Any of you goons get an iPad?

[Lonestar]

First of all, I strongly dislike Apple and most of their products, so you really can't call me an Apple Fanboy.

Weren't you in the smartphone thread talking about how you live and breath the Apple App store?

Most operating systems, including Windows, suck for doing simple tasks quickly.

I agree that Windows(or even OSX) would not be an optimal Tablet OS, since the only way you could make them quickly boot is with an SSD installed and adding a skin that doesn't make it a nightmare to use with your fingers.

That's why the iPad would be far superior for my needs. I want to do things quickly and easily. It's not that I can't figure out the complicated OS of a netbook, it's that the OS and UI of a netbook just plain suck for doing fast on-the-go things.

So why not just keep using an iPhone(or whatever the next iteration of it is) instead of hauling around a larger device?

To say that netbooks have a "real" operating system while the iPad doesn't is missing the point. The OS and GUI on the iPad is just way more efficient and easier for doing the simple things that most people want to do while on the go.

I repeat: If convience is the driving factor here, why not just keep using an iPhone(or whatever the next iteration of it is) instead of hauling around a larger device? If you're using it for office work, you're probably going to need a real keyboard(Apple is even helpfully providing that as an accessory), so why not get a netbook for that?

I admit the price right now is too high and I don't plan on buying one until that price drops, but at a more reasonable price, the iPad would be great for me.

The price is hideous.

They do it to feel superior, its a holdover from back when we lived in small tribes. At the moment the "ipad buyer tribe" gets all the media attention and the image of being "in" and apple has successfully made it the culturaly accepted thing to buy their products, if you are able, in the last decade or so. So naturally everyone who doesn't plan to buy apple products (or the iPad specifically) is now doing his best to change public opinion against it.

I thought that it was because on this board we favored rationality above all? While I see a function for a tablet in places like warehouses, factory floors, UPS facilities, etc. The iPad will never be the solution to that problem because of the huge expense and the plan for it being a consumer product from the ground up. If a consumer wants somethign that can show movies quickly and with convience, why not stick with your smartphone? If they want something that is lighter than a regular laptop but can do office work for it...why not a netbook?

[Superboy]

Weren't you in the smartphone thread talking about how you live and breath the Apple App store?

The GUI on the iPhone/iPad and the Appstore are the two things done by Apple that I love (and the appstore is really only great because of what other developers have used it for). I can't stand any of their other products, and a huge reason I like the iPhone is because it can be jailbroken to get around the idiotic restrictions Apple placed on it.

So why not just keep using an iPhone(or whatever the next iteration of it is) instead of hauling around a larger device?

I repeat: If convience is the driving factor here, why not just keep using an iPhone(or whatever the next iteration of it is) instead of hauling around a larger device?

If a consumer wants somethign that can show movies quickly and with convience, why not stick with your smartphone?

Because I get a larger screen and more powerful brain in the iPad. It's much more enjoyable to watch those quickly streamed movies and to surf the web and to do many other things on a 10" screen than on a small 3.5" screen. The improved performance should also allow for better apps to be used. Asking why someone would want an iPad instead of just using only the iPhone is like asking why someone would want to a buy a big HD TV when they can just watch Hulu on their computer monitor.

I thought that it was because on this board we favored rationality above all?

It doesn't strike you as idiotic that you're equating irrationality with a person preferring to use a certain product? When I'll choose to use an iPad over a netbook, it's not because I'm ignorant of what a netbook can do or because I have some insane brand loyalty to Apple. I'd choose to use the iPad because it's great for the things I want to do and I'll enjoy using it. That's not irrational, it's a preference.

If they want something that is lighter than a regular laptop but can do office work for it...why not a netbook?

I can't imagine that I'll ever do any office work on the iPad. That's not what I would buy it for. I already have a netbook and if I want to get work done while on a flight or something, I'll use it. But if I want to stream movies or even surf the web, the iPad is much less tedious to use quickly while on the go. There's also a huge difference is ease of use between software for a netbook and an app for the iPad.

It falls in between a smartphone and a netbook. It has the ease of use and superior GUI of the iPhone but a bigger screen and better specs than what can be gotten on a smartphone.

If you don't mind using your netbook while out and about, that's great. Don't buy an iPad. But don't pretend the people who want one are just irrational and don't know what else is available.

Thats the reason why I have simply stated my oppinion and have not answered any other posts in this thread, arguing over this is pointless and will only get me angry.

You're probably right. If people just said that they'd have no use for the iPad, I wouldn't say anything. It just bugs me when people act like the only reason it's selling is because of Apply fanboys and people who don't know any better.

[Skgoa]

They do it to feel superior, its a holdover from back when we lived in small tribes. At the moment the "ipad buyer tribe" gets all the media attention and the image of being "in" and apple has successfully made it the culturaly accepted thing to buy their products, if you are able, in the last decade or so. So naturally everyone who doesn't plan to buy apple products (or the iPad specifically) is now doing his best to change public opinion against it.

I thought that it was because on this board we favored rationality above all?

Then act like it. In this thread people make all kinds of absolute claims that are either entirely subjective oppinions or go against observed reality.
I would also strongly advise reexamining your position - or at least the way you present it - if you say the same things as commenters on places like youtube... although I must admit that this thread is the most entertaining version, since you are all going at it with such fervor.

While I see a function for a tablet in places like warehouses, factory floors, UPS facilities, etc. The iPad will never be the solution to that problem because of the huge expense and the plan for it being a consumer product from the ground up.

Which is why this is a massive strawman. You just pull something out of your ass and declare "its not meant for this, so it will clearly fail!"

If a consumer wants somethign that can show movies quickly and with convience, why not stick with your smartphone?

This is a prime example of what I meant. You are making the argument that someone would prefer to consume media on a smaller screen. Seriously, if this is your definition of rationality, you might want to look that word up.

If they want something that is lighter than a regular laptop but can do office work for it...why not a netbook?

Because netbooks suck? You could have gone with proposing that they should use a different slate... oh wait, all slates until now also sucked.
But yeah, keep on telling people what they should prefer to work on, because in a rational universe people are not any different from yourself, just too stupid to make their own choices.

[Skgoa]

Thats the reason why I have simply stated my oppinion and have not answered any other posts in this thread, arguing over this is pointless and will only get me angry.

You're probably right. If people just said that they'd have no use for the iPad, I wouldn't say anything. It just bugs me when people act like the only reason it's selling is because of Apply fanboys and people who don't know any better.

For me the source of the aggravation was that I had simply looked at what Apple (a company that has no other product I would ever consider buying) offered and liked what I saw... and the next moment the internet exploded with people telling me that only the stupidest and most brainwashed of Apple sheeple would want it. After reading it approximately 783246231721 times, "I don't like it, so you're an idiot. qed!" really started to get on my nerves. You can see that it really got to me in the last iPad thread.
I prefer Star Wars over Star Trek, my favorite Linux distribution is debian, I find boxers more comfortable than the "panty" style underwear, cats will forever be more intelligent and cuter than dogs... And yes, I plan on buying an iPad, could everyone just please grow up and accept that? I don't want to be preached to, no matter if its about a magical sky fairy or my choice of mobile internet and media providing device.

[Max]

I got one on Saturday. Love it. For the majority of my time, I use my laptop or desktop mainly to read my RSS feads, youtube, facebook, porn, and WoW. I'm obviously a very productive person. Anyway, aside from WoW or typing out a paper for class, I haven't needed to use either my desktop or laptop. So I'm enjoying it.

[Dominus Atheos]

One more question: Is there any reason left for Apple to work against people jailbreaking the iPad? I know the (bullshit) reason people gave for the iPhone was something about at&t subsidizing it so they didn't want people to take it to T-Mobile; but now no one is subsidizing it, so what's the problem? Is anyone going to come up with another bullshit reason to defend Apple or are the apple fanboys finally going to admit what everyone else already knows: that even after Apple sells you a device they want to prevent you from using it in any way that doesn't give apple more money? (iTunes, App Store and the retarded new iBook store)

[phongn]

Shit produced by Apple is "premium" now?

Yes. Just as Sony is considered a "premium" brand while Samsung is not. It denotes marketing, not capability.

That's hilarious. Every fucking Apple device I've ever interacted with has been an umitigated piece of shit. Oh, except that they make really nice screens and monitors and the insides of their computers are laid out nicely.

There are two people out of ten or more who I've spoken to who were actually satisfied with their products, and one of them was utterly delusional. Like "Computer freezes up and needs to be hard restarted every ten minutes or so, but Macs don't crash and I'm buying an iPad to read the news" delusional.

The plural of "anecdote" is not "data".

One more question: Is there any reason left for Apple to work against people jailbreaking the iPad?

Apple wants you to play in their walled garden.

[Civil War Man]

One more question: Is there any reason left for Apple to work against people jailbreaking the iPad?

Short answer: When it comes to its products, Apple is secretive to the point of paranoia. It's one of the reasons why they like to keep everything proprietary. Hell, apparently even Apple employees aren't privy to information about new products they are not directly working on.

[Stravo]

Has Apple provided a clear niche for this device? I have the itouch and my kindle so why would I need this? Aside from the commercials which essentially amount to "Hey Look! Shiny and cool toy" I have no idea what I would do with this thing. It's clearly not suppsed to be a cheap alternative to a laptop, it's not cheaper than the Kindle or other readers, it's not portable enough to take with me to listen to music so what the hell is it meant to do/be?

[Dominus Atheos]

Has Apple provided a clear niche for this device? I have the itouch and my kindle so why would I need this? Aside from the commercials which essentially amount to "Hey Look! Shiny and cool toy" I have no idea what I would do with this thing. It's clearly not suppsed to be a cheap alternative to a laptop, it's not cheaper than the Kindle or other readers, it's not portable enough to take with me to listen to music so what the hell is it meant to do/be?

It's "niche" is to get $600+ dollars from stupid apple fanboys who will buy anything that is white and curvy and has an apple logo despite the hardware probably costing about $300 (maybe less after the economy of scale kicks in) and the software being a minor revision to the iPhone OS.

Next year we should probably look for a $250 Apple wristwatch that also displays the phases of the moon.

[General Zod]

Has Apple provided a clear niche for this device? I have the itouch and my kindle so why would I need this? Aside from the commercials which essentially amount to "Hey Look! Shiny and cool toy" I have no idea what I would do with this thing. It's clearly not suppsed to be a cheap alternative to a laptop, it's not cheaper than the Kindle or other readers, it's not portable enough to take with me to listen to music so what the hell is it meant to do/be?

Not to mention you can't multi-task with the iPad. So if you want to have a web-browser up with some type of word program in the background for taking notes? Or a browser with music playing? Pfft, no dice.

[phongn]

Not to mention you can't multi-task with the iPad. So if you want to have a web-browser up with some type of word program in the background for taking notes? Or a browser with music playing? Pfft, no dice.

While not true multitasking, saving state on application shift sort of helps there. True multitasking is probably going to come soon enough (iPadOS 4?), though.

It's "niche" is to get $600+ dollars from stupid apple fanboys who will buy anything that is white and curvy and has an apple logo despite the hardware probably costing about $300 (maybe less after the economy of scale kicks in) and the software being a minor revision to the iPhone OS.

NERDRAAAAAAAGE.

Has Apple provided a clear niche for this device? I have the itouch and my kindle so why would I need this? Aside from the commercials which essentially amount to "Hey Look! Shiny and cool toy" I have no idea what I would do with this thing. It's clearly not suppsed to be a cheap alternative to a laptop, it's not cheaper than the Kindle or other readers, it's not portable enough to take with me to listen to music so what the hell is it meant to do/be?

One interesting niche might be "the computer for everyone" - or the computer for people who hate computers (shades of Macintosh in 1984). It has a different take on interaction than the standard WIMP interface.

[General Zod]

Not to mention you can't multi-task with the iPad. So if you want to have a web-browser up with some type of word program in the background for taking notes? Or a browser with music playing? Pfft, no dice.

While not true multitasking, saving state on application shift sort of helps there. True multitasking is probably going to come soon enough (iPadOS 4?), though.

I shouldn't have to save state then close it down for something simple like copying notes from a browser and pasting it into a document.

[Dominus Atheos]

It's "niche" is to get $600+ dollars from stupid apple fanboys who will buy anything that is white and curvy and has an apple logo despite the hardware probably costing about $300 (maybe less after the economy of scale kicks in) and the software being a minor revision to the iPhone OS.

NERDRAAAAAAAGE.

I already mentioned that I own an iPhone, so clearly I can't be that much of an anti-apple zelot. When they make good products that are reasonably priced (I got my iPhone 3g 16bg for $150 last summer when they were clearing them out to make room for the 3gs) then I like them fine. It's just that between the iMac, iPhone, (supposedly AT&T pays $500-600 per device and then subsidizes them) iPod, and numerous other Apple products that don't seem to have significantly more functionality then lower priced competing products, almost none of their devices fall into those standards.

Hell, Apple makes well over the amount of revenue Microsoft makes ($15.68b vs $12.92b) despite doing a much much, much lower volume of business, so the only possible explanation there is is that Apple must be selling it's products with HUGE margins.

[Stark]

... And so?

Since it's very possible to use iTunes etc without spending a dime, I'm not sure if you have a point or if you're just a dickhead.

[Dominus Atheos]

... And so?

Since it's very possible to use iTunes etc without spending a dime, I'm not sure if you have a point or if you're just a dickhead.

I didn't list iTunes as one of Apple' overpriced products.

[General Zod]

It's "niche" is to get $600+ dollars from stupid apple fanboys who will buy anything that is white and curvy and has an apple logo despite the hardware probably costing about $300 (maybe less after the economy of scale kicks in) and the software being a minor revision to the iPhone OS.

NERDRAAAAAAAGE.

I already mentioned that I own an iPhone, so clearly I can't be that much of an anti-apple zelot. When they make good products that are reasonably priced (I got my iPhone 3g 16bg for $150 last summer when they were clearing them out to make room for the 3gs) then I like them fine. It's just that between the iMac, iPhone, (supposedly AT&T pays $500-600 per device and then subsidizes them) iPod, and numerous other Apple products that don't seem to have significantly more functionality then lower priced competing products, almost none of their devices fall into those standards.

Hell, Apple makes well over the amount of revenue Microsoft makes ($15.68b vs $12.92b) despite doing a much much, much lower volume of business, so the only possible explanation there is is that Apple must be selling it's products with HUGE margins.

According to this a great deal of Apple's revenue boost over the last few years comes from the iPhone.

[Stark]

... And so?

Since it's very possible to use iTunes etc without spending a dime, I'm not sure if you have a point or if you're just a dickhead.

I didn't list iTunes as one of Apple' overpriced products.

So you were just being a dickhead when you irrelevantly complained about jailbreaking? Ok.

Are you more upset that Apple overcharges, or that they are successful at doing it? Do you hate commerce, or just commerce that works?

[Flagg]

Hey if anyone wants to buy me an iPad I'm totally OK with that.

[Master of Ossus]

Has Apple provided a clear niche for this device? I have the itouch and my kindle so why would I need this? Aside from the commercials which essentially amount to "Hey Look! Shiny and cool toy" I have no idea what I would do with this thing. It's clearly not suppsed to be a cheap alternative to a laptop, it's not cheaper than the Kindle or other readers, it's not portable enough to take with me to listen to music so what the hell is it meant to do/be?

Apple seems to argue that the iPad is its own niche (tablet computer). I'm not terribly impressed, from what I've seen, but I haven't made any detailed inquiry into the device or its uses, so far.

[Admiral Valdemar]

I don't know about everyone else, but the news ticker on my desktop is constantly churning out stories about the iPad from "Which apps are iPad owners downloading?" to "The iPad: Celebrity Computer" and my favourite: "Colleges dream of paperless work with iPad".

Christ on a bendy bus, did Apple just invent TEH COMPUTOR? It sure sounds like it.

[Stark]

The concept of buzz is key to any product launch. Like itor not, Apple is launching this product on the possibility angle, which seems to be working.

[General Zod]

The concept of buzz is key to any product launch. Like itor not, Apple is launching this product on the possibility angle, which seems to be working.

The sheer amount of buzz that led up to the launch is enough to make me hate the iPad on principle.

[Stark]

A cynic might say they're selling it on rose-tinted 'possibility' because they have no solid ideas for its actual use themselves.

[Covenant]

Well, I wouldn't say it's in the tablet PC niche. It's not a tablet as much as it is an e-reader with a lot of other functions that e-readers normally can't provide. That's a much more fair comparison, and while it's luxury priced Apple products are the luxury computer, and what's so wrong about that? Luxury doesn't denote "most powerful," just the sleekest, smoothest, and sometimes just purpose-built.

That may be a bit of a semantical difference, but there's a lot of other tablet PCs being aimed to counter the iPad, and they'll all be more powerful and have more options than it, but I doubt any of them will recreate the slim and simple way it works. Honestly, let the tablet PC market just buzz along a different path, and keep the pad as a combination smart-messenger, notepad, reader function. It's got bluetooth already. If it's able to use the bluetooth phone doodad to run voice activated dialing and such, and they give it some multitasking (at least letting the phone application run at the same time as something else) then you could turn it into a kind of stand-alone briefcase replacement that doubles as a smartphone, audio-recording note-taker, and e-reader. Give the thing a carrying case with a flexible antenna in the shoulder-strap to boost mobile wi-fi (and can be slung across the back of a chair to recieve), voice-activation and bluetooth and you could walk around talking into it, "Call John" style, and that'd be pretty nice. Tons of other things can do this, such as the computers in cars. And when you get to where you're going this briefcase-replacing hardware can just plug into the desktop. I'm sure the thing knows how to sync with a computer, presumably even a PC, right? If not, they could make a piece of software to do that.

I'd still like a tablet PC because I want to be able to use a wacom-style interface to draw on for photoshop while out in the wild, but the market for that kind of a robust tablet is pretty slim. For everyone else, the iPad could be a lot less of a toy in a generation or two, since a lot of these functions would do the thing that old, grumpy users want: replacing old devices with a single light one.

Honestly, you could probably do well in a corporate atmosphere if the thing could run presentation software well, take notes from voice and make an attempt to translate into text, and run videoconferencing functions. It's some minor functionality and hardware additions away from being a very handy device, and in the meantime it's still not a total waste if you're someone who never bought an iPhone.