Robot Claw

So for those that somehow have avoided the media saturation, Apple launched a new device last Saturday called the iPad. It is a portable computer (or is it?) with a touch screen, and comes preloaded with software for the internet, email, video, music and a few other useful tasks.

I have evangelized this device already, but not until Saturday had I the chance to actually use (or even see) one first hand. So now I own it, and have used it for a few days, what are my impressions?

Let me put it this way: logging on to type up this blog entry is the first I have used my desktop since the iPad arrived. Everything about the iPad is so user-friendly and… uncluttered than a desktop (and I say that as someone who could be called a ‘techie’) that the experience is just… refreshing for lack of a better word.

I’ve entered all my email accounts into the device, all my contacts and all my web bookmarks. I’ve set up an RSS reader, a pdf viewer and even started planning our upcoming trip in the calendar. I truly believe the iPad will (has?) become my device of choice for the internet as well as general organizational productivity, and there’s no question it will drastically cut down on the usage of my desktop.

This is not to say it is (at least currently) a full computer replacement. For instance I cannot yet make a blog entry on it that includes images. I can’t dump photos directly onto it from a memory card. I can’t do video editing or processing. I can’t do programming, word processing or use excel.

Some of these I can’t do because the device doesn’t have the hardware (such as dumping photos). Some of them are due to a lack of software. All of these things may, one day, be possible by the iPad. Some of them (spreadsheets, word processing) already are if I buy the correct software.

In short while it is currently a fantastic device for general internet use and ‘fun stuff’ it is not yet a replacement for everything you use your computer for.

However – and this is a big however – studies have shown that the vast majority of people use their computers almost exclusively for the internet. Think about what sort of computing you do at home. How often do you do anything other than web surfing or emailing? My guess is not often. Now realize the iPad brings an arguably superior internet experience than your computer (I cannot talk enough about how good the touch screen works) and think again about it as a viable replacement.

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There are detractors for this device. Many can be dismissed as the anonymous jealous of the internet, but a lot of press has recently been given to condemning Apple (who controls the distribution of the 150,000 applications available for the iPhone OS) for limiting or banning certain types of software (such as of a sexual nature or politically inflammatory). I believe such arguments can be dismissed for one reason: the iPad has a fully functional internet browser.

Other criticisms of this device are dismissible for simply condemning it for what it is not. “But it’s a big iPod touch!” Yes, yes it is, and this is exactly why it is so good. “But it doesn’t have Flash!” No it doesn’t, and soon enough the internet won’t either. “But it doesn’t have a keyboard!” No it doesn’t, but those that criticize this lack are almost certainly those that haven’t used the touch keyboard and realized just how good it is.

I love the iPad. Of course I expected to but I honestly am surprised by just how much I like it, and by how much I want it to represent the future of casual computing. To the skeptics I say “Give it a chance.” I think they may be as surprised as I am by how well Apple has crafted not only the hardware, but the software and indeed the entire experience of the iPad.

If you have any questions about the iPad please put them in the comments.

And BS: we have to get the SDK for this thing and start making some apps!