I like it.

It's probably the nicest of those devices that I've seen, and of course it was Apple that created it.


But I still don't understand the market for those things nor the purpose.
To me, I'd much rather have a e-book reader using natural looking "e-paper"
like the Amazon Kindle, but with expanded capabilities.

I'm a bit perplexed because looking at the device it looks like they're
using the version of OS-X that ships with the iPhone. This means the apps
you get for it will all be apps written for the iPhone--you'd never be
able to run Office 2008 or even something as basic as filezilla on it. Of
course, you would never be able to do that on a beefed up Kindle either,
but if you're going to use a simplified 'gadget OS' then I'd be more
inclined to just use a kindle with a beefed up calendar, email, and
google maps, etc.--that way my eyes wouldn't get weary and tired (and
they do get tired trying to read text on those devices).



But then again, Apple hasn't had very many misses this decade. Their iPod
had originally been seen as a strange, niche offering too--and it transformed
their company and an industry. They seem to have put much more thought
into this device, and releasing it in this economy is a riskier move.
So, perhaps they're on to something. Who knows. For me personally,
I'd love the flexibility of having a device like that without having to
lug a laptop around. However, I'd still be inclined to want the power
of the laptop---I'll need to see what this thing is really capabale of.


The notes from the keynote were impressive. I think the price point
is what's going to sell the product. Apple will have to keep it around
800 or less to generate any interest in it at all.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that at least it's not Microsoft.

Looks like this thing is being universally panned. And rightly so.

Steve Jobs is trying to create a solution too a problem that doesn't exist. He has gotten to caught up in his own bull.

I have had an HP tablet laptop for three years. I can type, finger write and talk at it. With windows 7, it works like a dream as a touch interface.

Sure the new apple machine will be slicker, but is that all I get? On my HP I can run Doom3, store 120gb of files, use Office 2007, web cam, wifi, blue tooth and use a million bits of free software.

What can I do on this Ishit that that I can't do on my iphone? I doesn't even use eink.

Top top it all, they tell me I can buy all media in the world, as long as apple get 30%. This is Microsoft on steroids.

Watch the ipad go the way of the "revolutionary" mac air and cube.....

squirrelgrease said:

oh dear

squirrelgrease said:

let me know when it comes out on VHS

Mars23 said:

IPad to start shipping in 60 days but Canadian data deal not yet reached


at 18:05 on January 27, 2010, EDT.
By Michael Oliveira, THE CANADIAN PRESS

TORONTO - Canadians should get a crack at Apple's new iPad by March but some industry watchers warn that while the tablet computer is priced right, the ongoing cost of using it in Canada may be a major turnoff.

Apple CEO Steve Jobs ended months of rumours, intrigue and speculation Wednesday by lifting the veil on the iPad, a one-button, keyboard-free mobile computing device billed as a cross between a laptop and a smartphone, offering the best of both worlds.

There will be six models available, ranging from US$499 to US$829 depending on storage capacity and whether they have Wi-Fi or 3G wireless connections. The Wi-Fi models will be available internationally in 60 days while the 3G models will be available in 90 days, Jobs said.

The reaction after the launch was somewhat mixed, with many praising the pricing but feeling a let down by the list of features, said Derek Szeto, founder of Redflagdeals.com, an online deal-hunting community with more than 270,000 members.

"I remember the iPhone launch and they showed the screen with no keypad and everyone went, 'Wow!' We didn't get that same level of 'Wow' with this one," he said.

"But, what people really like and the reaction I'm seeing, is it's a lower price than people were expecting so, in that sense, I think it's definitely a positive."

Some Canadian shoppers are skeptical they'll be offered an iPad at the same price and are leery about how much it will cost for a 3G data plan through a Canadian carrier, he added.

South of the border, Apple has teamed up with AT&T to offer no-contract data plans of 250 megabytes a month for US$14.99 and unlimited data transfers for US$29.99.

Jobs said he hopes to secure deals with international mobile carriers by June or July to carry the device and supply data, although he did not specifically mention Canada as a target market.

Jobs also hinted that because the iPad is not locked to any particular carrier, it could potentially work with consumers' existing SIM cards to access data right away.

Don't expect similarly priced deals in Canada, said Tony Olvet, vice-president of research for IDC Canada.

But no-contract data plans may be available here too, since the carriers are not subsidizing the price of the iPad as is typical with mobile phones, Olvet said. The iPad may end up opening the door to more unlocked devices being sold directly to consumers without being tied to a specific carrier, he added.

"This turns the corner a bit in the nature of how mobile devices are sold, there's probably an open-mindedness now that unlocked open devices are coming and it's not such a big scary thing," Olvet said.

"Eventually, the user is going to require data services and that's going to be on a carrier's network and that's extra revenue."

Olvet thinks Apple will probably seek an exclusive agreement with one of the three big mobile companies to offer the iPad.

"I have a feeling that to encourage good marketing Apple will want to negotiate with one carrier in Canada at the outset, but I don't think that would be an exclusive for as long as we saw with the iPhone, maybe it'll be a shorter-term scenario," he said.

Rogers (TSX:RCI.B), Bell (TSX:BCE) and Telus (TSX:T) refused to answer questions about Apple's announcement.

The most-basic iPad is US$499, for a model that connects to the Internet only through Wi-Fi and has 16 gigabytes of storage. That's a little more than C$530 with today's exchange rate.

A 16-gigabyte model that can access 3G mobile networks sells for US$629. The priciest iPads are US$699 for a 64-gigabyte Wi-Fi model and US$829 for a 64-gigabyte 3G model.

Szeto said some Canadians shoppers will likely cross the border to get their hands on an iPad if availability is limited or introduction delayed.

"For the really early adopters who want to have it first . . . I think they are going to buy it and at $500 it's not an unreasonable impulse buy," he said. "I think they'll see pretty good value at that price point."


©The Canadian Press, 2010

Costs too much to buy. Waste of money. Won't buy one. Will cost too much per month with monopoly carriers here

I like it. For my uses (travel and surfing on the couch), it could replace my laptop. I'd only consider the 3G version if I can tether it to my iPhone. Otherwise, Wi-Fi may be good enough. I would've loved to have seen some type of camera on it, but I consider the lack of Flash a plus. The sooner HTML5 or MPEG4 replaces that dog, the better!

all i have to say is
jesus fucking christ!!!

iPAD



PAD?


REALLY???




FUCKING PAD



iPAD?


WTF

i love mac damn it.

but i PAD


what the hell!?


i dont think i could bare owning one on that name alone.

PAD?

WTF!

you fucking fucks fucked up mac with a name alone.
fucking iPAD! WHAT THE FUCK!

Mars23 said:

Vendetta1 said:

OMG!

OMG!

OMG!


dumb asses!! frickin iPAD!

Cuddles said:

Wow, calm down there Cuddles my man... have a glass of vino, take an Ambien... it'll be OK

Cuddles said:

ya gotsta love it tho'...

squirrelgrease said:

Being a native of Boston myself, that's too funny!

I love Apple's products. I really do, but I would never spend $500 on that fuckery

The iPod touch is somewhat uncomfortable to use at times but this bullshit is kind of excessive, in my opinion.

garganta said:

I was thinking something more along the lines of Apple's "Virtual Boy"

missjay23 said:

This confirms the fact they opted to treat this as a gadget and
not a true portable computer.

I'm annoyed that iPhones don't support flash. That's just
unforgivable.

I don't even know if they run a propper jvm yet either.

ZombieKitten said:

luv4u said:

They can't even offer it up here because of the price of data.

I'll probably get one because $639 for the 3g version is a lot cheaper than I thought it would be and. Also I can run my iphone apps on it and the fact that you're not locked into a contract with AT&T is a big plus BUT.....

- no flash
- no camera
-can't run OS X apps like garage band (at least not yet)
- no USB port
Hmmm, may have to think about it
Well at least it's not another Macbook Air

looks like something out of star trek but bigger!!!

oldpurple said:

looks like something they sold 3 years ago.....except bigger!

oh wait, let me make a phone call. *whips out big-ass jumbo iPhon...er Pad*

"can you hear me now, bitches?"

why not just call it the iPadmypocketswithmoneyfromfoolswhowillbuyabigassiPhonejustbecause...
[Edited 1/28/10 9:30am]

Apple shares are down 4% so far today.

Cuddles said:

Oh that's it if Windows have the BSOD, Mac now have the VOD (and I don't mean Video On Demand neither)!!!!

'dre

I was about to buy one then I got so angry and emotional, I just went to bed.

squirrelgrease said:

i can't wait for The Boston Ipad Party

I've always found the "Steve Jobs one man show" thing they do for their new products totally egotistic and stupid. Moratorium on that shit, please.

Anyway, that thing looks like it's far too overpriced for a far too specialized role.

BklynBabe said:

hate to see the size of the pocket that it comes out of

when I heard the name, I figured there would be jokes.

I'm a bit surprised about the reactions about the product itself.

In 30 months on the market, Apple has sold 75 million iPhone OS devices, with about an even split between the iPhone and the iPod touch. Projections have them selling about that many more in 2010.

At first glance the iPod looks like nothing more than a larger iPod touch. Multitouch, same underlying version of OS X, built in apps with the same names (plus the new books app).

The primary hardware differences is it has a much faster processor and the screen size went from 480x320 to 1024x768.

But to reduce it to just a faster iPod touch misses the significance of the iPad. The iPhone/iPod touch were the first mass market multitouch computers. They have been widely popular, but all share the same fundamental limitation of having apps be constrained by the small screen size.

That constraint is gone in the iPad. For the first time, there is a mass market multitouch computer that combines a multi-touch from the ground up OS with a screen size large enough to allow full blown apps. Some remarkable apps have been developed for the iPhone/iPod touch despite the screen size limitations. Those apps just scratch the surface of what's possible on a multi-touch OS.

Just look at the built in apps. Apple didn't just expand the display size of the existing iPhone apps, they created whole new versions across the board.

Safari has a new and improved UI, mail has a new and improved UI, Photos has a new and improved jaw dropping UI, etc, etc.

In addition, they have new, full featured versions of all 3 iWork apps. Not toy apps on a 3 inch screen. Apps every bit as powerful as the MacOS versions, but with a UI completely reworked for multitouch. You simply couldn't do these kinds of apps on the iPod touch. Which is why they didn't call the thing something like iPod touch XL. It really is a new class of machine.

Watch the keynote video. Watch the demos of the rewritten apps, watch the demos of iWork, watch the 3rd party demos (built in 2 weeks), especially brushes and the mlb.com apps. Here's the brushes video

http://www.youtube.com/wa...pMZzQpiJ9c

Here's the mlb app
http://www.youtube.com/wa...4c2vbzRv_I

you don't think there will be hundreds of iPads at baseball games next season?

and here's iWork

http://www.youtube.com/wa...FbwwlIPQPk
http://www.youtube.com/wa...b0On0ixzc8

The full keynote is here
http://events.apple.com.e...index.html

This stuff is the future of computing. Apple already sells way more multitouch computers than they do Macintoshes. The iPad is only going to accelerate that.

And for some of the comments about limitations
- there is an adapter to connect to a camera via usb (to download photos and videos)
- there is an adapter that is an SD card reader
- there is a case that protects the screen and props up the iPad for viewing movies or using it like a netbook.
- if you don't like using AT&T for 3G, then use the built in wifi along with a verizon myfi to get your 3G from verizon.
http://www.verizonwireles...ducts_mifi

I expect that the lines for the iPad release will be longer than they were for the iPhone releases.