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“Consumer research firm MyType conducted the study, in which opinions of 20,000 people were analyzed between March and May,” Van Buskirk reports. “The firm’s conclusion was that iPad owners tend to be wealthy, sophisticated, highly educated and disproportionately interested in business and finance, while they scored terribly in the areas of altruism and kindness. In other words, ‘selfish elites.’ ‘They are six times more likely to be “wealthy, well-educated, power-hungry, over-achieving, sophisticated, unkind and non-altruistic 30-50 year olds,’ MyType’s Tim Koelkebeck told Wired.com.”
“96 percent those most likely to criticize the iPad, on the other hand, don’t even own one, although as geeks, they were slightly more likely to do so than the average population — and far more likely to have an opinion about the device one way or the other,” Van Buskirk reports. “This group tends to be ‘self-directed young people who look down on conformity and are interested in videogames, computers, electronics, science and the internet,’ said Koelkebeck.”
Van Buskirk reports, “One might expect people with an interest in videogames, computers, electronics, science and the internet to be interested in a device that lets you play videogames, functions like a computer, is made of electronics, relies on science and connects to the internet, which suggests there would be a high convert rate if the ‘have nots’ just went to an Apple Store for the afternoon.”
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: Does the iPad really cost that much? US$499 to start? Hardly seems like much a bar to set for “elite” status (sniff). And, for the record, we want to share our iPad love with everyone!*
*But, go buy your own, already; you can’t touch our revolutionary top-of-the-line 64GB iPad 3G’s with your smeary newbie greasy fingers. 
[Thanks to MacDailyNews Reader “Dow C.” for the heads up.]
Damn the begrudgers, iPad owners, and enjoy !
Meanwhile, I’m not buying an iPad with obsolete technology, preferring to wait for next year’s model with the retina display
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I’ll do with my iPhone and MacBook Pro for now…
So let me see if I understand this correctly. If I criticize something I donʻt own in electronics that makes me an independent geek not a sour grapes or jealous person.
This “consumer research” survey sounds highly suspect to me.
Here’s what I wrote on the survey site:
Here’s where this breaks down for me…
You surveyed 20,000 people on Facebook…I’m assuming you didn’t randomly survey people but got random people from Facebook to answer some questions…people who volunteer for online surveys are also likely more inclined to have very strong opinions…likely stronger than your average person you might survey on the street. Next, there are over 3,000,000 iPad owners at this point…so some subset of 20,000 people who are iPad owners hardly make up a good statistic about iPad owners…what it makes is MAYBE a good subset of early adopters…of which I am one…and while I can be as selfish as the next person…I’m also altruistic and donate a fair share of my time and money each year to causes greater than myself…like homelessness.
Here’s one last thing…your numbers prove that the iPad haters are lazy, prideful and greedy…so how does that really add up when it comes to profiling us iPad elites are selfish???
So based on your numbers…the independent geeks…are childless, lazy, prideful, greedy, yet morally superior atheist. Good work…you’ve really nailed it. (eye rolling)
“don’t touch our iPads with your filthy microshit/dell paws that have been greased with cash and are infected with idiocy”
And the conductors of the study are arrogant, obsessive, voyeurs with an overinflated sense of self-importance and relevance: an inventory of indicators which add up to a textbook case of insecurity and envy.
Just more FUD from the so-called news media.
Could it be just the 20,000 idiots that were polled are on facebook are elitists? I will bet that there is a higher percent of elitists on facebook and twitter than there are among those of us who don’t need to announce every time we read a book, or go to a restaraunt, or have a good bowel movement. Just sayin’
“96 percent those most likely to criticize the iPad, on the other hand, don’t even own one”
And there you have it.
Wonder where my 80 year old mom fits into… lives on SS and bought an iPad so she could have something easy to use for emailing her kids. Ya, guess that makes her selfish…
@theloniousMac
“Truth be told, I fall somewhere between the two groups.”
I’d like to think the best of you, Mac, so I’ll assume you always wash your hands.
It’s funny how the “have nots” always label the “haves” as selfish elites. By the way, the definition of “haves” is someone that has 2 dollars more than you.
Who cares? I have one and they don’t. It just the new form of dick envy.
I guess there are always exceptions to the rule.
I fall into most of those categories except I dont know about the love-less stuff. I buy food for the hungry, donate to breast cancer charities, have helped at homeless shelters. Maybe that is not “love”.
As I said, I am also ambitious, money hungry (dont know about power hungry), and always looking for a way to transfer wealth from your pocket to my pocket by providing product and services. Theft is out of the question. Stretching the truth is OK, though.
So I wonder where I fit in the world according to other’s definition/perception of reality?
Between March and May? No wonder so many of those interviewed did not own one. . . . Sour grapes?
Yeah, these so-called poles are a bit suspect.
I just quickly poled everyone in this room who owns an iPad. Every one of them is over sixty, and retired. Their average income is under $30,000, and they’re all involved in volunteer work.
Message to the morons who conducted this “study” and everyone who agrees with it: Go f**k yourselves!
@anonymous: Do you really care?
Don’t let this crap bother any of you. Magazines like Wired do studies like this to prey on and pigeonhole the weak-minded into tight little categories, and only those with weak self-esteem and hyper-consumer disease actually buy into this garbage and let themselves be packed into the sardine can that is “social” branding.
Man, elementary school dreck like this is so pathetic…
Oh, and @anonymous- do people give you money because of their “perception” of you; I mean, outside of your profession?
If not, why do you care? Why bother? Unless there’s some sort of true tangible reward for what people think of you; other than some sort of ego-boosting “satisfaction”; what… is… the… point?!?!?
I never understood the need to be “liked” or for attention in high school, and I never will. I get NOTHING out of it, and spent my high school years telling those who tried to push their pathetic “peer pressure” crap on me how stupid and worthless they were. It’s funny how things don’t change for some even after they become “adults”.
Oh well. Not my problem, but hilarious and pitiful nevertheless.
New survey in:
95% of iPad haters- clueless and easily stroked losers- will flock to and pour hits on any website that will stroke their fragile little egos with “studies” that call them “kind, altruistic and independent thinkers”
Mmm does that make me a selfish elite? Well… in the minds of apple hating geekboy losers (who’s life becomes more painful with every day that apple succeeds) that is a certainty.
24 yo broke ass college graduated that couldnt afford a iMac lol who fights for low income housing i sooooo am not rich and looking for a job with a non profit that has a positve social change for the working poor unless im the only exception to the study which in that case were screwed
@breeze
Reading comprehension, my friend. The characteristics you described contribute to the “elite” part of the label. Elite in itself is not a bad thing and does not have a ba connotation – quite the opposite in fact.
“Michael Jordan was an elite athlete.”
Unkind and non-altruistic contribute to the “selfish” part of the label. That’s the part that has a “negative social stigma” and rightfully so.
In combination, a selfish elite sounds like someone who is successful and intelligent but puts personal gain above anything else. Whether this is accurate for iPad owners is debatable, but for someone who attacked me for poor reading comprehension, you really should think (and read) before writing. Big words don’t mask your poor comprehension skills.
@mac_KID
You and my 13year old who is saving up for one by mowing yards.
I’m an elite, not a geek. GREAT!
Im Rich Im Rich !!!!!!!!!!!!
Notice how the attributes (particularly negative ones) are suspiciously missing from the description of an “Independent Geek”?
This tells you who the (alledgedly) independent reviewer associates themself with.
In digging into their own website, it appears that some of the attributes of an “Independent Geek” include:
GREEDY
PRIDEFUL
LAZY
…plus atheistic and with *zero* kids.
Based on the combination of the above, it would appear that the so-called “Independent” Geek demographic is a leach & still living in Mom’s basement. Wish I was joking.
-hh
wealthy, well-educated, power-hungry, over-achieving, sophisticated, unkind and non-altruistic 30-50 year olds,’ — uh, yeah, you called?