Microreviews.org

The iPad – The gadget, the hype, the competitors and its consequences

ArchieIndian Thursday, January 28th, 2010

Update 1: The iBooks application will not be available outside America.

Okay, now we know the name of “Steve Job’s ” greatest ever innovation, The iPad it is.

So Basically what is an iPad?

According to Apple (The world’s biggest mobile devices company =)), there is a small void created between Iphones and Laptops. These devices are supposed to fill that gap by doing somethings much better than a mobile device can do(because of their portability) and what a laptop can do (because they are bulkiness) like surfing the web. The Netbook according to Jobs is a good for nothing device which does nothing well.

The hype…

The hype about the iPad was big enough to almost bring Pingdom down. Some of my tweets were delayed by 30 mins when i was tweeting form the Ustream Channel. It was big enough to have 8 of the 10 trending topics on twitter. There were around 100000 people including me who were tuned in to the Webcast for the event.(The Nexus One Event doesn’t even come near to this ).

The Innovation:

The iPad for me is a very natural extension to the iPod touch and the iPhone. When I was a small child, I used something called a slate(and chalk) to do all my mathematics and believe it is the most useful  thing to have when you love Mathematics. The size of the iPad is quite similar to my old slate, 9.7 inches long, 7.47 inches wide  and 0.5 inches thick.  It comes with Apple’s own ARM A4 processor (:( Poor Intel) and is supposed to have the best capacitive touchscreen ever. The touch is even more responsive than what you have on your iphone/iPod touch.  The specifications can be found here. The real innovation has been the battery life which is 10 hours, which is awesome for a 1.5 to 1.6 pound  device. So, as far as innovation goes, I will not say, it has taken us to the next level of technology but yes the whole  experience of doing some tasks can be brilliant.

Who is it meant for?

I would say, it is a very niche segment they are targeting here. It can be the natural next buy for the iPhone and iPod touch users (250 million of them). However, I donot see it resolving some huge problem of a normal technology person other than carrying a thousand books with you all the time.

Kindle vs iPad

It is meant to be kept at home (It is bulky enough to not carry around),or to carry for your flight from San Francisco to Tokyo.(10 hours of battery life).

What does it mean for Amazon Kindle and Netbooks?

The Amazon Kindle in one word, is dead. It is like comparing a typewriter to a computer. Priced just 10 bucks(The Kindle DX) less than the iPad, The Kindle doesn’t stand a chance. So, bbye kindle, welcome iPad. As of Netbooks, they  need to improve too. With Google Chrome OS coming out for special Netbooks, i wonder if that is going to make a difference.

Notion Ink's Adam - The iPad killer

So Is there a competitor for this in the market?

I would say, I don’t know. I know about this device called Notion Ink’s Adam coming out of India, and is something which is nearest to something which can be called an iPad killer. Find complete specifications of this device here. This device may just be Google and Android’s answer to the iPad (taking forward the already hyped rivalry between Apple and Google). Come June, and we sure will have the comparisons coming out on all major tech blogs. The Apple iPad has the advantage of coming out first, but the Indian counterpart will have the advantage of shipping to Asia really quickly, and we all know where the money is right now. Apple’s other competitor and new friend in Microsoft doesn’t seem to have an answer for the device. Some more tablets which may compete are:

- HP Slate: A Windows 7-powered tablet

- Asus Eee Tablet: An upcoming tablet that may run on Google Android

- Google /HTC Tablet: Rumor has it that Google and HTC are developing a Google-branded tablet, much like what they did with the Nexus One.

So,What is it that we will see the iPad getting used for?

iPad Gaming

A brilliant gaming device for sure and an eBook reader. This is by far the best eBook reading interface that the world would have ever seen. Its sleek and good to eyes. Gaming can be fun on the device for sure too.

What about the Pricing?

The pricing for me is intelligent rather than cheap. When you plan to buy a device, you don’t mind paying up the extra 130 bucks and the Gigs are so important. Apple has got the pricing bang on and I am sure the 829 bucks version will sell a lot too.

iPad pricing is very intelligent

I am missing something. What is that?

• A camera would be really nice along with this. This with a camera can be my favorite skype – ing device. A video chat on the iPad should be fun.
  

  The keypad for typing looks nice
• I miss the multitasking bit too. Multitasking was something i was just expecting from this device.
• USB Support is necessary and lacking.
• Also, we cannot plug this device to our television. A real letdown, this one.

What are other available addons for the devices?

Apple devices always come with a load of extra accessories which you can buy to make the experience even better and I bet that is a part of the business plan too.(Else they can be bundled too) and the iPad is no exception. Check out all the addon accessories for the iPad here.

Verdict: My verdict would be, Innovation wise it is not a breakthrough, but yes this is a natural successor to the iPhone and the iPod touch. I see some competition coming through very soon. Wait for one or two upgrades if you have limited money, the camera support and other upgrades cannot be too far away. The pricing will come down too as the Solid State gigs shrink their price. For now, you iPhone will do the job for you(or may be your  Nexus One). I expected something more out of the box from Apple other than the pricing. The one good thing is that all your iPhone apps work here too.

I will try and keep you updated with my views about the Tablets. Apple has enough fanboys writing about the iPad for you to explore the device virtually even before you put your hands on it. =)

Find me on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook.

Find Microreviews on Facebook and Twitter.