01-28-2010, 01:40 PM

Originally Posted by VegasGeorge

I wish you people would stop talking about the iPad being a "phone." It isn't. There is no way you an make or receive a call on it. It is not a phone. In fact, if you buy the 3g version, you'll undoubtedly find that even VOIP has been blocked by your carrier. If I'm wrong about this, please explain the phone function to me. I'd really like to know.

Thank you George ! I've said this as well and just don't get why people keep saying iPhone ?! It's NOT A PHONE people ! lol.

I also think that it is an extremely NICHE product for now. I liked Bobtomay's reasoning for wanting to get it, as there is logic in the purchase for his needs. At the same time however, I think the other segment falls in line with dTravis' line of thinking (my self included).

I mean yeah, it's a cool device if you ONLY do one task at a time, and all you care about is simple web browsing and showing off jpg's and email and calender events etc.. For that simple stuff, it's a very pretty device and will deliver. Yea yeah.. and the silly app games too. One more thing about the web browsing experience, with Flash in mind. Stupid. Steve Jobs knows that a big percentage of his user base are professional artists. The word artist encompassing graphic arts, photography etc.. There are far too many photographers whose websites are Flash based. And whether we like that or not, it's something that is going to change just because Steve Job's wants it to. And I refuse to support a device which ignores this basic premise. The iPhone is a slightly different case with me though, since I would never browse a photography site on a silly iPhone screen.

I think the price is ok.. but to be honest, should be cheaper by at least $100. If it had a standard screen like every other net book out there, it would have to be a $300 device, because it doesn't do ANYTHING that a net book can't do, except meet "appstore" compatibility standards. But then, we're talking proprietary stuff.

I do think that the iPad would be something my wife would like, but not in its current state. Were it to have an video camera, be able to multi task (listen to music while preparing multiple excel, powerpoint and Word documents.. does it even run those things ?) and provide at least ONE USB port and an ethernet port.. then it might be worth considering.

Version 2, perhaps. We'll see, but doubting it.

01-28-2010, 01:51 PM

Originally Posted by bargsbeer

part of that could be because there were no iPhone announcements yesterday as a lot of people speculated it.

Yes it's quite possible that the Apple stock price is down because as you said...a lot of new product or updated product announcements that folks were hoping for did not happen.

Another reason could be. Maybe a lot of folks wanted to purchase the iPad immediately...and having to wait 60-90 days for them to ship may have been disappointing.

But then again...maybe Apple stock will close higher by the end of the day.

- Nick

01-28-2010, 02:09 PM

Originally Posted by Doug b

I think the price is ok.. but to be honest, should be cheaper by at least $100. If it had a standard screen like every other net book out there, it would have to be a $300 device, because it doesn't do ANYTHING that a net book can't do, except meet "appstore" compatibility standards. But then, we're talking proprietary stuff.

I don't completely disagree with what you said...but remember that the iPad's display compared to a netbook display:

- the iPad display is an IPS panel (a high quality panel compared to other LCD displays)
- the iPad's display is LED backlit which also improves color quality.
- the iPad's display is a "Multi-Touch" display...this is a lot more expensive than the traditional LCD display on a Netbook.

So just these three features relating to the iPad's display certainly justifies a higher cost for the iPad vs.a Netbook.

Like you said...if the iPad had a "standard screen" like other Netbook's...then the iPad would have to be a $300 dollar device. But then without the "multi-touch screen" the iPad wouldn't be an iPad!

- Nick

01-28-2010, 02:21 PM

Originally Posted by pigoo3

I don't completely disagree with what you said...but remember that the iPad's display compared to a netbook display:

- the iPad display is an IPS panel (a high quality panel compared to other LCD displays)
- the iPad's display is LED backlit which also improves color quality.
- the iPad's display is a "Multi-Touch" display...this is a lot more expensive than the traditional LCD display on a Netbook.

So just these three features relating to the iPad's display certainly justifies a higher cost for the iPad vs.a Netbook.

Like you said...if the iPad had a "standard screen" like other Netbook's...then the iPad would have to be a $300 dollar device. But then without the "multi-touch screen" the iPad wouldn't be an iPad!

- Nick

Yeah. It justifies the cost because IPS LED's aren't cheap by any means. But in terms of the iPad being a productivity tool, it isn't justified AT ALL. It's great having this nice screen and all, but let's not pretend that we don't know what Apple is really doing, which is focusing its efforts on selling iTunes music, video game apps and iTUnes movies to the droning masses, rather than innovating a machine which could be a lot more like an MacBook in terms of features and being a real productivity tool, with the ability to be as nice looking and feeling as an iPad.

Were this thing running a lite version of OS X, I'd be all over it. And don't think for one second that it's not capable of running better software. Again.. planned obsolescence at its best.

Doug

01-28-2010, 02:36 PM

Originally Posted by Doug b

It's great having this nice screen and all, but let's not pretend that we don't know what Apple is really doing, which is focusing its efforts on selling iTunes music, video game apps and iTUnes movies to the droning masses, rather than innovating a machine which could be a lot more like an MacBook in terms of features and being a real productivity tool, with the ability to be as nice looking and feeling as an iPad.

No disagreement here! Apple is definitely out to make more money...and develop new "revenue streams"...other than the traditional selling hardware & OS software ways to make money.

Yes iTunes (mp3's), "Apps" from the i-Tunes store, and i-Books...are definitely ways Apple is trying to generate more sales.

Also consider, in order to "kick-start" more iTunes Store sales for the iPad (mp3's, apps, and iBooks) & get the iPad in the hands of more customers...Apple may even be selling the low end iPad ($499) at a price lower than they might have otherwise. Just a theory.

- Nick

01-28-2010, 06:51 PM

Originally Posted by Doug b

I think the price is ok.. but to be honest, should be cheaper by at least $100.

I totally agree, I'm willing to bet within a couple of months they will lower the price.

01-28-2010, 07:05 PM

Originally Posted by bargsbeer

I totally agree, I'm willing to bet within a couple of months they will lower the price.

It will probably have to be at least 6 months...since it's going to be 60-90 days before they are available for purchase.

- Nick

01-28-2010, 08:44 PM

Originally Posted by dtravis7

For typical home usage I do agree the iPad will blow down the Netbook though. Real deal breaker right now is NO MULTITASKING! I can't play music while I am surfing? I hope that gets changed very fast.

If it's running the iPhone/iPod touch OS, then there will be limited multitasking. The Apple apps like Mail and iPod will run in the background while you do other things but third party apps will not. So you will most definitely be able to listen to your music while browsing the web, you just won't be able to listen to music from Pandora.

01-28-2010, 09:16 PM

Yeah, i really dont think the iPad is that huge. i just think that typing on a completely flat surface which is ALSO the screen, is just bad for your neck and back, and is bound to get pretty irritating soon.
and no camera? WTF. wow apple...
and its not a phone. not technically anyways.
and it would be even MORE useful if you could actually write on it, with a special iPad pen or something, and that when you write, it converts your writing into text so that you dont even have to type. THAT would be even better.
anyways, the iPad is not that big a deal. so its on a flat surface. yaaay?

OH, and no multitasking makes one more reason to not think this is the BEST. THING.EVER. OMG.

01-28-2010, 10:14 PM

Originally Posted by shocklightning

and no camera? WTF. wow apple...

I may very well be in the minority here (and I'll accept that) but I couldn't care less if a device like this came with a camera. If it increased the cost, it definitely wouldn't be worth it. That said, I can see one benefiting from one if you wanted to video chat.

Originally Posted by shocklightning

and its not a phone. not technically anyways.

Not just "not technically", not at all.

Originally Posted by shocklightning

and it would be even MORE useful if you could actually write on it, with a special iPad pen or something, and that when you write, it converts your writing into text so that you dont even have to type. THAT would be even better.

There is nothing from stopping anyone from doing this in the future. Although, in my experience, I would spend more time correcting handwriting recognition software. To be fair though, that was back with a Palm OS device.

01-29-2010, 01:05 AM

Originally Posted by dtravis7

A netbook gives me USB ports

So does the iPad (as a dongle).

a Wired RJ-45 Network port.

With 3G, Wifi and Bluetooth, why would you need this?

I

So that is one use for a netbook that I can not use an iPad for.

As demonstrated above, you are wrong.

Which is not to say that you don't have a perfectly acceptable setup right now, just pointing out a factual error.

Real deal breaker right now is NO MULTITASKING!

Yeah, lack of multitasking has really killed sales for the iPod Touch and the iPhone ...

Oh wait, that's not true at all! In fact, the iPod Touch is Apple's single best-selling product! So again, you are wrong.

I can't play music while I am surfing?

Do not know where you got that from. The iPad is an iPod as well, and thus it can play music in the background while other apps are run -- exactly like the iPhone and the iPod Touch.

If this were baseball, you'd be up to three strikes.

I guess we won't know the answer to this question till people get their hands on the iPad but I wonder how you get a textFile, Doc or whatever to the device?

You could:
a. email it
b. transfer it via Bluetooth
c. With a USB dongle, you could use a flash drive or direct connection
d. Sync it.
e. Put it on an iDisk or other cloud storage
f. Transfer it via Wifi
g. With the help of a third-party app that already exists for the iPhone, you could transfer it via 3G
h. With the help of a third-party app that already exists for the iPhone, you could simply store it on your iPad.

Sorry, that's just off the top of my head. Give me a day and I think I could make it to at least "m".

01-29-2010, 11:26 AM

Originally Posted by dtravis7

For typical home usage I do agree the iPad will blow down the Netbook though. Real deal breaker right now is NO MULTITASKING! I can't play music while I am surfing? I hope that gets changed very fast.

Ummmmmmmmmmmmmm. What?

I'm listening to music as I type this message and browse this site on my iPhone. The iPad will do it too.

01-29-2010, 11:33 AM

Sorry chas_m, I am far from wrong for the uses I need a portable device for. I outlined what I use a Netbook for. You say I do not need an RJ-45 port for setting up a messed up router with WiFi disabled on a network call. Do you really know networking?

True, the iPad might not be designed to do what I do on a Netbook on a service call, but I was saying it would be nice if it did.

And you say music, from itunes but not some other source. So say what you want about my post and how wrong you think I am, but for what I want to do, I am far from wrong.

01-29-2010, 12:32 PM

Hummm, guess I'm happy listening to my music library on iTunes while I'm browsing enough to where I don't need another source of music. You talking about internet radio or something?

01-29-2010, 02:16 PM

3 reasons why I will NOT buy right now

1. No Camera built in. I LOVE my camera on my mac book pro... very convenient and useful
2. No ability to use multiple apps at the same time. With the 1GHz processor, it should have no problems doing this.
3. And most importantly, no FLASH SUPPORT! The tout this as being able to browse the web just like a computer browser, but more then %30 of websites out there utilize flash in some way shape or form... crazy that it doesn't have support for flash.

my thoughts.