Lance Esondi asked:




Many have waited a number of years for the Apple Tablet. Each announcement there was hope for the tablet and finally it has actually arrived. The iPad is here. One thing that many are focused on now is the operating system that it runs. Is it running a stripped down OSX or something else?

Those who were hoping to have a small tablet computer that was like your OSX operating system might be a bit let down. The iPad is using a version of the iPhone’s operating system. Essentially it’s a giant iPhone or more correctly iPod Touch since there is no phone feature. While this is somewhat understandable there is one huge missing piece.

The big problem is that there is no multithreading technology. This means that your $500+ tablet computer can only run one application at a time just like your iPhone. For some who enjoy multitasking while using a computer this is a big let down. Even the cheapest sub $200 netbooks running Linux can handle multiple applications at one time and that hardware is quite a bit less powerful than what the iPad has.

One can hope though since this is the first version. The desire from customers for multitasking through multiple applications will surely push Apple to come with with a solution. If not, it’s possible that someone will come up with a hack for the device. Jailbreaking the iPad won’t have as much problems as it is when jailbreaking the iPhone because there is no chance of losing the phone capability.

Juanita

Andrew Eisner asked:




According to a Gadgetology study, Apple had an uphill battle to win over existing PC users with the iPad price.

Making the iPhone more than just another Mac product and attracting non-Mac buyers, Apple turned in record sales numbers preceding the iPad announcement.

The study indicated that Apple had to put a rush on capturing a slice of the netbook market, because many consumers, both Mac and PC owners, had already bought a netbook or were planning on buying one.

In the Gadgetology study, a survey of online users conducted by an independent panel, these interesting insights into the Apple tablet were provided:

Before the official announcement, Apple had an easier time convincing Mac owners, because the price was rumored at $800. In the study, 68% of Mac owners said they would have paid more than $600 for a tablet. PC owners didn’t seem to have the same pain threshold as Mac owners, with only 36% of PC owners willing to pay more than $600.

Apple added the iBook store in iTunes and entered the e-Book market, putting the tablet up against Amazon’s Kindle.

At least for now, the iPad only dips into 6% of the portable PC market, but if netbooks don’t get creative, the iPad will continue to eat up netbook share. The iPad may also have to compete with small, thin laptops that are priced under $600, like the Lenovo G450.

The Gadgetology study indicated that 37% of Mac owners and 59% of iPhone owners already owned or had planned to buy a netbook in 2009.

To convert PC owners to Apple owners, Apple needed to consider a $600 price point for the tablet. It’s a good thing they introduced the iPad at $499. Like the iPhone, the iPad has a GPS, so Garmin had better watch their back.

Valerie

Troy Richards asked:




Apple products have always been known for their great design, solid construction and awesome style. The Apple iPad (16GB) is no different. Featuring a 9.7-inch capacitative touch screen the actual device measures around 8 inch by 10 inch, roughly the size of a standard magazine. In short, the iPad looks a lot like a larger iPhone. Super-slim and quite light at 1.5 pounds the tablet looks a lot nicer and more solid than other tablet computers in the same class with all the buttons, fittings and surfaces having a very high standard of quality.

As the entry-level offering the Apple iPad (16GB) is powered by an Apple A4 1GHZ processor and offers 16GB of flash memory. Instead of more common tablet operating systems the iPad adopts the same operating system as the iPhone. As such, the iPad starts up in a mere 18 seconds and is quite responsive. The iPad has a standard 30-pin dock connector along with integrated speakers but doesn’t have any integrated video camera. Other connections include 802.11n wireless wi-fi and Bluetooth wireless connectivity. It also has an integrated accelerometer, microphone, digital compass and mute switch. A 3G capable model with assisted GPS will be made available later in April 2010.

Handling the Apple iPad (16GB) is as easy as using the Apple iPhone or iPod Touch. The touchscreen is extremely responsive and accurate while the interface is very intuitive. Typing on the screen is possible but not nearly as comfortable as swiping and pinching your way through it. Since the tablet uses the iPhone operating system, you can only do one thing at time. The Apple iPad comes with a number of applications including those for leisure as well as work but you can download games and other applications from the Apple app store or iTunes.

While you can read eBooks on the Apple iPad (16GB) the reflective screen makes it almost unreadable in direct sunlight. At 1.5 pounds it definitely cannot be held one-handed as it becomes quite a strain after a time. The screen is more than enough for most movies and images with a 1024 x 768 pixel resolution but HD movies are out of the question. Battery life is about 10 to 12 hours based on what you’re using it for

All in all, the Apple iPad (16GB) finally offers users with the ultimate tablet computer. While it does really well with similar iPhone-like applications it doesn’t really do typing and editing very well nor is it going to replace any e-book readers anytime soon. It does on the other hand offer users with a very fast and very easy device to use to stay connected, however if you’re looking for a netbook, smart-phone or e-book reader replacement, this isn’t the device for you. If you can’t live without your Apple iPhone and adore your Apple iPod Touch, then chances are you’ll love the Apple iPad (16GB).

Louise

Mika Staplesson asked:




Comparing the two categories may sound a bit forced to some people, but there is a system to the madness. Since most netbooks are cheaper than $499, the price of an iPad, it makes a lot of sense to put them against each other.

Netbooks have been around for quite a while now, 3 whole years actually, a lot of time to hone everything to perfection, which Asus has done apparently. In the other corner iPad is relatively lonely in its category, being the only real tablet that can be used without applying several hacks just to get through the day.

Netbooks have the distinctive benefit from the three years they’ve spent on the market without real contenders. When you buy a netbook you know exactly what it is you’re actually buying; a screen 10 or 12 inches big, a reasonable set of chips to get you through the daily tasks, and a keyboard to tell the computer what it needs to know.

On the other hand iPad, the tablet has a lot of proving to do. It has been on the shelves for a month, most parts of the world haven’t seen it sold through official channels either. There are lots of expectations to live up to and the hardware is very thin to do that. Maybe it’s the software that does the majority of the work?

On netbooks you can run basically any operating system the hardware can take, and the x86 architecture has seen a few decades go by. What it means is that it runs all versions of Windows including XP, Vista and 7, and I’m fairly confident to say that you could get a Windows 98 running if you were determined enough.

IPad runs its own variation of Apple’s operating system. It’s a far cousin of the OSX and basically the thing you see on an iPhone. Or iPod touch, to be more precise. The hardware is under seven locks, but it is supposedly an ARM based technology, which means there is not going to be a way to run anything you like.

You get iPhone OS whether you like it or not. Not that it’s a bad thing; Apple has hit the nail on the head when it allowed iPad to run all iPhone applications. That means more than a hundred thousand different apps available through apple store, well done!

Netbooks get to have a physical QWERTY keyboard that comes really handy when you need to create content or answer a great deal of e-mails. The product from Apple puts a virtual keyboard in front of you that may seem like a great way to put in text, but once you are at the level of 70 words per minute, dropping back to 15 is not a great option.

Without accessories iPad is just a fancy way of updating your Facebook status, but netbooks are not the computing powerhouse some people would like to see them either.

Yolanda

Mark Barkow asked:




Here’s the true story behind the Apple iPad. Want to comprehend the beginning of the Apple iPad?

It was about ten years ago that Bill Gates made his way onto a podium at a computer show and had in the palm of his hand a computer completely alien to those in the audience. It had a flat shape, and amazingly, there was no keyboard to type on. He then started to tell everyone what appeared to be an almost entirely disbelieving audience that in a couple of years, this foreign looking computer would become a big hit.

The year was 2000. Bill Gates was showing the world to a device Microsoft called the Tablet PC. The company went to the electronics show the following year and showed it once again to a disbelieving audience.

Microsoft’s creation never became popular. For good reason, it was really just a netbookcomputer, and not something you would call particularly powerful! To make matters worst, it was lacking a keyboard.

Now Apple has come up with a similar version of Microsoft’s Tablet PC with the introduction of the iPad.

So why the big uproar?

So, what actually is the iPad?. Apple took a computer, eliminated a keyboard, and made it flat. It has respectable power with respect to its size with a central processing unit somewhere in between the power of the iPhone and a netbook computer, but way closer to the netbook. The iPad is on the thin side being only one half inch at its thickest surface. It can be considered as being light in weight, weighing just 1.5 lbs. It runs on an operating system that can be considered as a bit more efficient version as the version in the iPhone. Its displaying ability consists of an excellent touch screen that is super bright with awesome clarity which is amazing considering the screen is just 9.7 inches.

The iPad is very versatile, like being able to do web-browsing, e-mailing, photo storage, music and game playing, word processing, spreadsheets, presentations, and display e-books. Yes, other devices can do the same things, some even better.

The difference between the iPad and those devices it is similar to lies in what can be accomplished with the iPad and can’t with other devices.

To start with, it is very portable, meaning anyone can pick it up easily. It fits snuggly on your lap. You can give it to other people as if it were a book. You can easily rest it on a small coffee table. You can put it in a small bag. You can place it in one hand and read it on a train. I think by now, you get the picture.

So for what reason is the iPad such a big hit today compared to ten years ago when the Microsoft tablet was released? The answer can be found in Apple’s capabilities In regards to their version of the Tablet computer, Apple had the technology to make it great. It’s display technology cannot be matched by any other company. It has special expertise in low power electronic engineering that other companies are jealous of. One example is, the iPad can function for an staggering ten hours of web surfing with one charge. Besides all this, it has its patented multi-touch technology included inside the iPad. Other companies attempts to match this technology have always failed badly.

So, do you see now why the Apple iPad is such a massive success? Do you want to try out an Apple iPad?

Vincent

Lance Esondi asked:




The iPad was said to become the netbook killer. At it’s low price and the portability it offers with huge battery life, it almost seems that the speculation of a netbook killer was right. But this falls apart when you start looking at the details. The iPad falls short of actually killing off the netbook market.

Netbooks can multitask. The iPad is limited to one application at a time just like the iPhone. On a netbook you can be writing in a word processor, listening to music, browsing the web, using spreadsheets, and many other functions all at the same time. It’s easy to work with and use like you would a laptop. The iPad does not have this functionality making it difficult to really argue it’s better than a netbook.

Netbooks have full browsers. Without Flash support, it’s hard to argue that the iPad is a full browser experience. If one wants to get into a hotel room and catch up on some shows on Hulu or other network sites, it’s possible. On the iPad you will have to purchase the show through iTunes as it’s not possible to watch video in the browser.

Netbooks have expansion ports like USB. If you need more memory, the ability to install additional applications, or additional hardware, the standard USB port will take care of this allowing you to use thousands of additional components. The iPad can’t without USB ports. It will be much easier to store media, print, and almost everything else with a netbook.

Netbooks, even the high end versions, are still cheaper than the lowest priced iPad. It’s hard to justify paying 30% more for something that does at least 30% less.

Matthew

John E Lincoln asked:




The Apple iPad has just been released. Looks like a cool device, right? Like an iPhone, the screen adjusts to the phones positioning. It has crystal clear viewing capabilities for video and photos. And the touch screen… I mean wow! We’ve never really see navigation quite like this.

While this all may be true, the question is buzzing around, who is the iPad really meant for? Is there a consumer demand driving this product supply or is Apple looking to create a new demand, like they did with the iPod.

There has also been speculation that this device is simply a business move by Apple to simulate another Apple store. Hey, if you were Apple you’d probably want to have two Apple stores, right? Who wouldn’t want 50 hosted VoIP developers rushing to create the next hosted VoIP PBX app: especially if you make a small commission off each sale?

Granted, it does have a touch screen keyboard so you can at least type. But what it all comes down to is that the flashy navigation, emphasis on apps, use as a reader and major push as a multimedia device makes it seem more like a toy than a piece of machinery intended to help a professional get work done.

Now, this very may well be what Apple was going for with the iPad. Maybe they wanted to create a more superfluous device. But why create something that seems so expendable in the wake of an economic recovery?

Don’t get me wrong, I love the iPad. I love what Apple is doing with the device and the way their technology is progressing. Also, I like that the iPad has speakers and a microphone so it could potentially run a softphone or other http://www.freedomiq.com applications. But who is the iPad really meant for? Is it meant for you? Tell us what you think below.

Douglas

Audrey Peters asked:




First impressions of the iPad were somewhat confusing, until you look ‘under the hood’. Apple has a Kindle and Netbook killer with the iPad and a whole new chipset, with more features than an ereader, creating a rich consumer experience. But that is what we’ve come to expect from Steve Jobs and Apple.

Reasons why the Apple iPad will win.

The iPad is designed with the user experience in mind – full color and a multi-gestures touchscreen that we are now so used to with iPhones and the Palm Pre. A Kindle takes you back to the 1980′s in looks and functionality and a Netbook has no such touchscreen either. The iPad is about consuming content of all kinds and not just reading books: watch movies or TV shows, play games, listen to music, read anything including emails, respond to emails, get navigation, get access to the internet and thousands of Apps already available on the iPhone, upload your photos and videos etc. Netbooks can indeed offer you access to the Internet but hey, it’s Windows not the Apple experience! You don’t get the feel of reading a book on a Netbook browser i.e. the visual aspect of turning over a page. The iPad offers a pretty good-sized virtual keyboard unlike the tiny ones on a Netbook or the cumbersome one on the Kindle. Additionally, the iPad offers a great docking facility enabling you to attach a full size desktop Apple keyboard. A USB connection on the iPad opens up access to all sorts of stored information on a Flash drive, including connectivity to a digital camera for upload to Flickr, YouTube etc. No such thing with a Kindle! iPad supports ePub, creating compatibility with books sold in any format. The Kindle is proprietary! The iBook store is a whole new shopping experience and being able to turn pages in color on the iPad is also very realistic and visually pleasing. Publishers are not too happy with Amazon’s 70% share of revenue and will be eager to distribute through Apple’s iBook store for a 30% revenue share. The iPad starts at $499 for just the Wi-Fi connectivity model with 16 GB – only $10 more than the Kindle DX! Which would you buy: a plain vanilla e-reader or a whole-life-device on an iPad? With the Apps store, publishers can create new experiences with ebooks incorporating video within a book for example. The Kindle is a pure textual experience and only black and white. The processor cannot handle multi-media. The A4 chip has been designed by Apple for Apple products, thus achieving a whopping 10 hour battery life, which no Netbook can match. (Watch out for this chip to start entering other Apple products if it can produce this kind of performance. Apple is synonymous with ‘the cool factor’ and for a mere $10 more than a Kindle DX, the iPad wins hands down!

The Kindle will possibly continue to appeal to pure book readers only. Amazon might be able to sustain sales if it dropped the price significantly, but it looks like they are entering the Apps market shortly, in which case, Kindle vs. iPad with iTunes store, will have a difficult time.

Lee

John J Logen asked:




The iPad brought a stunning new service to the book readers out there. Not only can you read books on it you can also search for the book you want, purchase it from iBooks and then have the luxury to sit still while the book is downloaded to your iPad ready for use. The iBook service is almost like a virtual book store purchasing books legally online, just the same way as you would have done it in a actual bookstore.

The other great thing about it is that the screen are designed so that your eyes will not start to hurt after a while of reading, plus you turn the pages on the iPad just by sweeping you finger like you would page a regular book or a touch on the right side of the margin.

There are a lot of people who think the iPad is just a upgrade form the iPhone, but it is not true it has a bigger screen, faster memory processing, faster browsing and a different idea for reading books.

Do not let some people who do not like the iPad set you back from buying one. It is a great invention and a lot of fun to use, and for the people who do not like the iPad twill just have to wait and see what Apple will bring to the table next. Maybe you will like the new apple products that are coming in the near future.

The iPad is a pleasant device for everybody from young to old and it is very user friendly.

Here are a brief explanation on a few basic things you can do with the iPad; read books, download books, play music, play movies, play games, browse the web, make presentations, send e-mails and many more.

Dustin

Robin Chung asked:




The long awaited Apple tablet has finally been revealed. Steve Jobs pulled the wraps off on January 27th in a tense morning for Apple and tech fans all over the world. Now with the specifications and information out there it’s time to preview the iPad and its potential.

First of all the design is pretty spectacular. The front is dominated by the large 9.7″ LCD Led lit display that without a doubt will look great. Just below the screen you get the iPhone home button that allows you to go back to the beginning at all times. One less pretty feature for me are the black borders around the screen. They are a bit too wide for my taste, it would’ve been better if Apple was able to stretch the display a little and remove the borders. On the top you get the sleep button that will deactivate the display. On the right side you get the volume buttons and the silence switch, interesting is that the buttons have been moved from left (iPhone) to the right. On the back you get the large black Apple logo in the middle of a big gray (aluminum?) mass. It also says iPad on the back, the number of GBs and a few FCC things that are required to be there I think. It’s not impossible to assume that the new iPhone will feature a similar back. The tablet is really thin, in fact it’s just 0.5 inch thick, that’s as thick as an iPhone. Height and width measures come in at: 9.6 inches and 7.47 inch.

Now lets talk about the software of the iPad. It works very similar to an iPhone. Slide to unlock and you’re in the main screen with the typical iPhone icons. You get: YouTube, mail, Safari, contacts, iPod, iTunes, app store, video, settings, maps (by Google!), calendar, photos and last but not least notes.

The apps have been modified a bit for the new capabilities though. For example photos are now arranged by event blocks. Tapping on a block of photos will show you a preview of the photos in that event (or map for windows users). However you can also view your most treasured memories by list, location, faces or date. We can imagine that it will look really fantastic to manipulate the photographs on a huge touchscreen and to show it to your friends.

Another app Steve Jobs showed extensively was the Safari app. The browsing experience exceeds the desktop experience because you can touch and flick through the pages. And unlike the iPhone you now see the full webpages.

The App store will transform this device into things Apple alone could never achieve. You can run all the iPhone applications on it in either full screen or 1:1, the latter being the actual resolution we’re used to from out favorite smartphone. But in addition to running the iPhone apps, the iPad will also get its own apps. Developers can create programs for it and utilize its full potential. The things we’ve seen in the keynote, including software from EA, looked okay but not very impressive. In a few months some amazing piece of codes will come out for the tablet we’re sure.

I have taken everything into consideration and a few things bug me as of now. Firstly does the iPad have flash support? The tablet is suppose to deliver the best browsing experience ever, but flash is a big part of the experience.

Another thing is the hardware. Apart from the case and the touchscreen things aren’t looking good on paper. It has a quadcore 1ghz processor built in from Apple, a company not specialized in these chips. I have fears that this A4 processor might not be fast enough for the really interesting apps. Another downer is the lack of iSight camera. This thing would have been amazing for conferencing or instant messaging, an opportunity missed there. Other hardware figures are a mystery. Like how quick is the graphics chip? And how much system memory does it have to work with?

And last but not least I’m having a hard time giving the software my two thumbs up. I think it looks to much like the iPhone software. The iPad would have been a much stronger product if the software allowed some advanced things like video editing or the ability to access and store files in finder windows (or maps for windows users).

To conclude. The iPad looks amazing and with a price of EUR499 it will sell really well. But much like the first iPhone launch the iPad has some obvious shortcomings. It isn’t really fast, has no webcam and on top of that the software is lacking premium computing features. With that said I might still get one if the experience is as amazing as Steve Jobs expressed during his presentation. Which knowing Apple will probably be the case.

Grace