Apple launches iPad tablet
Apple iPad tablet sports a new Apple A4 1GHz chipset, with optional 3G and a 9.7 inch touch screen.
Rather than boring you with our own opinions on the iPad, we'll keep things simple and just post the essential details first and let you all discuss it in the forums.
Apple iPad
- Apple A4 1GHz chipset
- 9.7in LED backlit 1024 x 768 pixel, multi-touch capacitive display, oleophobic coating
- Optional 3G
- 802.11n WiFi, Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR, GPS
- 16GB, 32GB and 64GB capacities
- "Up to" 10 hours battery life, one month on standby
- Accelerometer, digital compass, speaker, mic, dock connector, 3.5mm jack
- 242.8 x 189.7 x 13.4mm
- 680g (WiFi) or 730g (WiFi and 3G)
3G contracts will be available on AT&T in the US, with $14.99 for 250MB and $29.99 for unlimited data per month as the only options - with the prices much irking current iPhone users.
The iPad itself doesn't come with much in the way of accessories, so expect a keyboard dock, carry case, SD card reader and mains adapter to cost extra. The iPad doesn't have a USB, HDMI or Ethernet port, the battery is un-removable and the iPad still doesn't support Adobe Flash. The resolution is clamped at 1024x768, which isn't video-widescreen friendly and there's no built in camera.
Other big issues for users will be the only token codec support (AAC and MP3) and the fact the eBook's Apple have announced all use a proprietary iBook format. The software still doesn't support multi-tasking either, though it will support most iPhone games and software will be organised on an App basis - making the iPad more of a built-up iPod Touch than a streamline Mac.
Our opinion? iPad = iMeh. Let us know your thoughts in the forums, where discussion is already rife.
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Discuss in the forums Reply1. No Flash support
2. Nothing spectacular about the gaming aspect
3. Everything my iPhone can do, but with a smaller screen
Somewhat interested with:
1. HD video, demoed as being smooth
2. Nice UI, but would I need to interact with the iPad if there's nothing on it?
16GB: ~USD $800
32GB: ~USD $1000
64GB: ~USD $1200
.. and it will be overpriced because of it!
I'm going to go home and play Perfect Dark on N64 and enjoy better graphics.
That was the highlight of the launch for me.
I actually laughed.
And WTF is up with that bezel?
Good design - it looks really neat imo, very swish. Even if it is a big iPhone, it still looks quite good.
Too pricey, even for Apple - considering it's not that much cheaper for the base model than a full-fat MacBook.
iPhone-style OS could be a big mistake - if it's too inhibited then it'll be crucially lacking in user satisfaction.
Final thoughts - the ball is in MS' court to come good with the foldy thing.
Well said. I'll wait for an impartial review from someone who is neither pro, or anti, Apple.
As usual with all Apple products though, overpriced.
Gief me multitasking (for spotify) and i'll buy it. The design looks brilliant imo, finally non pay-as-you-go
non contract mobile interwebnets <3. If i can get the 32gb with 3g for £600 then i'd quite happily get it.
Edit: http://www.blogcdn.com/www.engadget.com/media/2010/01/apple-creation-0378-rm-eng.jpg
Contractless 3G is a good thing, but how do you pay for it? It is a lifetime free thing?
[edit] Ooh, different prices than the first news report I read; it's actually not too bad at $500 for the 16GB/WiFi.
the tablet version of the asus eee is much better IMHO, much cheaper too.
I have a Macbook Pro and a Windows machine, but I mostly run Linux. I love my Mac for what it does with Logic Pro and Aperture... But for 500$ this really isn't worth it especially since it's just 16GB with Wifi... Here's the quote up.
http://www.blogcdn.com/www.engadget.com/media/2010/01/apple-creation-0378-rm-eng.jpg
So if you want the useful part of it, you're shelling out quite a bit IMO... If it was $500 with 3G I'd say it was a solid investment.
Oh no, I wasn't saying you were pro or anti Apple. I just meant I'd like to see a full review, rather then the CEO who's touting it as the best tablets since the 10 commandments.
Sadly, it isn't April 1st.
I know, I was just stating facts for those who might be on the defensive/offensive - inevitable with anything new from Apple tbh.
Indeed, rabid fanboys on all sides. :)
The only thing ticking me off is the lack of multitasking, and the fact that this still needs to be synced - it's not a standalone device, like a netbook (although it's nearly there).
Really it should have a front facing camera would be VERY useful on a device like this (skype etc).
Do they ever..? :|
The PC versions of Tablets are clunky. They weigh about 4lbs, have a 2 to 6 hour battery life (depending on expansion battery and the additional 1lbs of weight that brings) and run on Windows; this means that unless you use Standby, there is no instant-on, instant-off. In fact, even with Standby it can take a few seconds to get its act together.
The Windows GUI is not really designed for touch screens. You certainly cannot reasonably poke at it with your finger, so most Tablet PCs use a pen, with a button for right-mouse click. Screen flip/orientation tends to be lumberingly slow as there is no efficient graphics acceleration. Forget about playing games --my Tablet (a Motion Computing LE1600, which five years ago was absolutely the best money could buy, and now still is a top spec device) overheats when it tries and it drains the battery at an alarming rate. It has a 30Gb mechanical drive which makes it kind of vulnerable to drops.
On the upside, you do have a full PC at your disposal: an Office suite, Outlook, PDF, Flash, video (but not too much, else it overheats again), audio with stereo speakers and microphones. Mine also has a fingerprint scanner, bluetooth and Wifi and USB ports as well as VGA and DVI (the LE1700 also has 3G). Which is nice. Screen is toughened, anti-glare and can be read in full-on sunshine. The case is glass-reinforced plastic over a magnesium frame. Sturdy. The price for such quality? £1200,-- to £1800,--, depending on spec.
An honourable mention goes to the HP TC1100 (slower processor, thicker, clunkier, shorter battery life and not quite such a nice screen or tough case) which cost £1000,-- to £1200,-- in its day.
So what's wrong? What is wrong is that the Tablet PC is too heavy, too short on juice, too slow to start up and shut down and needs a pen to work; the GUI is not really adapted to touch-screen input. Media applications suck juice and tax the CPU. Drives should be solid-state, not mechanical. And compared to the iPad, it comes at a price that makes your eyes water.
Since then we've seen some larger media players like the Archos which does media well but nothing else, some netbooks with cramped screens and even more cramped keyboards (I mean, who are you kidding?), convertible laptops which try to be a bit of both but bring the worst properties of either (heavier, thicker, fragile screen hinge, more expensive than laptops) and some recent tablets like the new DELL concept which is so small it might as well be an iPhone or the JooJoo tablet (formerly known as the CrunchPad) which everybody thinks is so great that they don't notice that it is just a slightly less-polished Apple iPad.
I mean, come on. The iPad is just a logical evolution. Apple invented a GUI that simply works on a small touch screen (iPhone) and with a small, low-power mobile CPU so why not port it to a bigger touch-screen device (and yes, Apple invented it. Don't point to other smartphones; don't point to the PalmPilot or Windows Mobile PDA. Look at the Apple Newton. It was there first)? It would simply be repeating Microsoft's mistake to port a full-blown OS(X) to a mobile device.
The only other thing I would want from an iPad is a PDF reader and Office suite of some sort. A webcam and microphone would have been nice for Skyping. Perhaps generation 2. But with the right applications it offers some real practicality (media center control, anybody? Portable terminal?) that Tablet PCs have not been able to deliver for years.
I take it you either:
a) have not seen the CES tablets
b) choose to ignore said tablets
While it's true they've created something better than what currently is on the market, the iPad is not on the market itself, and the upcoming tablets from other manufacturers will rapidly outpace it in terms of hardware and software, especially the ones running Android and powered by nVidia's Tegra1/Tegra2 platform.
The one thing Apple still hold the advantage in though, is iTunes, the AppStore, and maybe the Bookstore, which could be enough to tip the scales in Apple's favor, however, it still underlines the fact that Apple's hardware & software are not at the top of their game.
I would imagine so, I'm not staff though so I can't say 100% either way.
IWork(office suite) has been ported and rebuilt with a new gui. You can bet on some kind of media controller.
I probably do sound biased here (tbh i am, but try not to be) but anything you compare it to that will be available this year will just look shoddy.
Edit: There is also a pdf reader
I think its quite pretty but rather useless and far far too pricey.
Oh dear. Looks like what I hoped wouldn't be the case unfortunately is....
Fail Apple.
Stewb is tired of looking at a wall of Apps, and no, adding big gaps between them doesnt make a difference:(
------
And now I realise it has no multitasking as well
EDIT: And don't get me started on the name
Sam
also you've got it wrong - it's the Apple StooPad.
But watching the video reminds me how douche-baggy Apple people are. I seriously wanted to punch my screen when the Software chap came on and said "you are holding the internet"
FFFFFFUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU
Look at the netbook market, that popped up out of nowhere and look at it now. Maybe we'll see the same from the 'new' tablet market.
~£350 (depends on exchange) seems a bit pricey for a wifi-only portable computer, but then again it is an apple product and will therefore have a brilliant build quality.
I can never see me ever needing one of these, the only thing I could see a use for it would be as a lab book. But a pen and paper really does do me fine. Plus a laptop to type things up on the move.
Still imo the iPod is the only apple product I find useful to my day to day life.
If I could get it for the dollar-to-pound conversion, would happily pay for one. Sadly it will problem be $1=£1ish.
Also god knows why they're calling this "the best way to browse the web" with no Flash support. Wonder if Steve knew we'd see the plug-in required sign when he demo'd it.
Another Apple 'solution' looking for a problem.
Over at Mac Rumours this thing is getting slated by about two thirds of the the members and the rest are either on the fence or loving it. They even have a dedicated forum for it now. Looks like there is no flash and a pretty low res.
I was thinking Apple's answer to Netbooks would be an 11 or 12 inch Macbook 'Mini' or Air or something not something that resembles the ******* love child of a Digital Photo Frame and an Etch a Sketch.
Just sitting here reading the coverage for 2hrs (among other things, of course ) reminds me what a headache LCDs can give you. I'm not sure how fantastic IPS LCDs are at curing this, but as an eBook reader (which it seems very competent as) I can't see it winning me over 100%. Was also hoping for some magazines in the iBook store or at least a hint of a Wired app, but alas nothing has been said thus far.
Secondly, and most importantly, it doesn't cut it for me as a lifestyle companion device. As I said in the other thread, I want the Courier badly and iWork isn't enough to convince me that this could allow me to go paperless at work. I need a device I can rely on to start within a couple of seconds and have me scribbling a note down that I can organise later. It might work well when it's your main focus of attention, but not as something that will be a 'bit on the side' for a lot of the time. Essentially, Apple's aversion to the stylus has kinda killed it for me.
:rolleyes"
Since the screen is 1024 x 768 you don't actually get HD quality video :/
iEiUlf9BAYU
The iPad's best features:
I am really dissapoint so far, I love my iPhone, but this looks really poor.
On a related matter, I'd like to see the rest of that video, but can't seem to find it anywhere, anyone got a link?
Edit: Also, can it multi-task? I think that will be a real deal breaker for a lot of people.
Of course you do, might not be 1080 but its still HD.
73% on Macrumours do not want :p
Fixed.
http://www.apple.com/ipad/specs/
support for "H.264 video up to 720p"
Talk about misleading, how about 'plays 720p format but not at its intended resolution, so in all honesty, it can't support 720p'.
Another thing, if the screen is IPS, why did they drop the S-IPS panel, CCFL backlight. SWOP certified Macbook Pro screens and substitute them for rather nasty LED backlit, TN 6 bit panels ?
Apple tends to stick the video online an hour or so after the show...and no, no multitasking.
Engadget confirmed that there's no multitasking.
You quite obviously did not understand the purpose and segment this product falls in to if you compare this with a netbook.
Sorry Dad.
:(
C'mon Nexxo, you are comparing a product that hasn't even been released yet it's so new to a product that is five years old (which is a monumental gulf of time in the tech market) and one you yourself were also ranting and raving about when you had it :p
Stick and SSD and an LCD display on that old tablet you've got and I bet you'd see a remarkable improvement in battery life and time to life from standby. Then there's new processors out, you're tablet is Pentium M if I remember right and intel have made great leaps in performance since the pentium range was axed.
I kind of get what you meant about the OS though, but that is XP tablet edition, and it wasn't really designed with proper tablets like yours solely in mind, it was designed to be used with laptops that also function as tablets too so it needed a full blown OS for when you are using it in laptop mode.
I find the idea of the iPad intriguing, but I'm not sure why you'd need one, it's just seems like one of those products that fills a gap that isn't there. We already have the iphone, which can do most of the stuff the iPad can do and some things it can't, and it's small enough to fit in your pocket so you can carry it everywhere without much problem. Then if you want to do some proper web browsing or work, just take something like an eee along, it's cheaper, and it has a physical keyboard so it's actually decent at writing anything of a length more than 3 sentences.
It's cool, but it's one of those things you buy because it's cool and for about no other reason.
It's not even 720p if we're considering the size of the screen. So even low resolution "HD" isn't outputted at its native resolution.
Kinda shocked about no camera too. Wouldn't Apple love to demo it running full screen iChat or something, looks right up their ally.
Actually, it's not, the iPad is 60-90 days away from launch depending on if you want 3G or not. Android tablets are slated for the first half of 2010, they're coming up real soon.
Correct, though you can run the built-in iPod application in the background.
On the iphone, you could technically run an IM app because push notifications allow you to be notified of the IM app having activity (e.g. your buddy has sent you a message), but you will have to exit your current app to reply. This could be really inconvenient if you were playing a game such as NFS Shift, which takes about a minute to get you back in after going through the introduction video, etc etc.
You can have music from your iPod while surfing the web too, but you can't do something like stream music off an app like last.fm or Pandora while surfing.
This is similar to the iPad, then.
The iPhone OS has limited multitasking, ie: you can listen to music while doing some other things. Third party apps cannot be run in the background at all, which I think is a crippling blow to an already mediocre product. I'll stick with my iPhone thanks.
There is talk of iPhone OS 4 including multitasking, if it does, I'm guessing it would bring multitasking to the iPad as well.
No multitasking is a big no-no -.-'
Honestly, if the price is right, I can really imagine the iPad being handy to have just laying around the living room.
Comedy. Gold.
QFT +rep
Damn it, now I must have one, especially if you can get a comically oversized number pad on the screen
There's an app for that:D.
M_NYWTkR4lQ
I think you have proved his point by saying that. Most users do not see a use for it, you can call them ignorant for not knowing what it is used for. But if you don't know what something is used for without it being explained to you, it has failed.
I like how Apple have pushed the market forward for mp3 players and smart phones by releasing products that forces people to compete, and competition always means progress.
But I can not say I can see any use for this product in my life, no one I know has expressed any interest in a tablet. The ones who aren't techies say something like "What is the point in it? Is it supposed to be a laptop with a keyboard, or a big phone?"
It was the way he put it like 'Son, I am disappointed.....'.
I was thinking the same thing anyway, he proved my point.
/btw. no "real" multitasking sucks,with all this innovation they could at least come up with a tap system for apps :-/
edit: Oh and WTF do I need an adapter for USB?! (or basically anything els)
Or like a Tablet PC doesn't ? Or like something like the HP Slate doesn't ? But this device has not even a quarter of their functionality.
No camera - don't care.
No flash - still not too bothered.
No multitasking - wait WHAT? You have to be kidding, I hope this is eventually patched out in some way.
Biggest let down is "what would I use it for?". I'm not saying there isn't a use for it, but for the mass market (I know it doesn't HAVE to be designed with the mass market in mind) I fail to see appeal (apart from the obvious oohhh look at my shiny).
True, but they still run windows, an OS thats designed with Keyboard and Mouse in mind.
The prob. of most of those devices is that the win input concept doesn't work that well with
touch an gesture based input methods. Anyway I'd still loved to have a similar functionality with the
ipad but with a more touch friendly OS.
I'll just leave this here...
Oh, and the fact that there is no multitasking, uses the iPhone OS, and is unbelievably extortionate for the specs (even if it IS a tablet) makes me think that this will go straight down the pan
+rep
You'd be surprised...
If nothing else, Apple can sure play the PR game to perfection.
it's the ONLY thing they are good at
I wouldn't mind having an iPad at all, especially if the rumours of supporting bluetooth keyboards etc are true like most journos from the hands-on are saying it is. However if I were to buy such a device it would need to be a decent price and I'm not exactly gonna go into it all guns blazing, especially with the payg 3g which I'd rather just fall back on wifi for the most part unless o2 comes out with some epic "second sim for your iPad with unlimited internets for not much money" kinda plan.
Next up would be people's talking about Adobe Flash. Everyone should remember that 60 days is a long time in which to make additions and changes from what we see today, and something that for me gives a big hint that flash may well be on the horizon is the fact that on a website that was visited during a demo there was just the plugin icon where a flash applet would have normally lived.
In relation to the previous point about flash is that we're currently seeing iPhoneOS 3.2 in that iPad according to posters at the hands-on.. Summer is coming, new iPhone WILL be on the horizon and whilst 3.0 is still quite new, Apple hasn't gone a year yet without doing some decent upgrading to the OS, so it is likely we may see more functionality including multitasking in non-native apps.
Next we have pricing, $499 for a 16gb wifi tablet. I think people are losing sight of how much flash memory still costs at the moment and have been spoiled by the fact that the iPod Touch and the iPhone both have what is admittedly a lot of it, for not much money. And comparing a device like this directly to only one other device on the market is pointless. But some lend themselves to it rather well, example one for myself being the Amazon Kindle DX - Currently priced at $489. That's a mere $10 less than the base model iPad.
Just to do a quick comparison of the two based purely on things we can compare.
-The kindle has 4gb flash (3.3gb user accessable) the base iPad has 16gb.
-Kindle has a grayscale e-ink display - iPad has full colour multitouch
-Kindle is soon to be releasing an SDK for some new apps - iPad can already use almost all the apps available plus new ones specifically for the device.
-Kindle has access to the Amazon store only (purchasing books directly) - iPad has access to apple's own store with many of the big publishers PLUS the Amazon Kindle App is already in the app store, and they may well release a iPad version.
-Kindle has 3g for book purchases and limited internet (in america only) - iPad has option of 3g for FULL internet use and other functions PLUS wifi.
I know that might seem a bit one sided but it's a fair point, and if you want to compare it to any other tablet currently on the market, then double the price and weight, half/quarter the battery life and you'll have the ugliest device on earth with an OS which really wasn't designed to utillize a NUI, and just emulating a mouse for any kind of usable functionality.
On the subject of design. I will gladly admit, the iPad looks like Steve Balmer sat on an iPhone. Yet, it still looks not too bad for it, and remember guys, this is the first itteration of the device we're seeing currently, there's plenty of room for change as is there always with apple products.
So to round up, basically I want one, and has now completely halted any ideas I previously had of buying a Kindle (especially with the comparative price), however I would treat the purchase of an iPad in exactly the same way; it's most definitely not necessary for my daily life, it's a luxury product and as such will be one of those things I'll toy with the idea of buying for a long time and finally get when I actually have "spare" money to buy one. And when I do, unless something good happens with the 3G side of things, I'll probably just get the wifi version in whichever size best suits my (future) needs at the time.
Even worse, it still falls into all the predicted problems. IPS is very nice, but it's just not E-ink and that means this will be a mediocre eBook reader at best; in addition, we now have the iBookstore, which presumably means an iTunes-Store-esque lockdown on the book formats you can use and more DRM than you can shake a stick at. Even better, the predicted 'revolution' in user input that was being trumpeted from Engadget towers is just a really big version of the iPhone's keyboard. They can consider my mind totally blown. Did the predicted MacBook upgrades get a word in edgeways? That's a product I can actually see a use for, as opposed to a product that people might want to own for no particular reason.
...And you STILL cannot multitask? iPass.
This man, he speaks the truth. Have you seen the keyboard attachment yet? Portable computing for the win.
Source: http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2009/10/iphone-flash/
tl;dr - iPhone/iPad will never have browser based flash support
The problem is that Tablet PCs haven't really moved on in the last five years. The tech has, but all we've seen so far is a lacklustre prototype at Balmer's presentation, and only in an attempt to pre-empt the iPad. The much more intriguing Microsoft double-screened book-like device remains vapourware.
And yes, CES had some interesting prototypes. But again they were unfinished ideas, and the general response was: "meh...". Fair enough. But now Apple launches theirs, which while being not significantly better certainly isn't worse, and everybody gets with the hatin'.
Meanwhile people are not getting its major strength: the context within it has been lauched. A media/web device with an already established media distribution system and an OS specifically designed for touch screens, streaming audio and video and low power and CPU needs. It is the whole package, all bases covered. This is not just a new gadget; it is another building block in a user infrastructure Apple has been planning, designing and building for over a decade. Unlike with other tablets, we don't have to wait for the applications or compatible infrastructure to come along. It is all already there. It is a finished product. That is what makes Apple successful, not marketing, not the hypey launches.
Now, you fail to realize that the iPad isn't merely being heralded as an ebook reader, but instead as a magical new piece of technology that is so much better at its role than the iPhone/iPod and the Macbooks. Sadly, however, that isn't the case. Truth be told, it lacks dearly when compared to a netbook and your optimistic attitude about the inclusion of Flash in the next 60 days is downright naive. Have you seen Adobe and Apple snuggling up recently? It won't happen and you shouldn't set yourself up for disappointment.
I feel extremely disappointed by the iPad frankly, a more open OS and handwriting support for maths based input and I think Apple would have a tempting device for students.
I think you will find they have,
http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/windows7/products/features/touch
Windows 7 introduces multi-touch, not previously seen, a host of features for touch devices.
Seemingly marketing products with features missing so they can then sell them mk2. and rip them off a second time.
Ta apple!
Okay, I'll skirt over the fact you tried to make an intelligent post using nigh on nothing but sarcasm but here goes.
I was drawing a very simplistic comparison to a piece of technology which is roughly of a same form factor, use and price, - considering we are yet to see the emergence of the all mighty slate/tablets from CES.
Also in no way did I say that this 'magical new piece of technology' is better at any of its many roles than an iPhone or Macbooks, for all we know at this point it may not be, however one thing I know is that nearly every Apple product I've used has been intuitive and does what it's meant to do.
I would be interested in your specific views as to how it lacks in comparison to netbooks, especially considering not only are they completely different platforms and architectures, but you (nor I) have seen any form of benchmarks for the Apple A4 processor so cannot possibly speculate on performance. But to give rise to some validity in your rash claim; which netbook do you speak that has 10hr battery life, ability to play 720p video with a 9inch screen which also happens to be multitouch with the ability to charge from USB.
To address my clearly "optimistic attitude" towards the inclusion of Flash in the final release (or subsequent releases of the OS as I believe I may have said), it was based upon observation, of if you'd have read my post properly before attempting to script a fork-tongue'd rebuttal, of the plugin icon for an applet, which gave rise to my suspicions that it may be in the pipeline. This notwithstanding my evident naïvety to any such developments will remain stedfast.
As for having seen Adobe and Apple 'snuggled' up together, well I can't think of a possible thing besides the fact that Adobe develop primarily for the MacOS platform in addition to Windows, and have quite a constant relationship with one-another... After all Adobe don't make graphical design apps that are the main reason people have always and still do buy Apple's products for such work.... Or do they?
Hope that adequately addressed your concerns towards my obvious impending disappointment.
No, seriously; what are its practical applications?
I would have given it serious consideration if it had the capability of replacing pen and paper for note taking in lectures. Being able to piece together bits of stuff from a digital sourse with hand written notes in a searcheably format would be incredibly useful personally. No chance with current handwriting recognition :(
I agree, if my HTC hd can run googlemaps in the background, have the net open and be calling someone and mid call open a callendar/txt up, I would have thought a ipad could easily do it. Although 1ghz, was kind of hopping for 1.6, I think i'll stick to my phone with it's camera, and more open os. Maybe the ipad 2.0 will be a little better, although I was kind of hopping for something which was more laptop less phone.
I think you might have mistaken my annoyance at the PR job at Apple for your particular interest in the iPad. I relate the quote of a "magical new piece of technology" to that which has been said by Apple in their marketing video (which you can find here: http://www.apple.com/ipad/). The suggestion that the iPad is better than an iPhone or a Macbook is in response to Steve Jobs description of the need for an iPad, as pointed out specifically in his keynote speech - "the iPad needs to be in a class of its own" (sorta what he said).
I can appreciate that the interface is intuitive and my fondness of Apple can be found in the fact that I am a champion of the iPhone since I got the 2G and till now, with my 3GS. Unfortunately, the iPad has been shaped as a device for a whole new category. But what is that category? Let's find out..
Now, performance wise, early videos of the iPad on sites such as Engadget show it as a powerful device capable of smooth transitions within the various applications, so I can't fault you there. And indeed, all those features together are wonderful in that few if any netbooks have a battery life better than 6 hours. My problem with the iPad is that it has the functionality of a large iPod, with applications designed for it that will only be more advanced iPod apps. The selection of the iPhone OS over OSX is surely a disappointment for a self-proclaimed Apple fanboy, and even for someone like me who's interest in Apple currently lies solely within the iPhone/iPod Touch sector. You don't buy a device that large and expect nothing less of a proper OS that at least supports the software typical of your major OSes. Indeed, the iPad version of iWork is impressive, but how about something you expect from every experience with your PC? That leads me to..
Adobe Flash. The lack of it in the newest piece of tech from Apple by the time their keynote speech is given surely gives you an idea of how much it means to them (zilch). In the 3 years that the iPhone has been out, there have been two massive revisions of the software with no clear support from Apple that Flash will be coming any time soon. I have waited for Flash, adjusted the websites I use on my iPhone, and realized that Flash will not be coming to the iPhone anytime soon. Since the iPad uses the same OS as the iPhone (OS 3.2!), let's just say they are closer to the iPhone end of the spectrum than they are to the Macbooks.
... and thus, I cannot discredit you for your fair assessment of Adobe and Apple within the Mac product family, but alas, it has no relation to the iPad because the two giants have not accomplished anything for the iPod/iPhone. I also would like to point out this short article on Engadget: http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/02/adobe-engages-apple-in-passive-aggressive-warfare-with-iphones/
.. as well as this last article on the apparent joint work between Apple and Adobe on iProduct-based Flash: http://www.engadget.com/2009/01/31/apple-teams-up-with-adobe-for-iphone-flash-at-long-last/
If you read that right, that was posted 3 days shy of a year ago! Why has it taken a year to do something with absolutely nothing being said to us eager iPhone users?! Not even a new iPhone rehash could hide from the rumour mill, so why is it that iPhone Flash is wonderfully capable of doing so? Because it is non-existent!
Jesus, why are they always so terrible at selling products at conventions? I'm strongly reminded of Sony's UK P.R. at E3 2006 or 2007, whenever it was that they were announcing the PS3's controller:
afMRIMvgEZE
It was by far the most cringeworthy, but they all seem to do it. Conventions are apparently opportunities to put your absolute worst public speaker in front of the most demanding consumers imaginable, given the least amount of exciting news conceivable, and ask them to patronize the hell out of said consumers by selling it with the tone of a Blue Peter presenter describing a prize giveaway to 6-year-olds.
Where's the market for this? product fan boys?
Yep, pretty much. Jobs knows he can release anything vaguely Jesusphone-like and there will be hordes of slavering Apple fanboys and fangirls eager to part with their hard earned.
Go back and read the other 2 threads to see how this is being positioned. It's not for typing (although the BT keyboard raises some cool ideas), it's not for gaming. At the weight and battery life that it's coming in on, it's intended for web and media use in a more natural way then a laptop and netbook, both of which need to rest on something. Who can hold a PC tablet (at almost 2kg) in front of them for 20 min while standing in the kitchen making coffee and toast before work? The Pad comes in at .5kg, perfect for reading the morning news. I love how Nexxo and Lorquis are the only ones here that are willing to take an objective view of this. And if you do any background reading, you can see how the content portion of this product by far out weighs any whining about the hardware. I know I'm looking forward to getting some textbooks that I gave up after my studies back (and a ton of new ones on subjects I'll never study-but want to know more about), and being able to subscribe to 20 odd magazines that I can get anywhere anytime with out worrying about changing addresses every few years. The Kindle app + iTunes books=book lover win! No more paying through the nose to have books shipped 1/2 around the world!
I'm holding off final judgment until I have one in my hands and I'll keep an eye out for android competitors, but it looks like I'll be getting 2 (unlocked 3G/Wifi). Now I just need to arrange to have a US mailing address on one of my credit cards so that I can get iTunes to let me buy things.
I love how everyone is whining about what it's not, but you aren't even thinking about what it is. And I do resent the idea that I have more money then technical sense. I see global content delivery of books/music/video/news to a device that is light, robust, with a good screen and has a battery life long enough to tide me over for the 16hr flights I find myself on a few times a year. I'm not going to type on this any more then I do on my android phone and the need to game in this format isn't there.
As a student, I'm sick of paying ~$150 for stacks of paper. The iPad means I have my textbooks and notes with me, everywhere, in something the size of a manila folder.
Also, this will kick the netbook and eBook-reader market in the nuts, given how it encroaches significantly on both those territories. And because it's Apple, I would expect the WWDC to give us some more good stuff on the software side of things (multitasking, please? If Android can do it on a 1GHz Snapdragon, so should Apple).
There were a couple of universities here that ran a pilot program for the kindle dx, and most have rejected it because of it's " inaccessibility for the blind" :|
Now i'm no expert but im pretty sure a standard textbook has about the same accessibilty as a
kindle. So I wouldn't hold my breath for those cheap textbooks on your e-reader of choice. It's far to big a chunk of money for the schools to lose.
The Kindle has had textbooks for forever and a day, has a larger catalog, better battery life, and is more suited for reading books, and it's also free to use it's data connection, and it's also cheaper.
As for Apple and multi-tasking, lots of phones with the same, or inferior, hardware compared to the iPhone/iPad can multitask, it's just Apple's choice to not allow multitask as it doesn't correlate with the paradigm of how & for what you should use your Apple device.
While I appreciate how Apple are entering this market, it doesn't change the fact that said market doesn't have much, if any, point to exist; it's much like MIDs.
That being said, I think that Gen 2 of the iPad will bring the device to a much more versatile and useful position.
Edit: BTW, I googled "ces tablets" and all the results were no where near 30-90 days away from launch, none of them had content partners or a delivery pathway for content, and none of them had a form factor that was better then what Apple announced. They aren't even ready to release the specs of the HP, only that it will run Win7. The Notion Ink, while interesting, looks like vaporware until they nail down a launch date other then "late 2009". But I am curious about the HTC/Google rumors.
I doubt they make no money from book sales. Especially on reselling them. For instance, my last textbook was $175 ( new edition of algebra :| ) After the sem was over, they would buy it back for ~$60-$70 and then sell it again for $150-$160 the next sem. Maybe I am just a naive little man but I doubt they send that $80-$100 profit back to the publisher.
Don't get me wrong I would love to see all of my textbooks on an e-reader, but i'm a little worried about keeping a constant internet connection to make sure my edition is current ;)
Now I won't bash the ipad, except for touting HD video with your greasy, nerd fingerprints all over it. I just doubt I will ever see it in the wild.
I remember a similar story when the original iPhone was launched, forums were full of haters who claimed it was too expensive, too big and wasn't needed. We all know how the iPhone turned out.
would you not want to put it on your lap to type anyway? typing with one hand is ok on an iphone cause the key pad is small. how do you comfortably hold this up when your typing with one hand
if theyre promoting a blue tooth keyboard, whats the point.
im sure that this will be a usefull product for someone but the average joe, dont think so some how. i know im happier with a laptop that isnt strangled by the iphone os. if its surfing while away from home an ipod/iphone does this and fits in a pocket. and the app store already has ereaders doesnt it.
if this was a small mac instead of a big iphone it could have been a winner. whole point of an ipod/iphone is it fits in your pocket
seems to me like an ipod version of this
http://cdn-www.cracked.com/articleimages/wong/ctrends/blaster1.jpg
Edit: Prototype pic I know...
Sounds like a rebranded Tegra 2.
http://www.blogcdn.com/www.engadget.com/media/2010/01/28jan10owub453.jpg
__________________
"Time flies like an arrow. Fruit flies like a banana." - Groucho Marx
The questions are...
- Does it play Crysis?
- Can you hack this?
- Can you run Linux on it?
I love the way it's advertised as a gaming machine. Erm no. Macs in all honesty have a few good points, but gaming has never been one of them.
Can it play Crysis? Hell no.
Can you hack it? Yes. Everything can be hacked given time and effort.
Can it run linux? Can an iPhone?
So think about this - it can run all your iPhone apps, but you're gonna have to pay twice to have them on two devices????
come on HP - it's tablet time!
16:9 aspect ratio (I just think it will make it easier to lug around,
true multitasking OS (Android will do fine),
Card slots for expansion/data transfer,
non-propriety device connectors.
I've used a tablet for a few years and was hoping this would drive the developement further. Unfortunately, it doesn't seem to have done that since it has so many restrictions to software and hardware.
Win7 and Slate looks the better functioning and priced option.
Will be interestin to see how it competes against the slates out this year.
For me I have enough laptops, umpc, phones so iMeh
So you CAN listen to music while reading a book? But you can't have spotify running, or anything else?
In all honesty, I find I get sore eyes if reading on a backlit screen, which is why I fancy the electronic "ink" (or Etch-a-sketch as I like to think of it) type readers. Which means I wouldn't use this for books. Which pretty much means that I would struggle to find a use for it at all.
I wanted to like it; I've been pretty much an Apple critic for years, but can't deny the appeal of a simple GUI. Unfortunately I don't.
I note Steve Jobs saying something along the lines of... We wanted to create something that filled the gap between a laptop and a smartphone. Unlike a netbook that pretty much does nothing well (Paraphrased).
Well Steve, this is a poor E-book, too big to be an MP3 player and too underpowered to be a pc. And your problem with netbooks was........??
Frankly, I just don't get it. It's a big iPhone, but it's worse than that - it doesn't really do anything useful that I can see.
Where is Flash support? Exandable memory? Expansion ports? Multitasking Support? HD capable screen?
Seriously what were apple thinking of when they got around to the screen resolution. Why isn't it at least 1280x720?
The great thing with the e-readers (certainly sony's, haven't tried the kindle) is that there's no glare at all. The screen is VERY easy on the eye, it's like reading from a book.
Can't help but wonder how great it'll be for sustained periods of reading though. Glossy screen's tend not to be so hot in direct light (or any light at all really :p).
I like the idea of the iPad though. Especially given the wide range of material available for it and how accesible the media will be. Can't see if having much use over the web browsing/reading on the move market but then that's what it's mostly aimed at.
It's just not been thought through enough. What advantage does it have over an iPhone or a macbook? It's too big to be truly portable, and too small/underpowered to be truly useful. Waste of money.
CC
http://www.blogcdn.com/www.engadget.com/media/2010/01/ipad-keyboard-dock-1.jpg
__________________
"Time flies like an arrow. Fruit flies like a banana." - Groucho Marx
Still, I expect people will flock towards it like lemmings as it's made by Apple.
Of course Apple has one again done the things which most annoy me about the company.
1 Case is an optional accessory, bit of a bugger when the thing is one large screen
2. no USB, will they please get over the dock connection, please? I don't want to lug around another adapter
3. A power lead is another optional accessory, a frigging power cable??? If Im close enough to my pc to charge the thing I'm close enough not to bother using it over my pc.
4. Why is there no inbuilt camera, oh yes because its also an optional extra to buy later.
Stop making nominally essential accessories optional; just stick em in the box to begin with.
However I did like the quote from Peter Shankman in the NY times on seeing the name on television, "I'm waiting for the second version that comes with wings," :D
Yes, an iPhone can.
Then I guess it all depends if the morning news is worth $500 to you (or $700 if you go for the pricier model, and that's not including the "optional" accessories). Unfortunately, the vast majority of consumers aren't lucky enough to be in the position to even consider it given its high price and limited practical applications. It's very much a luxury item which many people will think they have a use for, but really don't.
Thats just moronic.
The bezel reminds me of the eepc-701, and for that price you'd expect HD widescreen resolutions. The archos 5 would be the main thing out already i know of that comes close... only issues with with that are smaller, and possible firmware issues. I'd argue flash and multitasking are worth the lack of large screen or a dedicated book store.
If I were you i'd jump on the capacitive stylus and gloves market. Drawing you'll need a stylus for any decent drawings and typing on a solid glass screen? SERIOUSLY? You're gonna need some form of padding...
Oh, and when will apple realise? You can't do everything with two thumbs. We worked that out with the SNES. (or earlier, snes is just the first i remember)
If this chipset is just Tegra 2 in an apple shell... might be interesting. If it has decent Ram, maybe someone can get Android running on it and actually come up with a use for it other than a picture frame?
no want.
Anyway, what company does not hype its products?
Handwriting recognition would be great but my experience is that it puts a significant load on the CPU and hence, battery life. And you need a stylus.
You are also staring at the product, not the user experience. The iPad is embedded in a comprehensive infrastructure, and that is where its functionality and value lie. It's got a bezel? So what? The CrunchPad has a bezel. The Dell concept has a bezel. My Tablet PC has a bezel. I think people are so intent on hating the iPad just because it is an Apple product that they are focusing on trivial detail.
When the first Android mobiles came out they were flawed and buggy. But everyone loves Google so everyone thought they were great. Everyone could see past the rough edges at the future potential. But nobody could give the first iPhone, or the iPad --much more polished products-- the same consideration. Me thinks the geeks doth protest too much.
:) Yeah, I can really see the user going all Michael Jackson with a capacitive glove. Please, how practical is that? But I always have my hands on me. Incidentally, Apple has already filed patents for using full hand gestures and shapes on a touch screen. It is working on the capacitive glove thing but without needing the glove.
Again with the picture frame. Again ignore the big user picture by focusing on the hardware. Ignore that it is hooked into a comprehensive media and e-book delivery system. And with iTunes U? Expect students and academics to be interested.
The iPhone DOES multitasking, by the way. You can play music while doing other things. You can phone while browsing your diary or Internet or map. You can do all the things that it makes sense doing simultaneously on a small screen. Unless you think it makes sense to write an email while playing a game while browsing the web all at the same time on a 4" screen.
Perspective. Don't leave hone without it.
Admittidly Apple do make some good things, the Uni-body Mac for one, but its the fact that the majority of the public, and seemingly the press, think that the sun shines out of Apples ass. Its not a new product, its just peoples obsessions with having the 'in' thing, and having an over complicated, over designed, over priced piece of trash. I bet you I can do pretty much anything that thing can do with my Bold 9700 and an A4 notepad and pen.
Pfff.
Tell me, is it fun to have to reload every page when you go out of a browser? Or have to reload google maps when you're navigating and want to change the album/playlist or answer a call or reply to a text? Thats not true multitasking. Its like saying I have a formula one car when I'm riding a kids tricycle.
And i mentioned the capacitive glove cause typing on a hard surface is just painful. Talk to someone whos used one of those laser keyboards. They'll tell you its impossible for long periods of time. Cause it just plain hurts.
It could be the demo for the iPhone from 3 years ago, its just identical....
Would I buy it? hell no.
I do love how speedy the interaction seems (engadget hands on video).
If the browsing is as good as on an iphone (brother owns one) then I give that a huge plus, since it really is the best mobile browsing I've seen outside a real pc or netbook.
10 hour battery? I'm guessing exaggeration, but if it's 7-8 hours, I'd call that a very good battery life for something that size.
The OS, tho... I don't mind the os itself, I like the simplicity since it works well with the iPhone, and I'd say with this, but it DESPERATELY needs multitasking. I want to be able to have music playing while I browse and have a couple of chats open. If you could do that, I really would go for it, since I think it would be nicer to have in bed than a notebook or netbook (since they're almost always hotter than you'd like them to be, and batteries never last as long as you need it to).
3G costs extra? Personally not bothered, since this so called country of mine doesn't have a decent mobile internet provider, and I'd be paying through the nose.
Dock with keyboard? I actually do like it. Set it down next to my main rig and have chat and music and browsing (as I said, provided it had multitasking) running on that while I game full screen.
So, all in all, I'd call it a hit and miss for now. Maybe they bring multitasking in the 2nd gen version... maybe apple will get my money then :D
As the owner of an iPhone 3GS I can tell you that the browser actually runs in the background at all times, and does not reload pages. It occasionally decides to refresh the page after having been 'closed' on an almost arbitrary basis, however.
Google maps, too - the map does NOT reload. only the GPS has to reinitialise.
If you're going to hate, at least get your facts straight.
During the event I groaned when it was revealed, I really didn't want it to look like an overgrown iPhone and for that reason I think it could be time to sack their VP of design - I think he cheated. The spaced-out icons make it look like the contents of an iPhone screen had been stretched to fit it. Too much bezel. The focus seemed too intent on stores. iTunes, iBook and AppStore.
But, then I just chilled a bit, sipped my tea and watched the keynote. I really wasn't convinced until they got to the price, and then I decided for the bog standard, non-3G version at $499 it was something that could fit into my life. I have lots of reasons for buying this at its price point and CBA to list them. This is just my view of the event and the fact I'm having one.
I don't see this as a replacement for my laptops nor a netbook wannabe. It is a very functional social interaction tool with many more capabilities. Let's face it, when the developers who pumped out those 140,000 apps get a move on, it will do so much more than what was showcased at the event.
1. Is there a gap in the market for a tablet with decent battery life that will do word processing video and gaming + music and whatever apps it brings out. - answer yes next question
2. If its priced at £300 to £600 will it sell - yes
3. do enough people love apple so it will sell either way and still be a success considering 90% of the people who own an iphone have probably never heard of any tech review site let along read one before they brought it - yes
Will i buy 1 to replace my laptop. If and only if it has word processing functions (iworks would be fine) as i can then lug a small thing like this around instead of an overgrown laptop.
From a business point of view. Do i want to pay £1200 to £1400 for an ultra portable laptop ( Sony VAIO VGN-TZ11MN) or buy an apple product that will do the same thing for £3-500 answer is easy.
What does the sony product give that the apple one doesnt. a dvd rom drive?
And this relates to the iPad, how? Although I agree with you it doesn't seem to relate to our reasons for not liking the iPad :p
It's just how many people in this thread seem to slate Apple, for just being Apple, and have probably never used their products. I want to try the actual item before seeing if I do need it, not just slate it straight away because it's made by a certain company.
Anyway, it's still a niche market of "I want" without any practical value (unlike the iPhone which still has practical value some-what, as a phone). It'll fail miserably again.
edit: repost?
Well firstly bear in mind that Sony are generally quite expensive for what they are.
Secondly, said apple product is NOT going to be £300 or £400 - it's going to be over £400 in this country, obviously.
Thirdly, what does a tablet PC give you that the iPad doesn't? Well, have a good think about that first and then read this list:
1. DVD drive
2. HD capable screen
3. Keyboard
4. Handwriting recognition
5. Play games in visual quality better than the N64.
6. It comes with a power supply
7. You can play OGG or FLAC
8. It has USB
9. You don't need to buy a proprietory memory card reader
10. You aren't clamped to the ridiculous Apple DRM
11. Webcam
12. oh lol, multitasking
Shall I go on?
Granted, the iFap has some attractive features, fast booting I'm presuming will be the best thing, along with the tied in access to DLC; but really, how does it warrant £500?
iPad: No USB. No VGA. oh **** it let me save some breath. There's no connectivity unless you use a dock.
To call this a tablet is an insult to tablet PCs everywhere. You gotta dig deep into your memory and remember the 90s so you can call this what it really is. It's a giant, ugly pocket PC.
all hail the fanboy fap material of the iPalmpilot.
This is the least innovative thing i've seen in a long while. I would take 2 of my Asus Aspire Ones over the base model of one of these, and I'd have enough money left to spare that I could buy them each a nifty neoprene skin case.
Nah, not likely, and the hardware problem (or lack of USB ports) would still remain.
Its not like saying a BMW 318i is the same price as a V6 Vauxhall Insignia or whatever and the Vauxhall has more kit standard, as the BMW has features that the Vauxhall doesn't, such as rear wheel drive, lots better handling and near 50/50 weight distribution.
It would be like BMW making a front wheel drive, front heavy box that understeers all over the show and still pricing it at the same point as the V6 high spec Insignia.
Also is cost difference between 16GB and 64GB of whatever memory they use over £200?
It is a company-provided laptop that I have to check out, so it is loaded with the most inconvenient bloatware (for "security" reasons), and admin access is disabled, so I'm limited to what I can do.
With the iPad, I can take my music and movies with me on the flight (because it interfaces with an already-established contenet delivery system); have a few books, magazines, or comics with me for leisure time; bring a long my magazine subscriptions with me for reading when standing in line at the convention; and I can can get to the web for e-mail and time sheet access if needed. All this, and it takes up a fraction of the space in my carry-on bags, and it runs cooler and more efficiently than the laptop.
I'm seriously considering one, but I'll wait to read a few reviews before jumping in. If I decide it's for me, I'll probably wait for Gen 2 so they can iron out any inevitable kinks that are standard with 1st gen hardware.
But an iPod Touch can do almost all of that, apart from reading books and magazines, but it has a much longer battery life so you can enjoy it for longer. I don't see what's wrong with carrying a magazine or book about - it's just as convenient and less of a worry about its battery running out or it being stolen/broken/dropped in a toilet. It suffers from the same problem as ebook readers - they're too expensive and a solution to a problem which doesn't really exist (except for a small number of people).
Excellent ;), +rep
Win. :)
they may not be aimed at the same market, but they'll get used for the same thing's.
http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2010/01/ten-things-missing-from-the-ipad/
No, no. You're all wrong, its not even a large iPhone (that would have a camera), its just a large iPod touch :)
Launched the first what? The first thin, impractical laptop? Not so.
Apple MacBook Air: 2008 19.4mm/1.36kg
Sony Vaio X505: 2003 21mm/0.825kg
Toshiba Portégé R500 2007 19.3mm/0.780g w/SSD
^ This. (You may have forgotten 'real OS,' too.) I'm not just biased against Apple tablet computers, though I consider this one a worst-of-breed because of the aforementioned design limitations, I'm biased against all tablet computers in comparison to a convertible tablet/laptop. You're getting a terrible deal on portable computing because taking this thing mobile requires a bag - it won't fit in your pocket. And if you're taking a bag, you might as well take a convertible tablet and have approximately fifty times the utility for a near-negligible weight demand. Even worse, if you are expected to do any work whilst mobile you have to take a laptop with you, presumably in addition to the iPad. Why take two when you could just take the one...? If you want a portable, Apple, multitouch-screen, mobile-internet, pocketable experience, get a frickin' iPhone already.
Just for the record, I currently own one MacBook, one iPhone, one iPod (the third), and a Magic Mouse, if that'll help the more defensive of you from dismissing me as a 'hater.'
'Bout as well as I handle conversations with hot women, tbh.
http://piasportal.files.wordpress.com/2008/10/broken_laptop.jpg
Flash
I dont get this reason, so its buggy, but people use it, surely the support should be there (ie5 and ie6)
OLED
Fair enough, there are no real benfits to OLED atm other then its incredibly thin
USB
If this ment to be user friendly then why no put the most user friendly port on their and just limit it to USB flash sticks and USB standard complient keyboards?
GPS
Not something that should be worried about.
Multitasking
Something that should be worried about, especially if this supposed to be a media product.
Keyboard
Fair enough but see USB
Camera
I agree why? Answer so all those that bought Gen1 have a reason to buy Gen2 and call mr Jobbs a saviour.
16:9
Can someone tell me the aspect ratio of a piece of A4 paper and then tell me why it would be wrong to use this aspect ratio even if its meant to be used in portrait mode.
HDMI
Neglecting the media connector of the next few years on a media device smacks of a money making scheme or ignorance. Now I hope its the latter.
I like this line, about keyboard (70$) + iPad (499$ for base):
Why wouldn't you bother with a 200-400$ netbook that can do all that the iPad can, and can't do, minus the touchscreen functionality? :|
its apple in the end of the day they have never included usb flask stick support and i dout they ever will. HDMI would only be useful if you intended to output display to an hdmi device. Very few officers have moved from projecters yet which still use DVI.
Flash is a pile of crap the end
GPS has mensioned above who cares
Has it been confirmed it cant multitask? Or is the multitasking limited to ipod + webbrowser? Or can you read a book whilst listening to music?
Word process whilst listening to music this all needs confirming.
Alot of people here granted probalby dont need a laptop to begin with. ( if you need a laptop to game your in either at uni or an idiot) Pc hardware is far to advanced to ignore.
The touch keyboard will take up half the screen, and if you use a keyboard that makes it larger than a netbook to carry. The Ipad is just a iphone but worse.
err, I meant people bitched about the air. And they launched the first thin client tablet. sorry, the use of pronouns made that unclear.
so much win... rep ++
It'll still sell like hotcakes regardless of my opinion though
The answer to multi-tasking on an ipad?
1. No tablet PC comes with a DVD drive (convertibles do). Adds too much bulk.
2. Yeah, because we really need HD on a 12" screen.
3. No Tablet PC comes with a keyboard --unless as a clip-on.
4. Drains the battery alarmingly fast. It is CPU heavy.
5. That is BS and you know it.
6. The iPad doesn't need a power supply. USB charger will do.
7. ...which we all do, I'm sure. In spades.
8. So does the iPad; it just has a proprietary plug at one end. Granted, a USB port would have been preferable.
9. ???
10. Instead you are clamped to Napster, Urge, Amazon or any other Windows Plays For Sure (which it doesn't) MP3 delivery system. Who are you kidding? All commercial MP3 files have DRM. Remember the hue and cry about Windows Vista's DRM management?
11. Hmmm... no. No PC tablet has a webcam.
12. Yeah, because I really need, like, three apps running concurrently on my 12" screen.
Also, the target markets won't buy this. Presuming it's aimed at home users who want a portable device that does everything, chances are they'll have a laptop (yeah, it's bigger, but they'll already have one). If it's aimed at business users (not really, though they're advertising email capabilities, for example) then they'll already have a laptop too, and will find this doesn't have the power or features for them. It's a bit of a lost one really...sure, I don't think it's going to be a G4 Cube, but it's not going to hit hard at all.
Oops, forgot to add...the size. If this replaces a laptop (which, it isn't supposed to anyway, it's not aimed at that) it's not taking up much less room than a netbook, for example. So, not much difference in a bag. If it's at home...computers are there anyway...
Now, had apple marketed it as that, people would be doing a lot more ooing and ahhing, and ultimately declaring it a niche market. But apple chose to make a niche market device and slap the label of "Tablet PC" on it. I'm sorry, but that's like inventing a bicycle with three wheels and still saying it's a bicycle. It isn't a bicycle, it's a goram tricycle, and anyone but a fanboy would recognize it as such. It's a square peg in a round hole. It's just not what they claim it to be, and it will never be.
They should have taken the Air, put a swivel-hinge capacitive OLED touch screen on it, and said there you go. A bigass tablet that could be used for something other than dicking around.
like.... word processing. Which seems to be all mac laptops are good for anyway. I've just never understood the appeal that Macs have. Honestly their high-point should've been in the 90s, when windows actually *did* suck and was very worthy of all the bad-mouthing it got/still gets. Every time i've sat down at a mac, I've failed to see where the appeal is. It's just a dumbed-down PC with limited access to anything truly important to the machine. I guess they're great machines for anyone who's afraid of a POST or BIOS screen. Also: in before BSOD. I refuse to accept BSOD arguments so long as Apple uses the spinning BBOD (Beach Ball Of Doom/Death), something I have seen more first-hand in my time on macs than I have BSODs on my XP/Vista/7 boxes.
I digress... when my Acer Aspire One can play WoW at 15-30fps (not fabulous, but fine for running around and questing when you're stuck waiting at the DMV and pirating wireless from someone nearby), then I declare anything less an epic fail. My netbook is almost 2 years old now, I paid $250 for it new in box, and it does more than a $600 ipad.
"iPad, release your inner 5-year old and... FINGER PAINT! All for the low-low introductory price of $599. Which really isn't cheap, but you can FINGER PAINT! You can touch your finger to the glossy-ass screen and make a smudgy, painty mess!" Offer void where prohibited, dock and requisite micro-fiber cloth sold separately.
Amazing what someone years ago came up with is actually better then what Apple have.
I kinda get the impression you like it?
And I thought I was the only ...
fine, battery on a stock 3-cell is a little slim, but at $45 for a 9-cell battery (my stock 3-cell gets 3-4hrs unless I'm playing WoW/GW on it) still puts my netbook at a price tag under $300, and 9-12hrs battery life.
iFap lose.
You made a VERY good point there, it really isn't a computer as such. It's many many thousands of applications that do a massive multitude of 'things'. It all adds up to a remarkable amount of 'things' it can do, but ultimately it isn't a computer. And maybe that is a large part of why the Apple haters have put their jackets on today and are parading on the forums like they've won a war.
Thing is, I'm even tempted to buy my mum one ... because she is really getting on in life but loves getting the silly spam crap we all hate, and if I get her one of these then I won't have to keep driving 1 hour down the road to set her up again because she's turned something off or she's forgotten to do something.
To paragraph one: these bolded statements are the biggest pile of hyperbolic fail i've seen since I saw the iPad. What good is doing many many thousands of things without multitasking? What would be the point of having 12 dicks if you could only use one at a time? Just being able to say "hey I've got 12 dicks?" Seriously! If the iPad were a human being, it would be the downsiest one in history. It fails to walk and chew bubble gum at the same time, amounting to nothing more than a 12" iPod Touch with an expanded feature set. Not a PC.
And secondly, while funny, it really won't solve that problem. Just instead of 'why isn't this turning on', or 'what does this error message mean?' or 'which key is the 'any' key?' You will get questions like "why is there this perpetually spinning beach ball on my screen?" "Why is there a smiling bomb looking at me?" "How did the screen get all zoomed in/out (pinch)?"
Your mum fails at using technology. It's part of being a mum. And the technology world should not have to suffer the wrath of thousands of nerd-raging mac fanboys drooling over a neutered netbook/iPhone with a vaginaplasty.
The OS was not designed for a phone; it was designed for a compact portable device with a touch screen, a lightweight CPU and limited battery life. In that respect it is suited to the job very well.
I'm sorry, but I really can't get my head around how badly people are not getting it.
"It hasn't got a 16:9 screen". Not useful --in horizontal mode there is no room left for a keyboard.
"It has a bezel". I mean, WTF? The HP Slate has a bezel. Everything has a bezel.
"It is not a real PC". How often do you use your laptop for real hardcore PC stuff? Face it, you use it as a office app/internet/e-mail/gaming/media device. Like, oh, the iPad.
"It has no 'real' OS". OK, try Windows 7 on a touch screen. Seriously. Try it. Set up a network connection, adjust your browser settings, do some serious hardass tweaking that you feel Apple has been denying you. See how well you fare with those tiny buttons and text. Then check videos of the HP Slate at work, and the iPad. See which runs smoother.
"It is overpriced". How much does a Tablet PC cost? Check it out...
"It should have [insert feature here]". What, like the HP Slate hasn't?
When the iPhone appeared, everyone thought it was a piece of overpriced junk. Then Google brings out the Nexus One which is almost exactly the same friggin' thing and everyone thinks it is wonderful. This is all just irrational bias, guys. It is anti-fanboyism. It is Richard Dawkins ranting against religion. Such fervour is almost like belief.
You are my new hero
That was the funnest video I've seen in months
Nexxo certainly answered you better and kinder than I was going to.
As for its abilities. 140,000 apps on iPhone ... just wait for the developers to get going on that screen real estate.
Just thought I'd add, seeing as it came up today:
http://www.engadget.com/2010/01/28/adobe-on-flash-and-the-ipad-apple-is-continuing-to-impose-rest/
1. My ex's had one.
2. Don't advertise it as an HD capable device then, LIARS!
3. Again, ex's had one.
4. If a palmtop can do it then an iFap should do it.
5. No actually...not really BS at all....
6. So what happens when you are somewhere with no USB? University lecture theatre maybe?
7. I know no end of people that use FLAC and Ogg etc - anyone with mildly capable ears does.
8. Still a cock up
9. I read something about some douchebag memory card reader just for the iFap so you can read SD cards. Idiotic at best.
10. At least they are MP3s.
11. Again, a lie, plenty do.
12. Spotify while browsing?
BOOM! http://www.tabletpc2.com/Review-HP_TX1000_Entertainment_Tablet_PC-Article70020426.html
One example.
And I never said I could buy a tablet for a better price. Well I can, but they are called Neurofen.
https://www.alwaysinnovating.com/touchbook/
Dude thats not a proper tablet, thats a laptop with a swivel screen and touchscreen technology.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tablet_PC
That just has to be the most ridiculous statement ever made :)
Cost vs. features? $800 for an oversized iPod touch with internet access? 'Cause that's all it amounts to.
Obviously the Apple brigade are well aware of just how restrictive the OS is because the fact that you can change the background picture was mentioned... and this is something we always used to be able to take for granted, not one of the first things that gets mentioned at a high-profile, highly secretive (even if highly anticipated) product announcement!
Besides size, this brings nothing new to the table (pun!) - and I'm comparing it to the rest of Apples line up.
I'll just leave this here.
I know which I'd buy.
agreed... I have an Ipod it does its job well. Do I need a really big Ipod to go in my oversized ogre pockets? I dont think so..
So.. Yeah.. Erm.. *Drool*?
If they can launch that at the price of the iFap, I'll be the first to buy it!
That looks hawt.
Now that looks like it has potential.
If they go ahead with it as it is... then you'd have to be certifiably insane to buy the iMaxipad instead.
You know you love it dude ;)
Release the hounds.
:D
PROS:
- 9.7in screen. (While its not the size of a sheet of paper yet (8 1/2" x 11"), which would be ideal rather then these ridiculously sized e-readers we have now.)
- Touch Screen. (Unlink the Kindle, Sony e-reader, or that one with more keys then a piano, this is more like Barnes and Nobles Nook E-reader. Smooth, modern design, like most Apple products. It LOOKS awesome.)
- WiFi/3G (It can connect to the internet. I don't know what Kindle/Sony charge-- Nook is free inside Barnes and Noble. $30/mo for unlimted Wifi? I'd probably drop internet from my phone then honestly.)
- Keyboard Support (I can't imagine anyone really having something urgent or dire that HAS to be typed up that would make them use THIS device, but that support is there is nice.)
- HiDef Video (This is just cool fluff.)
- Full Color Screen (E-Ink is nice, works well for traditional e-readers, but this is nice to see.)
- 10hr battery life (Someday when a device can run full power for 25hrs, we'll stop caring about battery life, because it will charge while it sleeps. Still 10hrs? I don't think most of us read books, magazines, etc for 10hrs at a time.)
CONS:
- $500 for the lowest model compared to $350~ for higher e-readers. (Sure it has a higher hard-drive capacity compared to them and a full color screen, but I think I'd rather see an 8GB/Wifi model for $350-400 then this. When the cost drops, or the specs raise on the second generation, I'll buy if I haven't found a better e-reader.)
- No flash support. (While I think most people use their e-reader to read and not to web-surf-- when you toss in a "real" screen, expectations rise. If you touting up Wifi/3g + 1024x768 resolution, people will probably expect Flash support of Youtube or such. Maybe it was for all the vulnerabilities adherent in Flash.)
- No ports. (No real need for Ethernet, but USB could have been nice. 64-in-1 card reader, if its not there, should be too.)
NOTES:
- This is not a computer. (If you go into this expecting iPhone/iTouch is now a computer, you're wrong. It can play cellphone games, watch videos, play basic music, browse basic web, but it is first and formost an e-reader. Nothing more. The second you try and hold this device up to the standards of even a netbook, it becomes a joke, proving that its not a computer, just an e-reader.)
- The above does not make this a bad machine. (The developers and the news might have misjudged what they were making and who it was aimed at, and Apple products are always 20%+ higher with usually about a 3rd of the features. The Apple iPod (no FM tuner, requires iTunes -- stuff $10 MP3 players have.), MacBook Air ($1200 for a netbook.), and the list goes on. Like always, the hipsters, and the tech-elite will buy this up. Just like the iPod/iTouch/iPhone. And they will love it. Then the rest of the industry will catch up and make devices for the rest of us, with even more features. (Think of all the full touch-screen phones that came out after the iPhone.))
Conclusion? This a good attempt, and it'll sell like wild-fire. In 6-12 months we'll see something better. Maybe the 2nd Gen by Apple, most likely by someone else all together.
Our opinion? iPad = iMeh - QFTW
I have said before it would be a crappy overpriced, overhyped and over useless brick.
The creative nomenclature department from Apple needs a sacking, iBrick should me more apropriate
Top of my head:
iPod, iHome, iDock, i<animal> (dances to iPod music), iMac (and eMac), iPhone, iTouch (iPodTouch), iPad. I don't know if their proprietary Mac keyboards, mice, and headphones are i-ed or not.
Exactly... $500 to $800 for a e-reader that plays iPhone apps and plays media.
You've just hi lighted the very reason why it's a total, steaming pile of manure.
Keep up the good work :)
I like to read mine in real life... too many things are becoming virtual and I for one think ebooks are utter crap. Im a tech addict with the best of em but I will never buy an ebook,e-reader or any such crap and when the nuclear war comes and all your e-readers have no power I will sell books for food and be king of the world.... mwhahahah
LOL... agreed.
Books are sacred. I like turning the pages... I like the smell... I like libraries. I like book shops.
This is true, I like real books. The size, the shape, the fact it doesn't hurt my eyes. That being said, if I go on vacation or something and want more then one book for a trip, it does take up space. When you're talking air-travel, its not completely irrelevant.
Other instances is I have a huge manual on PHP5, HTML, C++, etc etc. These are big, heavy, college-style books. (And in fact there's another group that would love a solid e-reader.) To condense 5-10 manuals into a single e-reader? Hell. Yes.
For my collection of Dean Koontz books? Meh, I'll keep the hard-covers I have but it'd be convenient.
For that one author, of that one book, that I'm going to read once? Not really so useful.
Just food for thought.
Sam
Welcome to the internet.
As far as the rumored features:
I read the short article, and looked at the photos they provided. I didn't see a USB port. ZOMGNOUSBFAILFAILFAIL!!!! In addition, there is no keyboard - another point that has been charged against the iPad.
After reading the second article on Gizmodo, it seems as though they're not sure where this device will fit in the gadget world:
Furthermore, I don't believe Microsoft mentioned the Courier device during their keynote at CES, though I'm prepared to be corrected on that. If that's true, you have to wonder how close they are to production. You'd think they would be heavily pushing it if it was really as great as you believe it to be.
An example of Apples marketing in action - Even people who dislike the device can't stop talking about it.
Don't have nightmares! Goodnight x
Well I'm not buying one because I don't need one, so stfu. I have no doubt that it will sell, but I personally have no desire for such a product unless there are some serious things about it that Apple have hidden, which lets face it, rarely happens. If it were £200 or £300, I COULD see a use for it, leaving it in the sitting room for a quick look up of whatever for example - but at entry level notebook prices, I would rather have an entry level notebook.
Just hold it closer to your face
I, with the utter lack of authority to do such, award you with 1 (one) Internet.
Use it wisely.
I was going to link to this article, but then I realized this one has already surpassed the post count there.
I would also argue that it was less an argument than one kid banging his head against a wall :(
meh the both of you, as well as plenty others, will practice your Apple apologetics regardless of valid points.
Who cares if it supports 140,000 apps? 90% of those apps are garbage. I'm gonna use a phone to balance a bookshelf? Make a masturbatoral gesture to pick a restaurant? If Apple products actually had more potential then impressing people at parties with their nifty but utterly useless abilities then maybe I wouldn't be doing a birthday dance at the fact that this is so much fail it's orgasmic.
The problem with Apple isn't their tech, it's their core consumers who declare at every oppurtunity the superiority of a device with half as many features and less innovation than mine.
It's about time that I get my ****ing turn to be smug and arrogant. Every time I go to the trendy cafe, bookstore, or your pick of live music events I've got to put up with Applefags giving me condescending looks over the tops of their boxframe glasses because i'm distracting them from their iPhone game to order a cup of coffee, book, or ticket.
Apple is not an innovator. Now Google on the other hand... there's a company that actually comes out with new and exciting ****. Apple and Microsoft are locked in a pissing match where they rip off each other's ideas from 10 years ago, slap it in a shiny case, and hope that nobody notices. Although at least it didn't take MS going to the brink of death to realize that maybe 3rd party development is where it's at. It took Apple over 20 years to pull their head out of their ass, and even now they still micromanage the **** out of stuff, with the possible exception being the app store.
But I really shouldn't bother, because I could show you a legit video of Steve Jobbs laughing about how hard he's ****ing his core market and how really the iPad schems were something he drew on the back of a cocktail napkin, and just dropped it off in R&D to see if they would fall for it, and ye old apple fans would rush to the device's defense. It's a giant, glossy, expensive one-trick monkey. ~end rant.
Actually my point was that 140,000 apps have been created for the iPhone. What other phone do you know of that has had that much attention by developers? How much attention do you think the developers will spend on this new product?
The product is limited by it's app ability - it is not limited by the fact it can be compared to a bloated iPhone in appearance. But then, how limited will it be? Will the developers by-pass Apples iPad in favour of the geeks favourite Google OS? Will MS be able to claw some of the market share with their offering?
It's fair to say there are two camps on this website if we negate the minority fringes. The main camp contains anti-Apple protestors who will rage at any Apple product or news item. The second camp are the quieter few (by number) who can see this isn't a world changing event but a movement forward in technology. I'm not saying it's a new invention - but it's certainly a step forward. Strangely I don't know any Apple owners who spend their days slagging off PC users, they all just seem to get on with life. But, I do see thousands of PC users who waste their precious time raging about Apple ... you gotta laugh. People always need need a devil to blame. Personally, my devil to blame for all the worlds problems is the parents. Apple? Nah, they just get on with it. Intel? Nah, they do too. Microsoft? Nah, they aren't to blame either. etc.
Google are famous by their search engine, they have a browser, they have an OS, they are launching a tablet ... can you help me out here, I can't think of anything that hadn't already been invented by someone else first and they came along and "reinvented" it. Oh, that word "reinvent", Apple is throwing that around at the moment in relation to the iPad ...
Apple got their patent for proximity sensing the other day ... interesting concept for the future - 3D touch?
Discuss, minus the blind-rage-issues.
When the prices come down. Atleast 50%. For a new (untethered jailbreakable) unit.
There. I said it.
Still what alot of angry internet peoples are forgetting is that Apple don't care the tech geeks don't like it and the gamers can't stand it, they're looking to sell it as a simple to use, cool looking device to the masses of average joe's who are happy with their ItouchXL
I can also see the benifits of using it as a Photo browser out in the field. How many times have took a shot that looks OK on the screen on the back of the camera, only to find it's not up to snuff when you view it on a larger screen? If you're out shooting, you can quickly import the photos, check them out and reshoot there and then if needed.
The multi-touch versions of Pages, Keynote and Numbers where great. A multi-touch blogging or web authoring app would be great (iWeb for example) would be cool.
MrsGOO also wants one. As she said, what could she not do with an iPad that she does with her current MacBook? She browses, plays the occasional games, checks email, does her iTunes stuff, writes Pendragon adventures for out role-play group.
I've seen a lot of whining and wailing and nashing of teeth over what it isn't. Only very few people (several in this thread) have seen what it is. It's a larger iPod Touch, allowing a much better level of interaction with the web, a decent eBook reader and personal media device. For a decent price. You're not expected to be doing heavy duty video editing or photo manipulation, or other intensive tasks.
But then you wouldn't really use a netbook for that, either. It's a job for a full bore laptop or desktop.
I wouldn't bother with 3G on it. WiFi is enough, especially when I have netshare on my iPhone. I'll use the money I would have spent on 3G on an extra slug of storage, thank you.
You may now start denegrating me for being a fanboi, or for buying anything 'with the right badge' - I don't care. I like what I see, and I'll be getting one. Get over it.
Wait...Bob is....my.....
How exactly does 'bigger screen' == 'much better level of interaction with the web' when it suffers the same limitations of the iPhone OS that its younger siblings has? If it can't handle Flash because Steve Jobs is afraid it'll take revenue away from the Holy App Store then it's not really a better level of interaction is it.
Unless the iPad brings something to the web browsing experience other than a bigger screen to the table that the iPhone/iPod Touch can't offer then you can't really be justified in saying it offers a much better level of interaction.
from ipad site
Story here
Considering how long it seems to take the uk/euro publishers to agree ebook rights, this might take some time, so hopefully you've all got US registered cards to set up itunes with?
http://www.techcrunch.com/2010/01/27/think-ibooks-looks-familiar-youre-not-the-only-one/
Flash, Flash, Flash, Flash, Flash - record is broken. Please turn it off. If it comes to the iTouch / iPhone / iPad, so be it. If it doesn't, I won't loose any sleep over it. I don't miss it on my iPhone. Why would I on an iPad?
Surely being able to see more of a page = better interaction? Does in my book. Less scrolling around.
But anyway - you're entitled to your opinion, just like everyone else. You obviously don't like it, Apple or Steveo. Great. Doesn't change my mind at all. ;)
Oi, that hurts man, i had nothing to do with the iPad :)
I'm not sure what the fuss with flash is any site which relies on it i generally ignore, i don't even have flash installed on ff.
I never said it wasn't better, I just don't believe that it provides enough of an improvement to warrant this product existing and for the prophet Jobs to be using such terms as 'magical' to describe it when all it is is a bigger iPod Touch. Are we going to see it in the new Harry Potter film, I wonder?
Fighting the Dark Lord? There's an app for that.
The only thing I miss about flash on my iPhone is streaming videos, and quite a few of the major video sites are offering non-flash alternatives now.
If they come out with some apps that let me control a media centre from it (and lets face it, this is a pretty likely scenario) similar to Air Mouse on the iPod etc - then I'll be sorely tempted.
RwD
Well.. let me answer this as a photographer.
First... I wouldn't rely on ANY on-screen image to asses a shot... on camera, or iPad... as neither is calibrated, and I'll probably be in far from ideal conditions to view ANY LCD screen.
Secondly, I prefer to rely on my skill.... the skills garnered from shooting on film... remember that? :) No preview there.... you waited until it was processed. You had to get it right, and that's what separated the men from the boys. We have short memories do we not? :) Photographers have been producing stunning images on film for over 150 years without being able to see a preview.
Thirdly, if I was to use the on camera screen to asses, it would not be by looking at the image anyway - I'd be looking at the histogram. I don't need a iPad for that as the camera's screen is actually ideal.
Fourth. If I was to carry something that stupidly large around with me on a shoot, I would probably take a proper lap top instead, as the iPad's connectivity is woeful. How exactly am I supposed to connect my Nikon D3 or Hassleblad H4D to it? It doesn't even have a USB socket! The whole point of taking a laptop with you on a shoot is to actually shoot tethered, and edit on site... not to look at pretty pictures on a bigger screen.
As for e-readers being nearly as expensive as a iPad..... huh? You can get a decent e-reader for £200... Scan do one for £160. Anyway... e-readers have a proper screen that can be read as a piece of paper can... in direct sunlight. In fact, the brighter it is, the easier to read. The iPad is a backlit LCD like any other computer device, and therefore render it useless as a e-reader. You couldn't sit on a beach in bright sunlight with it for example. And it's too damned big! Decent e-readers fold away so you can put it in a a small bag, or in some cases, your pocket.
I bet your batteries will run out before the end of the third chapter of any book you read as well.
Utterly useless device.
Well... Do I think I'm too clever to spend at least $500 on a big iPhone/iPod Touch? Yes... yes I do. :)
Why are people also complaining about this thread? Isn't that was a general discussion forum is about?
http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2010/01/iphone-voip/
I think it's appropriate to repost this about now :)
I was drinking a mug of tea when I read this. Messy! :)
Your command of the english language to form a coherant and decisive argument renders me in nothing but awe.
Well done.
As for the voip thing, seems in the iPad simulator in the SDK there's a "touch to resume call" bit which could be interesting...
I lol'd. In class. F***.
That's probably just because Apple can't be ****ed to remove it from the iPhone OS they are using....
http://kotaku.com/5458822/why-the-ipad-is-crap-futurism
That is EXACTLY what I thought when I saw iBooks. Delicious Library is a fantastic app, by the way.
And, yes, it is a fantastic application. I've had the demo for ages, but keep forgeting to buy the license. I really must do that at some point.
Definitely! And you only need 1/4 of the whole iPad to make a phone call!
Besides, what self-respecting person sits on the beach in full sun for 3 hours? Isn't that how you get skin caner? :p
Indeed it is.
I would ask what self-respecting person goes on holiday and spends all their time on their ass reading... anywhere... but each to their own :)
Proper e-readers are a joy to read in daylight though compared to backlit LCDs. Having to crank up everything to power sucking max levels to read in sunlight wil hit batteries hard on something like the iPad, and while it may be legible, it won't be in the same league as a proper e-reader.
^^From Kotaku article.
That pretty much sums up what I was getting at about the iphone apps. Except they did it in a way that was less troll-bait.
The thing that I hate so much about Apple is their arrogance as a producer. They believe that their end-users should be forced to do things their way. You don't have a choice with Apple, it's their way or the highway. There's no development that's not micromanaged by them, and no device or OS that's not conceived with 'their way' as the forefront motive.
Just on a petty level: I can only resize a window from one corner, because that's the way they want it, I can only do x y or z because they arbitrarily made it that way and then shut down any and all third-party efforts to do it a better way.
Even when they fix things, they first have to wait a version from when they notice to implement it, lest they fix it in the next revision and seem like they "gave in" to what consumers wanted. They've got to make it seem like it was their idea all along. /rant
buying brand new tech isn't the only way to go. I can get last year's ASUS Eee Convertible Tablet Netbook (T91) for $400-$450 new in packaging. It's a whole lot more appealing than an iPad, and would be a hands-down no contest winner if it weren't for am 8.9" screen and the 5hr battery life. Then again I can buy a new, higher capacity battery for a netbook, which is something I can't say for the iPad.
if ASUS had a 10.1" model of the tablet, i'd see no niche for the iPad whatsoever. But as it is there is one, however slim it might be.
You can also get older tablets for under $400. That's what's so frustrating about the iPad: it's not a new concept, in fact it's something that was done the better part of a decade ago, and frankly--did more then.
The HP TC1100: http://www.jksalesinc.com/catalog/images/hp_tc1100.jpg & http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Cc8Y5NHwD2E/SxGjRJ_pu8I/AAAAAAAAAnA/bdC3CtSKJMc/s320/Tablet_PC-HP-TC1100.jpg
Wiki Article: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HP_TC1100
And it was released in April of 2004. When I saw the iPad, it was the first thing I thought of. The TC1100 might not be made out of animal friendly green materials and aluminim with crystal glass whatever, but it can do flash, full web, full office suite, full OS, you can use a stylus on it (artists rejoice), it supports expansion, custimization, and the keyboard even swivels around and lies flush with the device.
I fail to see an area where the iPad does something that I haven't seen done 6 years ago. Aside from telling me what to do and how I can do it.
a) Jailbreak
b)Linux install = amazing pad
Typical Apple mentality: Lets talk about how it looks and the materials it's made of rather than what it can actually do.
LOL. I think you mean.....
$800,-- for a 1024x768 touch screen with sapphire glass in a solid aluminium housing with wifi and 3G that doesn't actually do anything worthwhile.
And since when has a sheet of glass, of ANY quality cost that much? Most high quality camera optics costs less than that and they contain more glass of much higher quality.
Are you sure it's glass? Wouldn't that be a bit of a safety issue?... and be a bit fragile?
Since when has aluminium cost that much? My huge Lian Li server case is aluminium, and it costs me £79.
Those are simply NOT reasons for it to cost so much.
At least it will be useful, and therefore probably worth the money.
Man this story made me feel so sorry for that guy :(
http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/9150045/Apple_makes_208_on_each_499_iPad?taxonomyId=15
And yet there will still be Apple fanboys out there who will make excuses for Apple for their pricing policies.
Your average PC manufacturer would kill for markups like that, but then when you've got a virtual monopoly with a horde of fanatically loyal cultis... er, customers I guess you can pretty much get away with whatever you want.
I am by no means a fan boy (I only own a couple of iPods) but the prices in that article have to be total BS. $99 for the touchscreen? $25 for the memory and the same for the case? Its a joke, all you apple haters would like to believe thats the case but its not.
Well let's look at the memory. If it's essentially the same memory that you find in a USB key, they yes it would be that cheap.
Remember this is the company that charges up to 1000 for 12gigs of ram that you can buy anywhere else for a lot less. And no, it's not EEC fully buffered ram, this is the regular ram they put in their Intel based boxes.
Fathers, Cousins, Brothers former Room Mate (think i got it in the right order;))
To be honest, and i simply don't care what people think, i will actually be happy when i part with my hard earned monies and buy one. Granted, i have actually no practical use for it currently, but it isn't going to stop me from buying one.
Sam
Seriously guys and gals... if you don't like it, nobody forces you to buy one.
On another note: today I read the news and Asus and MSi aren't quiet happy with the pricing of the iPad, as they thought more of a entry-level at 1000$.
Now Asus and MSi need to think real hard, as they planned on releasing their similar products at 6-700$ before Apple released the price-list for the iPad.
It's really funny, how flawed and unobjective people become as soon as a product is made by Apple really... you should be pleased by the prices released by Apple, as now you'll get tablets from Asus and MSi for 400$ instead of 6-700$ ;)
Link to the news: http://www.digitimes.com/news/a20100129PD217.html
It's good that Apple is still going strong, as it actually lowers the prices for Windows-products and result in other manufacturers doing something new.
Hitler doesn't seem too impressed with it.
lQnT0zp8Ya4
http://www.funnyordie.co.uk/videos/d2b714361c/hello?rel=featured&rel_pos=2
(Hope it's not a repost)
Still, I have to wonder about the Microsoft Courier. Nexxo may be assuming a cost of at least $1500, but I just can't get over the fact that all we have right now is rumors and an animated video release only a couple months ago showing design concepts. I'll admit that it is pretty, and the design concepts are pretty intriguing. On the other hand, Apple have actually released what I think is a good product backed by an already established content delivery system that provides music, movies, games, books, and more.
can't multitask
cant split the screen
small HDD
no input ports i.e. SD
no phone
overpriced for very little
Steel and Glass
slick n slim
best user interface
Apple ...............................I'll buy the ipad2
Archos 7
Sam
Now note that the 4" screen, 32Gb iPod Touch costs $299,--. the 10" screen, 64Gb iPad of similar spec (Wifi, but no 3G) costs $499,-- . All snapping into perspective now?
The Microsoft Courier is very nice, although again Apple got there first in the 80's with the Knowledge Navigator (although not shown in the videos, the design was that one could close the screen like a book). The real problem is how to turn such an idea into an affordable and practical product.
Take my Tablet PC: the Motion Computing LE 1600. In 2005 it was the cutting edge of tablets, until it was superseded in 2007 by the LE 1700 which has a Core Duo CPU and 3G. They both are the best of the best in Tablet PC design: only 20mm thick, 3lbs (4lbs with a battery that takes running time to 8 hours, except if you use handwriting recognition a lot, in when case battery life shrinks to a third of that) due to a light rigid magnesium frame covered by glass fibre reinforced plastic. The screen is covered with anti-glare toughened glass (as someone who ordered anti-glare covered plexiglass to cover the 5" screen in the bezel of his modded PC I can tell you that this coating costs!). These are Tablets that will survive a drop, as the company will happily demonstrate in their videos.
The price is accordingly: $ 2400,-- for the basic version.
The Courier would face the challenge of incorporating two expensive screens with a decent runtime battery and all the usual processing power in a fairly robust hinged design. Housing-wise, it would be like two LE 1700's folded together. the weight would be at least 5 lbs although --at considerable expense-- the thickness could possibly be kept around 20mm. Since a screen on its own costs about $300,-- I don't see a decently manufactured unit cost less than $3000,--. Still hungry?
:/
How much does a 10" touch screen cost? $135,--
How much does a 10" sheet of saphire glass cost? Well, a 50 x 50mm sheet costs £115,--
'nuff said.
Nexxo, I have a lot of respect for your reasoning in your other posts, but even you must realise that Apple is not paying the market price for any of these items?
How much are you paying for a 64gig usb? Talk about being ripped off.
You call them people who like these devices fanbois? You're fanbois yourself, just of the opposite team!
If you don't like the iPad, then good for you, but there's alot of people who'll make good use of the product, as it matches theirlifestyle.
The problem with most people here in the forums is, that you expect a device that matches the hardwarde-specs and flexibility of a laptop or full blown PC.
The iPad was never designed to be anything like a netbook or a laptop nor a PC... it's designed to be a digital organizer with videoplayback-options.
And again, wait for other tablets released and then start to compare them. Asus, MSi and others release their products sometime around summer this year and they'll offer not anything more then the iPad, if you start looking for leaked informations about them.
with the fact that it has not been given a release date i am sure there will be many changes due to the fact of the critical news.
i do believe it is overpriced regarding that it was made in a 3rd world nation and the fact that supposed to be "eco-friendly" i just dont really care.
Yes, because Apple will naturally be ordering each component one at a time, with each iPad being painstakingly hand assembled by a bunch of trapist monks in a secluded monastery somewhere.
Err, it's estimated shipping date is March for the standard WiFi versions, and April for the WiFi/3g model. And from what i have read, that is in both the US and in the UK, going by both apple.com and apple.com/uk.
The only changes that could happen between now and then are software based, namely the OS.
Sam
No, they're paying trade, which is about 55% of these prices. In a similar vein the assertion that the mark-up on a $499,-- iPad is $200,-- sounds about right. But consider this:
55% of $135,-- is $74,-- (screen)
55% of $175,-- is $96,25 (memory)
Now consider the sapphire glass. A 50x50mm sheet is sold for £115,-- or $183,--. A screen twice that size (for a 10 inch screen) would be about $400,--? Take 55% of that: $220,--
We are already exceeding the manufacturing price of a basic iPad. Now add the CNC'd aluminium housing, the Li-ion battery, the CPU and PCB etc. and the price clocks up.
Apple