I had a Creative MP3 player. Still have it. It has superior sounding qualities, files could be dragged and dropped, FM tuner, etc. I don’t use it not because of shitty “Creative Jukebox” (I never even tried it). I use iPhone because I want all-in-one. The only time I use iTunes is to sync apps and contacts. Music and videos are synced with a third-party application, which is much more flexible and I can simply drag and drop files.

>NOBODY is taking the time and spending the money to make a suite of custom-
>designed apps for their Android-based devices.

Google does. Nexus works great, so does Droid. I am pretty sure that tablets that will be released will provide a decent user experience. While Apple definitely rocks at doing that, they compromise on some essential features. I am waiting for a no-compromise tool. Give me 8 hours of playback but include a camera. Charge a bit more but if you’re including 3G, don’t introduce mini-SIM cards and don’t lock it to data only. Etc. It’ll be great to see what the modding community does with this toy. Maybe when in London, ON, I’ll drop by check out your new iPad.

I’m pretty “meh” about the CES tablets. Everyone and their brother is releasing Android devices. Some of the hardware is great, and the OS is great, but NOBODY is taking the time and spending the money to make a suite of custom-designed apps for their Android-based devices. Without that, it won’t be a slick, custom experience, optimized for the tablet form-factor. Without that, the iPad will continue to kick their asses for a long time to come.

The original iPod beat every other MP3 player in exactly the same way: it came with iTunes. Apple wins because it builds & optimizes both the hardware and the software, so they work together perfectly.

Yes, there were geeks who insisted their Creative MP3 Player was better, because it had an FM tuner, but eventually they realized how inferior “Creative Jukebox” was to iTunes, and they switched. Today, some people use Songbird to manage their music, but this is 10 years later! It has taken SO long for the rest of their industry to get their shit together and design a single elegant competitor. Insanity.

A number of tiny tablets were showcased at CES. Lots will hit the market. Starting from 5″ devices (http://www.slipperybrick.com/2010/01/dell-unveils-mini-5-tablet-prototype/).

I am tempted to get the iPad but won’t be lining up to buy it.

I have no idea what you’re talking about when you said “non-CSS compliant”. I’ve never had a problem with Mobile Safari rendering anything… except Flash.

As for the whole USB thing, Apple actually released USB and SD-Card attachments for the iPad. They’re kind of hokey, but at least they let you use USB & SD. See’em here: http://www.aworldofchange.info/2010/01/27/apple-ipads-myriad-optional-dongles-usb-sd-ac-bbq-apple/

It’s only a matter of time until Belkin or someone releases a full-featured dock that includes a USB hub, nice external speakers, keyboard, a top-mounted webcam, and some kind of harddrive that backs up the iPad automatically. It won’t be too expensive, and it’ll be well worth it.

I think I’ll get a first generation iPad (16 gig, wifi only) just to see if I like it. If I do,I’ll sell it as soon as the 2nd generation is announced, and order myself a top-of-the-line iPad 2.0 with max storage, 3G, and whatever else it includes.

I’ve been using iPhone since the first generation, most of my daily web browsing is done on the deive and one thing I greatly miss is Flash.

This device is for non-geeks; basically, those people who will use it on their couch, browse non-CSS compliant web sites (most likely with Flash) and chat with their relatives/grandchildren (most likely with video). I would have purchased it for my dad who hates his PC, and all he does is exactly that: browse the web and videoconference with me and other folks. It’s a deal breaker, and I am pretty sure it’s a deal breaker for many. One reassuring thing is that some leaked photos of the iPad taken apart show an empty space for camera (http://www.macrumors.com/2010/02/01/ipad-enclosure-has-empty-space-for-camera/)

USB? Essential. If we’re talking about the “only” computer, then who wouldn’t want to take photos with their pocket camera, take the memory card out, stick in a reader and show to friends?

In any case, I will wait for the second generation. Hopefully iPad will face some competition from the planned releases by HP, DELL, et al. It will give Apple a good reason to include some of the obvious features the current generation is lacking.

Let’s see what happens with iPhone this coming summer. Google’s Nexus One is a worthy competitor, so Mr. Jobs can no longer sit back and relax.

I use my iPhone for a LOT of web browsing, and 99% of the time I don’t miss Flash. USB is also not required – you can do a lot via WiFi these days. Many printers support WiFi printing. In an interview, Steve Jobs said the iPad will support printing at launch.

Lack of web cam is not a huge deal (though I agree it is annoying). The amount of people who think video conferencing is cool is very high, but the amount of people who actually DO video conferencing is very low. Not a deal breaker, just a nice to have.

It may be useless as YOUR only computer, but most people don’t require all the features you would use. They’re not “necessities”. Just useful-for-geeks.

>Coupled with the keyboard dock, I believe it is in fact good enough to be most >people’s ONLY computer.

no it’s not. web experience is not complete w/o Flash. no USB = no connectivity to printer, USB drive, etc. no webcam = inability to video conference.

yes, it’s fast, slim, beautiful but… useless as the “only computer”. I will wait for the second generation of the iPad or get one from another manufacturer that will include the aforesaid necessities.

Apple can’t be “excused” by taking so much time, bulding up so much hype/expection, and then releasing a barely useful device.

>>all this crap about the tablet being four iPhones duct-taped together misses the point. The game changed and an iPod Touch is now a quarter-tablet

I agree 100% !

>>The tablet is definitely Apple’s fourth “it” device, after the Mac in ‘84, the iMac in 1999 or so and the iPod shortly after.

Even though the iPhone is really a mini-iPad, I still think the iPhone was the 4th.
Mobile internet was SUPERSHIT before it came out. Have you ever tried to browse a WAP/WEP website? Eeeek!
Data was 10x more expensive.
Multi-touch didn’t exist.
Mobile games were limited to Nintendo DS & PSP.

>>Apple’s biggest error in this was making it too good. . . sexier than a MacBook . . . overpriced dinosaur. Instead of standing alone or adding value to the rest of the lineup, I think it’s going to cannibalize

I thought that, too.
Then I saw this quote:
“If anyone is going to cannibalize the sale of our products it might as well be us.” – Steve Jobs

He’s got all the angles covered

>> What will be left is the $2000+ pro and the tablet.

techies will continue to buy their desktops & laptops, because they need access to more hardcore stuff
but what’s going to happen is that everyone else will buy ipads
i don’t mean “everyone who would otherwise have bought a laptop or desktop”
i mean something closer to “everyone who is alive and wants to be online”
there are SO MANY people who don’t have computers because computers make them feel stupid or dumb, or because they think they won’t be able to figure them out.
apple is going to sell an ipad to 50% of those people
then those people will each convince 1 friend to get one, because it’s so easy to use

word of mouth rules

apple stores will help a lot too, because they’re a no-pressure place where people can hold them, and try them out, and ask all sorts of questions.

As for the Apple stuff, I can’t explain myself any better than Stephen Fry explained himself: “I do like and have tried to champion OpenSource software. How can I square that with my love of Apple? I’m complicated. I’m a human being. I also believe in a mixed economy and mixed nuts. I love our National Health Service and the National Theatre, but I also love Fortnum and Mason’s and Hollywood movies.”

I know intuitively that Openness must and will succeed, but at the same time I have an increasingly low tolerance for stuff that isn’t superbly designed. I don’t ever want to have to tweak/configure/fix things. They should just work. Apple’s products, by and large, do just that.

Ubuntu has made great strides in the last few years, but I won’t be going back to a fully open ecosystem until it approaches the simplicity & design I can get from Apple.

Fry’s excellent article – http://www.stephenfry.com/2010/01/28/ipad-about/