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Apple iPad revealed

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Sage00 said:
Guys, of course there will be multitasking. It's in iPhone OS 4.0. They'll announce it with that, probably along with the iPhone 4G.
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I'm not buying it at this point. Why wait 2 months to state that if it's a definite feature that will be in a newly announced device set to be on sale in 2 months anyway.

Not that I'm saying the multitasking is completely out of the picture for either iPhone or iPad, but it would seem that it's further out than a few months and won't be there for the shipping product, for some odd reason.
 
kaching said:
I'm not buying it at this point. Why wait 2 months to state that if it's a definite feature that will be in a newly announced device set to be on sale in 2 months anyway.

Not that I'm saying the multitasking is completely out of the picture for either iPhone or iPad, but it would seem that it's further out than a few months and won't be there for the shipping product, for some odd reason.
Click to expand...
I'd agree.

Multi-tasking isn't coming for awhile (and honestly, I'm not sure if Apple wants multi-tasking on these devices).
 
meh...

Did Apple mention anything about upgrading the Macbook Pros? And if not when do you think that will happen, I have been waiting a month now thinking new ones would be coming soon.
 
Marty Chinn said:
Do people to this day still shut down their laptops or computers completely? Sleep mode works wonders and is nearly instant coming from a dead to awake state.
Click to expand...
Most of the non-tech/younger crowd I know do.
Your also not factoring in frugal people who don't like "wasting" electricity and turn off everything.

People don't realize how in this case "bigger is better". My mom will want one of these just so she can pass pictures around at parties/gatherings with her friends.
It seems to me, a lot of people want a Mac, but don't want to pay Mac prices. This is the perfect bridge-the-gap device for them.

One day there'll be a "iPad Pro" with full Wacom and other shit, but for now, chill out and shill out monkies.
 
Kickstand case + bluetooth keyboard = I'm set.

case_4_20100127.png


case_1_20100127.png
 
Karma said:
You still believe this is going to have a huge market?
Click to expand...
I have no idea how big the market for this thing is going to be. It's hard to gauge, because I'm not so sure GAF is really the right market for this device as it currently exists.
 
stilgar said:
Seriously, I see your point but I fail to understand how a lacking feature can be "good". At best you don't care.
Click to expand...


because i dont want to go to a website and have flash start up and drain my battery by playing a stupid flash video ad rendering the video in software and using up 100% of the CPU
 
CrunchGear's take

http://www.crunchgear.com/2010/01/27/the-ipad-our-take/

Devin: It’s a big iPod. That much is clear — it’s not really a tablet computer. Of course, the benefits of a giant iPod are manifest: you can check email easily, movies and shows will look nice (though not full HD), and the e-books looked great. But the fact is you’re limited by Apple in every way they can limit you. It’s got all the same fetters as an iPhone and has no expandable storage or USB port. Until you hack it to run Chrome OS, you’re going to be using this thing exactly the way Apple tells you to. It’ll be nice if that’s what you want, but it’s not the universal tablet I was hoping for. Nevertheless, I see every secretary and PA carrying one of these in a month.
Matt: Sorry, Apple. I was going to buy it until I found that the iPad doesn’t have an SD card slot. You’ve failed me again.

John: It will be definitely be something I’m getting but I’m worried that it will be just “one more thing” to carry around. That I definitely DON’T need.

Doug: It looks really cool, aesthetically, but the battery life and screen can’t replace my Kindle, the lack of USB ports and expandable storage can’t replace my netbook, and I already have an iPhone 3GS. So it’d basically be $500+ for a bigger screen, a slightly faster CPU, and an external keyboard that I’d never carry around with me. I might buy one in a year or two once they’ve gone through a couple revisions.

Dave: I see the iPad as a great little device. Not as a music player, but as a portable movie player and web browser. I also use my iPod Touch to tether my DLSR when I’m taking pictures – the iPad would be ideal for this use.

Greg: I refused to let myself get hyped up about the slate, simply because we’ve seen time and time again that the rumor mill sets expectations impossibly high. Even with my expectations set rather low, however, I walked away disappointed.

I’m guessing some of the other guys will tear into Apple for not including an SD slot, so I’ll leave that topic alone; the absence of a camera, however, I can’t avoid touching on. Now, I don’t care about the camera for taking pictures, as there isn’t a single situation I can think of where I won’t have my dedicated camera or iPhone but I WILL have this big ol’ 10″ beast. The sole reason I’m disappointed: it means no augmented reality. The iPhone has proven that AR is a concept worth playing with, but it falls a bit short on that device due to screen size. The iPad could have ushered in a whole new type of gameplay, but not without a camera.

As a developer, I’m excited about it. As a consumer, not so much.

Nicholas: I mean, I already did a whole spiel on CNN (what?!) why the iPad is sorta “meh” in my eyes, but to recap: I simply don’t get it. It’s not an iPhone replacement because it’s not a phone (duh); it’s not an iPod touch replacement because it’s not portable; and I already have enough “real” computers that I don’t need a tablet. I understand I’m not Mr. Average Consumer, but the iPad seems to fill a void that I simply don’t need filled. Maybe as an e-reader, but that entirely depends upon the book selection, which isn’t clear right now. For now, though: meh.
Click to expand...
 
kaching said:
I'm not buying it at this point. Why wait 2 months to state that if it's a definite feature that will be in a newly announced device set to be on sale in 2 months anyway.

Not that I'm saying the multitasking is completely out of the picture for either iPhone or iPad, but it would seem that it's further out than a few months and won't be there for the shipping product, for some odd reason.
Click to expand...

I could see it going either way, but you're probably right. I'll say this though, no multitasking makes it fly. Watch that hands on video, iPhoto runs at lightspeed.
 
Buckethead said:
My Thoughts about the iPad:
(Warning: Don't Read if your a Trolling Fuckweasel) Wow, hey, way to encourage open discussion! I'll try anyhow

How long does the average PC or Mac take to boot up?
Regardless of your specs, it's too long. Alot less time than it takes for an iphone to boot. Oh, do you mean 'wake from sleep?' in which case, it takes about 1-2 seconds.

This device isn't a godsend to the hardcore crowds, however,
it's going to sell like gangbusters to soccer moms and football dads. Yeah, fuck them. I cannot undersand the need to justify the stupidity of the product by marvelling at how many stupid people will buy it.

You may cynically say, "it's a bigger iPhone", but that, in many ways, is just the point.
I can immediately get on it. Immediately check mail. Immediately browse the web. Immediately fail to load any flash sites, most embedded videos, hulu, etc.

And unlike the iPhone, for the first time do you have the space and breathing room to actually enjoy video and be able to see whats going on without squinting. Seeing as I'm not a 92 year old with macular degeneration, the iphone screen is fine for me.

As someone said in the Conference thread, stealing a Nintendo line, "it's the 3rd pillar bitches". And in that sense it's perfect, not in the current iterative sense,
it lacks some important features to both casuals and hardcores alike, but when it comes down to it, it's perfect and it's launching well in advance of the competition. When the '3rd pillar' is on such shaky ground that people can't wrap their heads around what it 'supports' without a convoluted explanation, what's the point? And, I'm sorry, but when it lacks features that APPLE THEMSELVES have been touting as part of their basic hardware offerings (IE, NO camera? my ipod fucking NANO has a fucking camera) it is as far from perfect as anything can be.


So, in conclusion, sure it's lacking features (multi-task, pressure stylus, etc.), but also it brings a lot to the table.
And just like the original iPhone wasn't perfect, neither is this, but the foundation is there and one day it will please everyone.Thus far, it's really nothing more than a grotesque monument to, essentially, all of the iphone's shortcomings, with a big-ass screen.
Click to expand...

.
 
Marty Chinn said:
People thinking this is better than a netbook are on crack or something. Hell, I can do photoshop on my netbook. I can type notes in class easily without dragging around an additional accessory in which I then somehow need to prop up the iPad which would be cumbersome in itself. I can multitask in even the simplist things like listening to Pandora while doing multitab browsing. I can use Flash. Heck, I can even tether my iPhone to my netbook through bluetooth and not pay another $30 for data. There's just so many things that I can do on a netbook that I can't on this device.
.
Click to expand...


I agree. But I think it is a replacement for netbooks, but only a particular use of netbooks. Its really an in-home coffee table internet device with apps. I don't see it being taken around with you - I'd want a keyboard for email, and multitasking etc.

but for an advanced organiser/family web device etc I think its perfect, and the price is acceptable.

I can totally see my wife using this instead of her NC10, providing the IME is decent. For basic browsing I'd want multple tabs but apparantly it has a 'grid' of pages in safari so maybe similar?
 
bengraven said:
I just bought a Kindle, literally just bought one on Saturday.

I bet they'll be down in price by THIS weekend. At least the $498 DX is practically guaranteed.

I wonder if Amazon would refund me the difference on the Kindle 2 if they drop it a few bucks.
Click to expand...

They did for me when I bought one for my wife last year and they dropped the price 3 weeks later. Never hurts to ask and they usually take care of you. Especially if you order from Amazon a lot.
 
godofcookery said:
why are the TWiT guys freaking about about IPS panels? This is a standard for some time now. Not on a device like this mind you.
Click to expand...
It's unique at this size.

Are there any laptops at all with an IPS panel and 178 degree viewing angle?
 
minus_273 said:
because i dont want to go to a website and have flash start up and drain my battery by playing a stupid flash video ad rendering the video in software and using up 100% of the CPU
Click to expand...
Then disable the plug in.
 
Marty Chinn said:
I was using Photoshop as an extreme scenario as I wouldn't use it all the time, but I have in the past when I needed it and that just goes to show the flexibility and functionality that the netbook has over the iPad.

Right now for what I think the market that everyone is trying to aim for that fits in between an iPhone and a laptop, a netbook right now fits the bill far closer than the iPad does. It just does what you'd likely what to do when you're on the go but don't want to carry around a bigger and heavier laptop.

Multitasking, more flexibility, and a stylus would go a long way to making this more useful.
Click to expand...


Yeah, I know what you mean. For sure, the market is aiming at the laptop end. I guess Apple are going against the grain and betting on the iPhone end. Can't blame 'em with the success of the iPhone, the appstore etc.

This is such a cool device to me though. It fits what I need it to do more than a netbook, which is mostly browsing and media.

One thing I guess we do know is how this device doesn't encroach on the territories of either a computer or a phone. :lol - in a way, it doesn't quite the job of either :p. I think it sits more in the middle of both devices, with a netbook actually being just a small laptop (so is real close to the laptop end of things).

I'm going to give it a couple more weeks for other Mac related announcements. I need either a new HD for my Macbook, or a new Macbook.
 
Y2Kev said:
I use my netbook to surf in bed, which this looks like it would be quite good at, and to take notes in class (which this thing cannot do comfortably).

I don't really get it. I was expecting Apple to kind of neatly define what a tablet should be, since all the other manufacturers have failed to do that. Apple has two kinds of products in their lineup: products with clearly defined roles with mass appeal and those that don't. Which do you think this is more like?
Click to expand...

I absolutely think it failed at making tablets seem like something EVERYONE should want or have. That could very well change with app support, but right now it's simply not.

I do, however, see what it's trying to do, and understand who it's for and why. Beyond that it's still a neat gadget that does a whole lot of things and seemingly does them well.

I don't plan on getting one right away at all. I, like many, have quirky unique things I'd want it to do before making me jump in. If the iBooks store had photography books up I'd definitely gain interest. The Kindle hasn't been bought by me for that reason, it can't do a large group of books I'm interested in due to not being able to do pictures and such. My interest will also shoot up like wild when I can either offload pictures from a memory card, or more preferably shoot tethered directly onto it, using the big sexy screen for previews. Ideally it would do both.

But I'm not going to attack the thing for, as of now, not delivering those things and say it's destined to fail because of it. It's a product aimed at a big group of people, and I'm a guy with very niche demands. I understand that.
 
mrklaw said:
I agree. But I think it is a replacement for netbooks, but only a particular use of netbooks. Its really an in-home coffee table internet device with apps. I don't see it being taken around with you - I'd want a keyboard for email, and multitasking etc.

but for an advanced organiser/family web device etc I think its perfect, and the price is acceptable.

I can totally see my wife using this instead of her NC10, providing the IME is decent. For basic browsing I'd want multple tabs but apparantly it has a 'grid' of pages in safari so maybe similar?
Click to expand...
off-topic question: Does your wife's NC10 have a shitty speakers like mine?
 
I gotta say, I was hating on this thing before it was announced and even more when I saw it during the presentation. Mostly because I knew it would never come close to the hype we had built up for it.

But after looking at the videos I gotta say this is a pretty slick piece of kit. I am still not going to get it and I would rather spend my money on the new MBP's coming with the upgraded cpu, but I can see why this would appeal to a lot of people after seeing the videos.

Definitely did not live up to the hype (and after the iPhone it is going to take something insane to live up to that), but better than the Apple TV.
 
v0yce said:
Don't bother. Some people simply cannot understand usability. They only see specs. And they'll never understand Apple.
Click to expand...

I have a Macbook in my lap, I use a Macbook at work, I have my old Mac as my media machine, my wife and I both own iPods. I personally am on my third.

I understand usability. What you fail to understand is *utility*. I will pay more to gte more usability, but only for functions that make sense and are worth it at that price. UI is nothing when so many functions the tablet could have are missing, and what it does I can do already on devices I own or cheaper devices. (My wife, for instance, has a Kindle, far cheaper for the one thing this makes sense for.)
 
Gizmodo's take

http://i.gizmodo.com/5458382/8-things-that-suck-about-the-ipad

My god, am I underwhelmed by the iPad. This is as inessential a product as I've ever seen, but beyond that, it has some absolutely backbreaking failures that will make me judge anyone who buys one.

Big, Ugly Bezel
Have you seen the bezel on this thing?! It's huge! I know you don't want to accidentally input a command when your thumb is holding it, but come on.

No Multitasking
This is a backbreaker. If this is supposed to be a replacement for netbooks, how can it possibly not have multitasking? Are you saying I can't listen to Pandora while writing a document? I can't have my Twitter app open at the same time as my browser? I can't have AIM open at the same time as my email? Are you kidding me? This alone guarantees that I will not buy this product.

No Cameras
No front facing camera is one thing. But no back facing camera either? Why the hell not? I can't imagine what the downside was for including at least one camera. Could this thing not handle video iChat?

Touch Keyboard
So much for Apple revolutionizing tablet inputs; this is the same big, ugly touchscreen keyboard we've seen on other tablets, and unless you're lying on the couch with your knees propping it up, it'll be awkward to use.

No HDMI/HD Video Out
Want to watch those nice HD videos you downloaded from iTunes on your TV? Too damned bad! If you were truly loyal, you'd just buy an AppleTV already.

The Name iPad
Get ready for Maxi pad jokes, and lots of 'em!

No Flash
No Flash is annoying but not a dealbreaker on the iPhone and iPod Touch. On something that's supposed to be closer to a netbook or laptop? It will leave huge, gaping holes in websites. I hope you don't care about streaming video! God knows not many casual internet users do. Oh wait, nevermind, they all do.

Adapters, Adapters, Adapters
So much for those smooth lines. If you want to plug anything into this, such as a digital camera, you need all sorts of ugly adapters. You need an adapter for USB for god's sake.
Click to expand...
 
Y2Kev said:
I use my netbook to surf in bed, which this looks like it would be quite good at, and to take notes in class (which this thing cannot do comfortably).

I don't really get it. I was expecting Apple to kind of neatly define what a tablet should be, since all the other manufacturers have failed to do that. Apple has two kinds of products in their lineup: products with clearly defined roles with mass appeal and those without. Which do you think this is more like, at least right now?
Click to expand...

I think they have defined it in their eyes - and that is a 'baby' computer (larger iPhone).
 
The video on gizmodo of the guy demonstrating it is pretty cool. And the OS is really fast. Cool tech but again, doesn't seem useful enough. I can't wait for the 3rd revision or so!
 
My god, am I underwhelmed by the iPad. This is as inessential a product as I've ever seen, but beyond that, it has some absolutely backbreaking failures that will make me judge anyone who buys one.

Big, Ugly Bezel
Have you seen the bezel on this thing?! It's huge! I know you don't want to accidentally input a command when your thumb is holding it, but come on.

No Multitasking
This is a backbreaker. If this is supposed to be a replacement for netbooks, how can it possibly not have multitasking? Are you saying I can't listen to Pandora while writing a document? I can't have my Twitter app open at the same time as my browser? I can't have AIM open at the same time as my email? Are you kidding me? This alone guarantees that I will not buy this product.

No Cameras
No front facing camera is one thing. But no back facing camera either? Why the hell not? I can't imagine what the downside was for including at least one camera. Could this thing not handle video iChat?

Touch Keyboard
So much for Apple revolutionizing tablet inputs; this is the same big, ugly touchscreen keyboard we've seen on other tablets, and unless you're lying on the couch with your knees propping it up, it'll be awkward to use.

No HDMI/HD Video Out
Want to watch those nice HD videos you downloaded from iTunes on your TV? Too damned bad! If you were truly loyal, you'd just buy an AppleTV already.

The Name iPad
Get ready for Maxi pad jokes, and lots of 'em!

No Flash
No Flash is annoying but not a dealbreaker on the iPhone and iPod Touch. On something that's supposed to be closer to a netbook or laptop? It will leave huge, gaping holes in websites. I hope you don't care about streaming video! God knows not many casual internet users do. Oh wait, nevermind, they all do.

Adapters, Adapters, Adapters
So much for those smooth lines. If you want to plug anything into this, such as a digital camera, you need all sorts of ugly adapters. You need an adapter for USB for god's sake.
Click to expand...


http://i.gizmodo.com/5458382/8-things-that-suck-about-the-ipad
 
minus_273 said:
because i dont want to go to a website and have flash start up and drain my battery by playing a stupid flash video ad rendering the video in software and using up 100% of the CPU
Click to expand...

You did here of a technology called click to play, right?

If a feature's disabled by default, that's okay with me. But you can't say not having a feature is an advantage; that's quite far-fetched.

-F.
 
Anticitizen One said:
Do you guys think the 2nd generation ipad will have camera/video conferencing/flash/multitasking ?
Click to expand...

You'll never see flash, ever. Everything else is likely in the future.
 
Twit Commentary: iPad is not 16:9, it is not widescreen. When we played the movie it had the movie in a strip with black strips on top and bottom, just like watching on a regular non-hdtv
 
Synth_floyd said:
The video on gizmodo of the guy demonstrating it is pretty cool. And the OS is really fast. Cool tech but again, doesn't seem useful enough. I can't wait for the 3rd revision or so!
Click to expand...

What do you expect from revisions? Nearly every complaint likely to be addressed can be tied back to software, not hardware, camera(s) aside.
 
Man they've really designed this thing around being able to support any orientation. Even the home screen will flip depending on how you hold it, unlike the iPhone which has an obvious "right way up", this looks like it won't matter no matter what (unless you're using an iphone app that doesn't support landscape mode perhaps)
 
wait.. no usb or card slots? wtf is this shit... meh...
and there is much more that makes it meh for me, but i just dont care any more...
 
Sriffat said:
Twit Commentary: iPad is not 16:9, it is not widescreen. When we played the movie it had the movie in a strip with black strips on top and bottom, just like watching on a regular non-hdtv
Click to expand...

Yup, 1024x768 (if thats the resolution) is 4:3.
 
mrkgoo said:
One thing I guess we do know is how this device doesn't encroach on the territories of either a computer or a phone. :lol - in a way, it doesn't quite the job of either :p. I think it sits more in the middle of both devices, with a netbook actually being just a small laptop (so is real close to the laptop end of things).
Click to expand...
I guess for me I see a netbook sitting much more in the middle than the iPad. The iPad to me seems like a big Touch, which is an extremely limiting device made acceptable by super-portability.

What I find so disappointing is that if Apple was unable to come up with an actual Tablet UI, then why didn't they do a "best of both worlds" and have the One More Thing be Jobs hitting a button in a corner (locked out in options when you buy it to avoid scaring people) and have the iPhone UI drop away and a modified OSX UI behind it. No, neither UI would be perfect, but the massive increase in functionality would actually justify its existence.

I agree that the Win7 Tablet UI is clunky but the solution is to refine the UI, not implement a Playskool OS.
 
So, does this thing have an AMOLED screen? My nexus one is gorgeous, just wondering if it has the same for the ipad.
 
I really really disappointed!

It's everything that I wanted and assumed it would be.

That's the problem! Apple have no imagination! Nintendo would have blown us away with something controversial that pushes us and the industry. Apple just shit out something and pretend it's revolutionary when it's just something released a decade ago but simplified.

Having said that, I'll be buying one if its £249 in the UK! But Apple better have something special in June for the new iPhone and not another 3GS yarn!

One thing they really dropped the ball on and I assumed it would be included was a 16:9 screen. It would have looked a lot nicer as well.
 
USB and SD card slots would require it be thicker people...

And people asking for 16:9 have really missed the objective of this having ebook functionality. How many books and textbooks are in 16:9?
 
The iPad looks nifty, but definitely not what I thought it would be, meaning I thought it would do more. It seems like a cool gadget, but I dont think ill get this just yet. Im pretty happy with my macbook pro anyways.
 
mrkgoo said:
I think they have defined it in their eyes - and that is a 'baby' computer (larger iPhone).
Click to expand...
I'm not going to be super critical of this product, but I think this is a pretty interesting failure. Apple started the presentation with the whole "we have this three unique spaces idea," but I don't think the iPad is the product that should follow from that missing second space. iPhone--completely distinct user interface, portable, etc. Computer-- essential, full featured, large and comfortable, etc.

I dunno. A big iPod just seems like such a lazy device. The UI will be fantastic, I'm sure--Apple has not put out a product with a crappy interface since, like, OS 9. But I agree with a previous poster who just questioned the overall utility. It defines itself in terms of other products instead of defining itself in what makes it unique.

This is definitely not the most important thing Steve Jobs has ever done. :lol
 
You could always look at it like this:

There are development gaming consoles and there are gaming consoles.

It's as if everyone has been forced to use a development console just to play games when most people really just want a gaming console to do just that.

Why do people need a system that can do everything? I understand the flexibility, but this device is a blank slate that can do specific things very well, assuming you have the right app.

Yeah, it's strange that it's missing a video camera. But things like that don't invalidate the whole device.

I'm a developer. I need a development computer.

But, when I'm not developing, I enjoy and prefer the Zen-like nature of simplicity. This and the portability of the iPhone is exactly how I want to use a computer (by not thinking about a computer) and just doing the stuff I want that doesn't necessarily involve designing applications and complex UI's, which is pretty much what my work requires.

I really don't want a smaller, touch-like version of my workstation... ie Windows 7 on a Slate PC.

There's a reason PC gaming is such a niche. It's fun and nerdy and techy and bleeding edge, but most people just want to start something up and play, not having to worry about all of the additional bullshit that comes along with the aforementioned.

And for Flash crazies... You might not see it now, but what Apple is doing will benefit the industry. Flash is the only Web "Standard" that is proprietary and that is not a good thing.

You can argue that Flash can do this, but so could anything else given the proper attention... HTML5/CSS3/JS/SQLite/XML/BlahBlahBlah.
 
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