Seven years later, many are still asking the wrong questions about Apple’s iPad

14 Comments

“When Apple’s iPad was first announced seven years ago today, some people wondered whether it would work as a giant phone,” Lauren Goode writes for The Verge. “It’s hard to imagine now, given that talking on the phone is a dying art form. But this morning I was reminded (thanks, Facebook) of a photo someone took of me on January 27th, 2010 using a large piece of cardboard as a proxy for the real iPad; it was pressed up to the side of my face like I was making a phone call with it. It was intentionally ridiculous. It was the wrong question to ask.”

“In the tech media, we often examine products based on the products we already know, and so we end up with the wrong context,” Goode writes. “The iPad, when it was first introduced, was a good example of that. And it’s still happening today.”

Goode writes, “Asking if it’s a laptop replacement means we’re overlooking the real future of computing.”

Read more in the full article here.

MacDailyNews Take: Yup.

Welcome to the new world of personal computing for the masses. Given what the average users do, Apple’s iPad is what “personal computing” for the average user should’ve always been, had the technology existed back when Steve Jobs first delivered personal computing to the masses. — MacDailyNews, November 11, 2015

14 Comments

  1. To me an ipad has to grow beyond mainly a consumption and text/email device.

    The day Apple releases an Ios-Pro with full user manageable file sys and io …. and the day i can run full photoshop rather than a 100 snippets on my pro.. …will be the day that i agree post pc era is eventually here.

    In the meanwhile i am happy with my 12.6 as a mainly a consumption device… … and it may be that most wont want anything more from it… but i really do!
    I spend a lot of time om my ipad…. i like to use it even more …. for creating high end content.

    Reply

    2. I built an entire tech business based the iPad/tablets.

      After years of analyzing and using them, the iPad is without question a giant iPod Touch. And that means two main things:

      -It’s not a laptop replacement (it’s a terrible productivity device); and
      -It’s an excellent content consumption device.

      Period. The end. No matter how many ugly velcro keyboard things you throw at the iPad, it’s hamstrung by iOS and a small screen.

      I keep repeating this: Apple has an operating system problem. It needs 1 operating system accomodating multiple input modes with a mew class of devices.

      I own the iPad Pro 12.9″ and it’s a joke compared to my MacBook Pro. You need power. Screen size… precise input to get any real work done.

      iOS is barely better than Palm OS: iOS are a joke. Android Apps are cheap knockoffs.

      Reply

  2. MDN is right about iPad. It needs to be paired with a Smart Keyboard that provides additional battery, better speakers, a touchpad, and perhaps additional horsepower.

    I imagine they’ve been waiting to do this until the iPad screen is large enough. (Apple, 12.9″ is big enough. Let’s get this done.)

    Might they still be waiting until the new Apple file system is fully baked? Perhaps it allows easy stacking of processors?

    Reply

    1. So, it’s larger to accommodate
      – more storeage
      – more battery
      – bigger speakers
      – a keyboard
      – a touchpad
      – more powerful chips and their associated circuitry
      They could call it a MacBook.

      Reply

  3. I’ve always been a desktop guy. Given the limited number of tools we’ve had to work with over the decades that was pretty much my only choice. I’d spend untold hours on my Macs, that is, up until I got my first iPad. After that, the majority of my computing is now done with the iPad.

    It’s true, the iPad is the perfect device for quickly checking a story, writing an email or looking something up on google. As such, the majority of my computing time has moved from the desktop to the couch.

    Now, having said that, APPLE has to understand that no matter how much I love my iPad (and my iPhone) and spend most of my time on those two devices, I still need my desktop machines. I need my laptops (on the desktop). I need my iMacs and my old Mac Pro. I have each one configured for different jobs/duties. They are my tools. APPLE has to understand this.

    While computing is obviously changing, there are still a lot of users who need all of the tools, from the iPhone on up.

    APPLE, give us a new Mac Pro. It’s a tool like the others. Maybe you won’t sell many of them but there is a segment of Mac users that consider them important and necessary for certain, very specialized work. Don’t kill off a tool people need just because you don’t use it or don’t believe people should be using it.

    iPhone. iPad. PowerBook(s). iMac(s). Mac Pro. I need and use them all.

    Reply

  4. It’s really freaking weird how every product Apple makes is being questioned as to why it exists. The iPad surely isn’t the perfect device for every user, but plenty have been sold over the years, so some people must have found them worthwhile. It’s possible even I might prefer a 2 in 1 device like a Surface Pro but that’s just personal preference and only if I can’t afford two separate devices. I don’t think that The Surface Pro is better than an iPad, it’s just an alternative for those who want it. I don’t consider Apple building a single purpose iPad as a mistake. That’s just how Apple does things. Less compromises and such. I don’t understand why people keep claiming Apple is doing things the wrong way. Are they really doing things wrong? Apple should know better than anyone.

    Reply

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