What Do You Think of the iPad?

By Jake • February 2nd, 2010 • View Comments

In case you were unplugged, Apple announced a tablet last week, called the iPad.

By now, the jokes have died down and the geek world has been furiously dissecting the pros and cons of the iPad. It’s what we do.

My quick take is the same as its been for a while: I don’t need a gadget that fits between my iPhone and my laptop. That gives me some impartiality I suppose, since the iPad wasn’t awesome enough to create that need for me.

The iPhone’s success came initially because it met one super obvious use case: cellular telephone. And it just so happened to do other smartphone things in useful ways.

The iPad lacks that same killer use case, and general consensus among most geeks is similar. The iPad doesn’t create a need for them; it creates (or meets) one for casual users, e.g. your mother.

Ah Mom, the classic geek measuring stick for so many use cases.

The problem with all the analysis is that it’s being done by people who don’t share the killer use case; we’re all guessing. Arguably, everyone needs a cell phone. Not everyone needs an internet appliance, probably the best term I’ve heard to describe the device that’s not pocket-sized, but is still relatively portable.

Cripes.

Back to Mom for a second. Probably the most interesting iPad coverage I’ve see so far is this post by Ultimi Barbarorum (h/t Signal vs. Noise) that points to women as the iPad’s target demographic:

Women will like the simpleness of the iPad not because, like an increasingly creaky boomer, they cannot put up with computing complexity; they can. They just don’t see why they should have to.

As I said before, everyone is guessing, but this one holds water for me. In fact, reading that snippet, I pictured my lovely wife as she handed off yet another gadget to me to make work. She likes to skip the configuration and get right to the value.

Crazy right?

She could figure it out easily on her own, but why bother when she can outsource it to me, the happy tinkerer, who is happy to make gadgets work. It’s win-win.

I’m very interested to hear the thoughts of the technical women out there, e.g. our women friends at TalentedApps. Does this hold water or not?

Gizmodo has some interesting points on why the iPad is for old people, which I also found interesting. One of the more compelling arguments for the iPad as a device for casual users is that its locked-down iPhone OS variant will make it more secure than a standard OS like Windows or OS X.

I’m sure this assertion will be tested, but in theory, it makes sense.

At the same time, the sanitized internet experience and DRM create a serious challenge for free-as-in-beer internet types like Chris Messina and most of the rest of us who like it way it is now.

Not that those people with real use cases for the iPad care even a little. They love Facebook’s approach to the intertubes, so why would they care?

Interestingly, Chris tweeted his agreement with Joe Hewitt’s stance that the closed platform is good for developers.

I suppose he was agreeing with the “good for developers” part and not agreeing with the sanitized internet and DRM.

FWIW, I think the iPad is a sweet little device, and I’m sure it’s a joy to use. Like a typical geek male, I’m especially curious to see how Apple’s A4 processor performs in other devices, ahem Macbooks, since everyone who has used an iPad marvels at how fast it is.

Anyway, there’s a lot to noodle in there. I’m looking forward to your thoughts, about the device, its use cases (real or concocted), its target users, what it means for the intertubes, etc.

Put all that in the comments.

Update: After reading some interesting comments, I’m beginning to see some plausible use cases emerge. First, the iPad as a kid’s computer is legit; Paul (and others) have noted how intuitive the touch interface is for young children. I wonder about durability, but that’s not a design problem.

Second, the iPad as a media device, i.e. the couch computer also holds water. Makes sense since the iPad’s portability is questionable.

Good times. You guys are smart.


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  • megbear
    I think DISQUS just ate my comment -- grr.

    I'm pretty sure I said that I find the iPad interesting, especially when you think of it as *not* a computer. Things I think it has value for in my world
    *eReader - I think they will need to work out the screen to adjust to be "digital paper" like and to have a crazy long battery life disconnected from WiFi to really compete with Kindle but that will happen I'm sure
    * Portable kid-management - long trips I could not have to take a DVD player along but instead put both kids to looking at the device and/or someday gaming together.
    * Would like something like this to be "tablet like" and have the ability to digitally white-board/web conference with others or just myself and upload for presentations etc
    * couch device -- this has a lot of legs. I also do a lot of OnLine stuff (blog reading, email triage, twitter) while pretending to watch tv with the spouse
  • I dunno if four is a lot of legs, but maybe your couch is non-standard. Heh.

    Anyway, there are those same two again: kids and couch. You mentioned DVDs, which reminded me that there's no DVD player in there. DVDs are becoming less and less useful for me lately. There's a post in there somewhere.

    You didn't comment on the women will like it b/c it just works theory. Thoughts?
  • megbear
    I'm never comfortable speaking for "women" but my personal view is that I do like it b/c it works and has no setup. That is a lot about the *not* a computer.

    And as far as the DVD god I'm old, I was using "DVD" to mean movies not actual disks, in the same way I still call the dated grouped music an "album" even though I actually buy it as mp3s on itunes. I just barely quit calling movies "video tapes" this technology stuff is confusing for me.. (see just works point above ;-)
  • Re. DVDs, I hear you, just musing that they're being phased out by digital downloads. Over the last year, I've become more annoyed at the physical limitations of DVDs, mostly that they damage easily and skip, pushing me to find more ways to consume digital movies.
  • Jim
    Being a boring old killjoy, at the end of the day, it's just another big company making stuff to sell to make money, and fooling us into believing we'll be happier if we buy it. Like when companies come on saying they've brought out a new product, +because their customers demand it+. Ummm, I don't think so. How about because your shareholders demand it, because the company needs to keep churning out crap so they can keep making money... Bah!
  • Very true, but it's more fun to ignore the corporate muling and speculate, at least about the computer crap.
  • Old people?

    Anyway, the iPad matters, and the reason, simply put, is simplicity. It brings the ease of use of the iPhone/Touch to a larger unit that, by virtue of its size, is a better tool for reading, video, and may of the things people do with the iPad's smaller siblings. Downloading apps is quick and easy, the apps themselves are (generally) easy to use, and the whole thing requires little or no technical skill. That last bit, based on the comments here and elsewhere, appears to be a turn-off for the more technically adept, but it is nevertheless a valuable feature. I have two laptops, a desktop, and a netbook in my home, but a significant portion of my computer use is on my iPhone, becuase it's fast and easy to use.

    I won't rush out an buy an iPad right away, but I will eventually own one. And it will very definitely replace my netbook.
  • I don't think geeks are against the simplicity angle as a concept. The problem is what it costs in freedom, i.e. a sanitized internet. The App Store model isn't always kind to developers, and Apple has been famously inconsistent with its policies.

    Anyway, the freedom bit feels like a danger, but it does appeal to the bell curve. Look at Facebook.
  • Interesting takes, similar to what Topper predicted on the software side. I'm liking the couch device use case, but it feels weird to take the social out of TV viewing . . . not sure why.
  • The main thing I like about Apple is they force people to reconsider their approach. I think the iPad is a complete waste of time as a product, but I think it, along with the iPhone/iPod Touch, will be seen as an important stepping stone in the development of future products.

    Maybe I'll consider buying iPad V3...

    And I, for one, welcome our new Apple overlords... If I mention Hitler or the Nazis will that kill the thread? :)

    Cheers

    Tim...
  • I read an interesting article last week prior to the announcement about creative/free thinkers and their love for Apple. It's a crazy paradoxical relationship. Don't consider myself a fanboi, but I do have a lot of their crap . . . probably just fooling myself.

    I'm with you on buying a later version. By then, at least we'll know who's going to use it and what it does best.

    Looks like your Nazi-bomb didn't work :)
  • barforama
    Funny, I didn't buy a droid for the same reason - wait a year for the shakeout.
  • Always sound advice, although I have to say I'm pretty happy w/my OG iPhone even three revs later. Maybe that's a function of investment cost, and I'm being stubborn.
  • Steven
    I really view the iPad as something that gotten horrifically blown all out of proportion by the publics' imagination. When it arrived it didn't exceed the wild musings of the online community so now it has the backlash of confused techies trying to justify it's existance - all part of the fun.

    Remember all those science fiction movies and series? Remember how the mechanics of the future took diagnostics of their ships? Doctors reading the results of bioscans? etc and etc. I know my wife will love having something in that size for cooking recipes (interactive with video, light and takes up less space). As a teaching aid it can be applied to anything. I am really looking forward to being able to look at blueprints or instructions while working under an engine.
  • Actually, if anything, I'm more interested than when it was all rumor, b/c it's real now. Plus, it looks sweet. Like I said, I won't line up to buy one initially, but I will definitely want to play with one. It looks really sweet.

    I just can't justify buying one without a better personal use case.
  • I'm mostly "meh" on the iPad for now, though I can see its value as a small-footprint, portable home entertainment device (music, movies, ereader). I don't see it actually leaving the house much if I get one, though. It's not *quite* portable enough to replace my iPhone for going out and about, since it won't fit in a pocket, and I value the "internet in my pocket" aspect of the iPhone far more than the phone aspect. If I'm going to carry something for when I need better-than-smartphone computing, I might as well lug my laptop.

    +1 on the observation that it would be an intuitive interface for kids; my MBP display is sporting toddler fingerprints as I type this (also acknowledged: cringeworthy destructive potential). I don't buy the "moms will love it" angle, however, at least not our (boomer) moms. I'm not convinced that a generation that has had to work hard to integrate computers into their lives for work or to keep in touch with their geeky children is going to rush to embrace a new interface, notwithstanding claims of intuitiveness.

    And, FWIW, I suspect that the more general "women will dig it because it's simple" theory is a byproduct of a Y-chromosome skew in the field of gadget punditry. :-) I'm guessing there are also plenty of guys out there, non-tinkerers and engine-rebuilders alike, who wouldn't balk at an uncomplicated UI for their uncomplicated computing needs. This strikes me as an unfortunate continuation of the "girls can't do math/girls don't play computer games unless there are ponies/girls only want pink sports jerseys" mindset. Bah.
  • Agree 100% w/your assessment, and I neglected to mention the "internet in my pocket" use case for the iPhone.

    Noel pointed out the kid angle, and it definitely holds water. Aside from the cost, which isn't bad (assuming you go wi-fi, doubtful we're talking about kids who'd need to go out of the house w/it), I wonder if the iPad is tough enough to be a kid's computer. Still, the touch interface makes a ton of sense for kids.

    With you on the last bit, the simplicity argument applies to anyone, and we're just guessing right now which demographic group will be most into it. It's fun to speculate.
  • I do see the great value that tablets and specially the iPad will bring to the future of computing. I am not sure if I will get the first generation but eventually I will get one, specially when they figure out the kinks. I read this post http://bit.ly/8o38C2 a couple days before the launch, and the vision of Jef Raskin's "Morphing computer" resonated with me.

    As far as use cases I do have a couple:
    TV/couch companion - I enjoy watching live events and interacting with other via twitter. I would like to get sport stats and trivia while watching a game.
    Kids computer - Last year I installed ubuntu with Kidoz (kid friendly browser) for my 2 year old, her first natural instinct was to touch the screen as she learned on my iPhone.
    Bedside companion - I actually was pretty close to buy a Chumby. Do some last time search right before bed, have the iPad wake me in the morning with music etc. (this could be done with iPhone, except the internet experience)
    Roaming computer - I do have my laptop docked on my home office and is a pain to dock/undock.

    I for one welcome any kind of innovation that will make my life easier.
  • I noticed that post on Giz but didn't have the time to read it all. Will do so.

    I'm sure lots of gadget-hounds will pony up for the iPad. Nothing wrong with that, and you can bet I'll be trolling to find one to testdrive among my geek friends. That said, I don't see a killer use case. Sure there are plenty of places in life where the iPad would fit and make life easier, just none that stand out for me.

    Your kid's computer case is interesting, if only b/c I cringe when I think about a child destroying an iPad. However, many people, including Paul, have noted how intuitive the iPhone touch interface is for children. Interesting.
  • uvox
    Asked my mom (76): "Doesn't do it for me. No multitasking capability, and significant big girls blouse factor. First person I see on the train screaming into it 'Honey, I'm on the train' ends up on YouTube. This on top of the underpowered HTC Hero Droid is too much. Just get me flowers."
  • Sarcasm? Tough to tell over the 'tubes.
  • uvox
    I can never tell with my mom. People mentioning stored procedures seem to bear the brunt of it. Apparently, she's hoping for a 4GB Ram capable MacBook Air as a better option. As for the iPad, the same logic applies - just like how Rev.A of the Air was anaemic and later versions better, probably the same for the iPad, so advice is wait awhile if you must.
  • Hmm, stored procedures don't just come up randomly in most conversations :) The future of the Macbook Air should be interesting, especially if the latest rumor is true, i.e. Apple's making a developer's version of the iPad, based on OS X.

    Quite a lot of overlap among Apple's product lines, my guess is survival of the fittest will EOL some products.
  • uvox
    Well, hopefully we'll know soon with MacWorld almost upon us. Can't wait!
  • Probably, I'm guessing WWDC will have lots of useful information too.
  • uvox
    On a related note, I think the 'irrelevance' of the iPad to enterprise computing argument (read that somewhere today) is misplaced. I can see a place for it in mobile enterprise space, vertical apps, field sales and service techs, people who want to view plans, architecture, consulting, higer ed, and so on. I think it's a question of apps... let's see.
  • Totally. Remember the iPhone not being an enterprise phone? IMO people will use a great device if they can, which is why many people use Macs for work vs. the PCs they've been assigned. Sure, this isn't allowed in some companies, but where it is, people will use what they prefer for work.
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