The iPad is going to change the world.
If you don’t yet know what the iPad is, check this out.
Yes yes, when it was announced everyone was a skeptic. No USB, no Flash, no camera etc. The biggest dismissal: “It’s just a big iPod touch!”
I was unsure myself at first, although less critical than some. I was wondering what the plan was, but with a few weeks gone I think I’m starting to see the big picture.
For instance, Microsoft is thinking about putting Office on the thing, Disney is talking about releasing apps that work with their TV shows (ie. you watch the show via the app and interact in some way). Hulu.com’s making an app for it (this should silence the ‘no flash’ naysayers somewhat) and who knows exactly what Apple has planned for magazine delivery on the device?
All this is well and good, but my reason for being so excited about it is exactly because it’s just a big iPod touch.
On my iPod touch I have a browser, an RSS reader, a mail app, and apps for music, video and photos. In addition I have a slew of games and all sorts of nifty productivity apps (like a pdf reader, a password app and a dictionary). I often use the device in lieu of my computer, since most of the time when I use the computer all I do is check the web and/or email, and I can do that just fine on the iPod touch. In fact the thing is so useful that I’ve often thought of an obvious way it could be improved: give it a bigger screen.
I’d wager that the vast majority of home computer usage – worldwide – boils down to email, web and quick, simple games. The iPad does all of this as good as any PC, but much easier. For most common activities I suspect it will be an simpler solution that turning on a computer or laptop. Since we, as humans, love ‘simple’, it seems only natural that this will be one of the big draws of the iPad.
In time, new iterations of the device will (I suspect) add such things as a USB slot or card reader (both could remove the need for a PC with regards to digital photography), a stylus (a korean sausage perhaps?) and maybe even a camera (for Skype). Furthermore the price can only go down, which will make it a more attractive purchase for those looking for a new solution to their needs.
Unlike those that say “this is hardly a replacement for your laptop”, I don’t subscribe to the idea that we need all the gizmo’s we have on our PCs today, and that it is only natural the way we use the internet will change as our interface changes. I see the iPad as the first truly serious replacement for a computer, and if is only at least as good as a iPod touch but with a bigger screen, well then I’m convinced.
I edited my original version of this post because of typos and bad grammar. Blame the fact (ironically) that it was mostly done from my iPod 🙂