As an Apple lover, I had waited with anticipation for the rumored Apple “tablet”. Yesterday my wait was over; the iPad had arrived. I went to a lot of web sites where some of the younger geeks tended to bash it for its’ apparent limitations, some of which were:
- No multitasking
- No Adobe Flash
- No camera or iChat capabilities
- Still limited to AT&T’s 3G service
First, I didn’t expect the iPad to replace my iPhone, or my MacBook Pro, or my iMac 27,” or my digital camera. I would have liked a carrier other than AT&T because of their abysmal service, but I’m saying a prayer that situation will change in the near future.
Steve Wozniak was unhappy that it didn’t allow him to edit movies or fool around with music. Steve, don’t you have a real Mac for that? I do.
Mashable has a great article about the purpose of the iPad. It proposed that the iPad is a device for consuming content, not creating it.
As such it is uniquely suited to this task. If I want to create content like this blog post, for instance, I sure as heck will use my 27“ iMac–not an iPad.
What do I find so valuable about it?
- It will save trees, millions of them. Right now I have literally hundreds of books lining the shelves of several book cases. I tend to read several at a time, and have to carry at least two with me–just in case. With the iPad, I can have all the books I’m currently interested in with me when I go to Cafe La Tartine for tea. I can de-clutter my house by passing along my unused book cases to someone who needs them.
- It has a much larger screen (9.7inches) than my iPhone. As we age, our eyes need help reading small print. I’ve tried reading some books on my iPhone, and it’s darn difficult! I’ll be able to read bigger text and enjoy it rather than struggling. We have a client who is trying to read a 600 page novel on his iPhone, and it takes 13,000 pages. On the iPad, it will take 600.
- At a mere 1.5 pounds, it’s light weight, and only 1/2” thick (that’s actually “thin”). My laptop is increasingly difficult for me to carry, and when I take it somewhere it’s usually to surf the web, check email, look at Facebook, or post to Twitter. I hardly need a laptop for those tasks if I have an iPad.
- It’s small enough to fit in a woman’s tote bag or large purse without having to carry yet another case. Men will have to figure out their own preferred method of transport.
How will I use it?
- As a book reader. I love reading but the arthritis in my hands sometimes interferes with holding the books pages open. No such problem exists with the iPad. I can have my current books with me wherever I go, meaning I’ll actually read more — what a concept.
- To get email while I‘m away from my real computers. I’m CEO of Alive! Whole Life Fitness Studio and I need to be able to access my email wherever I am — OK, except at the movies or maybe the bathroom.
- To browse the internet (of course). I’ll be able to look up the latest Onion articles and laugh my a** off. Laughing is good.
- I’ll finally be able to actually see the Facebook app and post updates; Twitter will be easier to see as well. It’s those eyes again!
- To keep my favorite photos of my family and friends so I can share them with people I meet. I promise I won’t force them to look!
- To access some of my favorite YouTube videos; the ones that either make me laugh or inspire me.
- I’ll use the Maps feature to find my way to a new restaurant or a business.
I hope Apple extends the iBook store to publishing eBooks created by us folks; what a concept! A friend of ours also had a great suggestion. Some of the publishers could subsidize the cost of the iPad in return for a long term subscription to their content. It could work kind of like the old book club model, only on steroids.
If Apple is smart (and I think they are really, really smart), they’ll market this to my demographic; the 50-pluser’s and above. As DTNick said in a comment in a PC World article :
“As I mentioned …, we geeks sometimes lose touch of what real people use computers for: http://bit.ly/cLtQUy
My mom, for example, isn’t going to care about multitasking, the aspect ratio, the lack of an HDMI port, or any of that spec stuff. All she’ll care about is whether it’s easy to use, and whether it’ll get her online.”
DTNick, I’m not your Mom–but I could be. Thanks for thinking of me!
So, geeks who want more than what the iPad offers, please don’t buy one; obviously it’s not for you. Leave it for us, the 78 million plus Boomers and beyond (I’m a bit beyond) who will find it an extremely valuable piece of technology.
© 2010, Taru Fisher. All rights reserved.
{ 6 comments… read them below or add one }
Enjoyed ur article! I, too, can’t wait for the iPad! I’m 43 and I’m excited about the functionality and portability it will offer me. I also enjoy my 27″ iMac (my old iMac died in November) and the bigger screen is fantastic & I don’t have any vision problems. I’m not a big tech geek but I love using tech gadgets that help me everyday. Thanks again for all ur comments, I enjoy them!
Thanks, Bruce. I actually used to have a business called True Computing Solutions where I consulted and trained the mature crowd on how to use Macs to enrich their lives. I loved that work! My Mac’s (and technology) just make my life easier and more fun, and it sounds like it’s the same for you.
Taru-
i loved your post, it reflects much of what i have been looking for in a tablet computer for a long time. i have my work computers for the work that requires a full fledged computer and they are tricked out to the nth degree to accomplish that work.
what i have been longing for is a magazine sized media and web-surfing device to carry with me for anytime access to my books, magazines, media and the web: the iPad!
i can’t wait to get my hands on one.
Tushar-
Yes, I can hardly wait to get my hands on it as well. I love reading and since my eyes are having visual challenges, the larger font on the iPad will be very useful. I think book lovers will take to the iPad in droves.
Taru this is encouraging. I’ve been reading so much negative news about this. I don’t know a lot about the newest technology; I barely know my way around my cell phone. But I appreciate reading a calm, matter-of-fact account of the iPad. Hope you are both very happy together
Thanks for commenting! I won’t be buying one just yet; I generally wait until the second iteration so others can get the “bugs” out. I wasn’t sure I’d want one until I actually researched it and wrote the blog post. I convinced myself I want it. I’ll report on it more when I actually have one.