines for take off. It just plays it and everything is grand.

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  95. I don't want to hold up a device this large to take a photo. I will always carry a pocket camera be it on my phone or otherwise. Video conferencing (ahem, goofing on PhotoBooth) or other video calling is the better use of a camera on this type of device.It has HD video capabilities. The screen can't be 16:9 … that's weird for other media. This is a compromise.I will not wait for more background processes (really all I want is for the streaming apps, Pandora, Public Radio, etc to still play while I do other stuff)Printing would be nice but actually I rarely print.I'm all in, might buy 2.

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  96. My 9 yr old will go nuts over this – he loves the hand me down holiday gift of a 1st gen iPod touch. I will love the iPad. All I do for news consumption is read (or watch some news shows) on my laptop and you know what? It stinks b/c of the form factor but I've put up with it for years b/c the medium (internet) is the better way to consume news and media.The iPad changes all of this and is for sneezers like me who consume and create massive amounts of stuff online (no, it won't take photos but it will upload them!). It's actually dare I say, perfect.

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  97. not really…as a college student, I'll have to disagree:1. Firstly, spoiled is all I can say. I have neither. Second, its smaller than a laptop thus could fit in my single bag without the need of lugging around a laptop/carry case.2. Handwritting recognition still wouldn't replace my (nor anyone-I-know's) paper notebook. Plus, “there's an app for that” and the accessories to do it. And you can bet that's the first app developers are itching to make for it sue to the demand.3. There's a thing called the internet, your son needs to look past the iBooks store. I'm not sure about the highschool level, but I can get electronic versions of all my texts online. Not to mention the free/illegal textbook scene is surprisingly huge.4. Agreed somewhat. The iPhone is not a real gaming device though. The psp/ds would win there. Its good enough to pass some time. (Its sad that “real” games are more than just time passers)5. Agreed. Adobe better pump out mobile flash soon or HTML5 will just steamroll in.6. People bitched about the iPhone on launch day too.Its not a laptop/computer replacement. Its a reader and media device with productivity abilities.

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  98. The game changing aspect of the iPad is probably not as exciting as what the iphone was but it is game changing for one reason, Books. The iPad's man function (I think) is to take on one more media source. Apple has cracked into music, movies, gaming, apps (which they created) and soon the digital book. The expression, “you can't out Amazon, Amazon” might have to change. The kindle wasn't cutting it but the iPad certainly will. How amazing would it be to have the 1,000 of books you own all in your computer? Freakin' killer! Of course loaning them out would be challenging. =)

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  99. Think of what developers will do with it.Think of what Adobe, EA and Smule (guys who made Ocarina) will do with it.Imagine playing a Star Trek game where you do just wave your hands over it like in the Star Trek movies.Imagine the new musical instruments that will be created.And that's just the tip of the iceberg.

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  100. In the span of no time the deluded Scoble goes from insisting that iPad is going to change the game to practically betting on its failure, partly at least based on his douchey 16 year old kid's opinion. Kids that age should be seen and not heard Scoble. You're the same idiot who insisted that the kindle was a fail 2+ years ago, and it's sold bajillions of copies. You are an infantile idiot. Next time you get excited about some new gadgetry, how about you whip out your crank, stroke it, calm down, and think before you breathlessly peck out your next piece of sycophantic nonsense.

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  101. More accurately the Kindle has sold 3 million copies. The iPhone and iTouch have sold a combined 75 million copies in about the same amount of time. And I do not believe the iPad will be a failure, you have me confused with my son. I thought his point of view is interesting and based on the reaction here, both from supporters and haters I'd say I was right.

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  102. I think you and your son are on the money with iPad (What a ridicules name). There simply is no compelling reason to spend $500 on this gadget. I have never understood why anyone would buy the first version of any gadget – there are always things that will be improved in versions to come.I work with and use Mac computers, as well as Windows. That doesn't mean I have to fall in love with the company and buy everything they make. I may get killed for this, but even Apple can screw up once in a while.

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  103. The iPad will not revitalize the newspaper/magazine industry because they still rely on the pay for content model. The internet, especially the blogosphere, has forever eliminated the pay for content paradigm when it comes to news media. The newspaper industry is still going to be relegated to specialized content providers, like finance news, tech news, etc. and the market will be extremely small. This is a last ditch effort to save themselves and it will fail.

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  104. HTML5 is still 5-10 years out according the the W3C's own timeline. Flash/Silverlight/JavaFX are here now, are far more flexible for developers than HTML5 and are still evolving technologies. They offer better experiences now than anything HTML5 can offer in the future as spec'ed currently. They also have better all around performance, if not the same video delivery performance (Silverlight is great in this aspect).I for one am completely against standards, even “open” ones that are designed through collusive efforts of major companies all belonging to a single standards body. I much rather see “standards” like Flash and Silverlight, where the companies are still trying to best each other, which is what really drives innovation and creativity. Once they all get together and agree on a standard, you have languishing innovation and stale creativity.Usually the best website experiences are the ones currently using proprietary tech. HTML standardized the web, but it took Flash to make it appealing. JavaFX and Silverlight only add options, they do not detract from the experience. Only those that seek to control and limit the web seek standards.

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  105. Because the Kindle uses eInk, which is an expensive technology, and doesn't hurt your eyes like hell to read on it, unlike reading on a glossy IPS LCD color display.The iPad will be terrible as a serious reading session device. I think the Kindle will come down in price because of this, but it definitely is the better e-reader.

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  106. Give me a break, I have a Kindle too, but I use glossy LCD displays to read about 10x longer every day than I've ever used a Kindle and my eyes don't hurt. Most of the world uses LCDs all day long and most don't complain. This argument just does not ring true. That tech, by the way, DOES have some advantages over LCDs: they use very little power, which makes battery life very long and they can be used in direct sunlight, which LCDs can't be. But give the “eyestrain” argument a break, it doesn't stand up to scrutiny.

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  107. I work at a software development firm. The number one complaint amongst everyone there is eye fatigue/strain. We all stare at LCD's 8-12 hours a day. Take this complaint and replicate it amongst many professions that actually stare at LCD monitors all day and you will see that it very much stands up to scrutiny.And yes, thank you for pointing out the other benefits of eInk that I forgot to mention. On that note, Notion Ink's Adam does everything the iPad can do as well as multitask and has a full featured OS with no app store lock in. It can play every standard media file format and has a no limit internet browsing experience, meaning Flash, etc. It also uses the Pixel Qi display that sort of emulates eInk and can be viewed in direct sunlight!CES this year revealed a plethora of very promising tablets.Notion Ink Adam, Asus eee product line, Acer xx20pt/ptz product line, HP Slate, Archos 5/7/9 and some othersMicrosoft also has the Courier/Codex project in the works, which is looking to be my anticipated purchase if the specs are to be believed.

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  108. @ScobleizerAll his points regarding the iPad are valid. However, there is a market for “netbooks” that aren't driven by Windows. Would have liked to see a camera, I can see how that would be useful for bloggers on the go that would like to introduce photos into their posts live, the larger screen would afford more editing ability.Definitely see where there would be times, especially while traveling that one would be handy. I have a Nexus One and am now more apt to leave my MacBook at home but an iPad would be a welcome addition.

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  109. You are incorrect sir. It's good to have open standards.Facebook is not built on proprietary standards, not Google, not MySpace. Flash served and still serves a purpose but frankly 90% of that purpose has faded. Video files do not require a proprietary plugin to view them, period. You can just play the video file and this would be all the more true if it weren't in certain “free market” corporations interest to keep them locked away.Menus, graphic overlays, splashy crap by conceited designers that do nothing to enrich the web experience can all be done in HTML5 today, right now, it's a new public standard.Check out this link in Chrome, Safari4, or maybe even Firefox: http://9elements.com/io/projects/html5/canvas/There's no proprietary plugin magic, just open code.Sorry, you are right about free markets but wrong about this and the internet. The internet flourished not because it was locked in someone's closet but because it was free.Don't fight the internet.

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  110. So you’re paying close to a $100 a month so your son can have an iPhone. Seriously man?

    What does a 16-year old need an iPhone for? Does a sixteen year old need that much internet access? Especially with wifi being all over the place?

    And the device is poorly thought out, but it hasn’t stopped the sale of the iPhone with its lack of features.

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  111. I'd have to disagree. Without multitasking, what good is it?I'd like to listen to music and chat with my friends while browsing the internet or watching videos (non-flash ones obviously). Is there even a good chat app??This might be fine for parents who can only do one thing at a time. 😀

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    1. Like the iPhone/iPod, the iPad can play music and browse the web at the same time. The iPod app can run in the background. Beyond that, you’d be surprised how little most people multitask.

      And there are lots of chat apps for the iPhone, so they’ll work on the iPad, and I’m sure they’ll be updated for the larger iPad screen too.

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    2. I don’t get the argument about multi-tasking. Let’s take your use case. You go into Apple’s iPod app and start playing music. You switch to the chat app to say hi to your friends. The music keeps playing. You switch to the web browser to view a page, or a video (which would stomp all over the audio from the music player – I think in that case the music stops while the video runs, but I’d have to test it). You switch back to the chat and chat some more. Etc. Just what exactly is gained by having the browser and chat running at the same time as processes? You can’t interact with both at once, and application switching is so fast as to provide similar context switching times to just going to another already-open window: your brain is the limitation here, because it takes time to refocus. So what exactly have you gained by multi-tasking? By not multi-tasking, you’ve gained simplicity and battery life. That seems more worthwhile than a checkbox that the device multi-tasks always and everywhere.

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  112. I like the look of those, but what I really love about the iPhone/iPod Touch/iPad is how solid and well built it feels. To put a real OS on it would be my perfect tablet, but one can only dream. I am strictly a windows user, but I think I would have ventured outwards to Mac OS if that's where this was going.

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  113. I think Steve Jobs is an aging baby boomer. I think he said he thinks this is the best thing he's ever done. I think he's not aiming at 16 year olds with this.My parents are aging baby boomers. They interact with web services as their main Internet usage, most of which are better accessed through simple app-interfaces, as in via an iPhone. But their aging baby boomer eyes and fingers find the iPhone too fiddly and small.I think for these folks the iPad is a bucket-load of win.

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  114. “…even Apple can screw up once in a while.”How can you say this when the device hasn't even come to market yet? Like Scobleizer 2.0, it doesn't fit your needs or even wants, so you write it off as failure.For the first 24 hours I didn't want one. But every day just about I think of a new use for an iPad for me. And that's despite my iPhone or MacBook doing a similar thing (e.g use to show my portfolio). So I can't wait! It's about the best tool for the job, and the iPad is going to be the best in for a lot of things.Touch will define this decade. (In the 80s it was the PC; in the 90s, Windows; in the noughties it was the Internet.)Like Scoble said before it's release, the iPad will change the way we use computers, and what we expect of them.

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  115. I'm not challenging your manhood, just stating an opinion. And as far as I know iPad is available and was when I wrote this. I stand by what I said. All of it.

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  116. I totally agree with this kid. For me the iPad is like a surprise gift to people. You'll get surprise, you buy it and later on you'll realize that it's not worth the buy. This is kid could be a tech critic. LOL. Nice.

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  117. I think just about everyone's reaction initally was a bit of a let-down, but many after thinking about it, and seeing what developers are saying, are really excited about it. Initially I couldn't care, but now I want to be first in line.Now that Patrick's had a week to consider the possibilities, does he still think “iFail”, Robert?

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  118. Your kid wants this (as do I): http://www.ted.com/talks/pranav_mistry_the_thri… My Mac guy says its a computer built (with the touch screen action, easy browsing and easy seeing) for our parents. I think he's right. I love mac and have several, but agree that they need to bring out the big guns…stop saving stuff…I know they have it!

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