Arrggghhh!!!!
Wednesday, March 3, 2010 at 9:33AM If I hear one more person say that "the iPad isn't for me but you know who it will good for... old people" I think I'll scream!
OK, so it may take a while before people open up to the realisation that the iPad isn't just a dumbed down computing platform for people who are technically challenged.
It may well not happen until people can hold one of these devices in their hands and fully understand that the iPad represents a major shift in how we interact with a computer.
It may take a few months for any supply chain issues to shake out and make the device readily available for immediate purchase.
It could well be that the iPad needs to cost a little less to give it the mass market appeal (but I don't think the price will be a barrier initially).
Either way, the bottom line is that the iPad has the potential to be a ground breaking device with more uses than we can possibly envisage and a potentially unlimited target audience.
It is not just for old people!
Just one example of how a single vendor (in this case Penguin books) is planning to move forward with the iPad.
Reader Comments (15)
I suppose there's this big idea that if it doesn't use 'proper' computer software like a full copy of OS X or Windows that it isn't a computer. That has already been proved wrong with the iPhone platform. Yes, that platform has limitations mostly due to the screen size, but it is more of a computer than it is a phone for many users.
I see why people look at the iPad, look at it being marketed more as a computer (where the iPhone is to many people seen as a phone +apps) and come to the conclusion that because it's not running 'big boy' software it has to be dumbed down. I agree with your post -- this will soon be proved to be wrong.
Absolutely agree ! As for the Ageism inherent in such statements I'm 56 and I know more about my phone and my computer than most of the much younger people I work with. So there !
So true!!
For me the iPad is gonna fill the gap between my iPhone and my MBP. Browsing the web on the couch, checking mail, using it in the kitchen for recipes, using it as a photo frame when not in use are just some examples of what I think it's gonna be perfect for.
Can't wait......
Agreed. It's amazing that, for the want of a better word, the 'general public' just don't get it yet. Until they see it. On the flipside, thanks to the success of the iPhone it's unusual that many of the big, more go-ahead companies; like the superb Penguin example above really do get it.
It's like Henry Ford said, "If I had asked people what they wanted, they'd have got faster horses!"
Simon, the "general public" not getting it I could understand, it's the bloggers and pundits that keep spewing out the "computer for old people" line that drives me to distraction ;-)
Yes, those comments about using it as a dumbed down computer are, well dumb. From what I can tell. The iPad still relies on you having a Mac/PC somewhere as your main computer to sync everything from so it can't exactly be anyone's only computer.
Yeah, it may have other markets but it will work best for old people like me!
When I saw the keynote, I knew I was getting at least one for my son's tow truck. Imagine, with just a few swipes an invoice/receipt being created on the spot.
No more calling me to look for something on the web because he's on the road. No more calling me listing what he did so I have to create an invoice on my iMac and fax it.
Of course it will mean setting up a printer an in his truck. Probably a mini office LAN. For business use alone the iPad will be a great asset.
Absolutely! I agree completely. I only wish I had the brain power to be a proper developer for the platform as it's really exciting time for developers IMHO.
I've continued to read posts by people who do get it so at least there's some of us who do see the upside to this thing.
I've written a couple myself:
Waa-waa iPad is Such a Fail
and
One More iPad Post...
Keep talking about it. They'll come around. :)
I have 5 family members, of all age groups, with Macs who often need help. Three have Windows machines but I don't take help calls from them. We have 7 iPhones and numerous iPod touches in the same group. No one asks me for help with them. This is a big part of my enthusiasm for the iPad.
The iPad will soon join its rightful place with other Apple breakthroughs like the G4 Cube, the iPod HiFi, and the puck mouse.
iPad is a divice you either get straight away or you will get after you see it in action.
It's akin to the Sony Walkman - what's the point i having a cassette player you can wear and only you can hear? You've big, proper stereo units for that!
Just imagine the possibilities with children¨s books with audio and video! These comments only go to show how unimaginative these blokes are and what a genius Steve is. He does know what we need even if we are not creative enough to know this ourselves. Apples track record proves it!
It is true to say that not all Apple Products have "worked" as products. The Cube has been Mentioned-it became the Mac mini in my opinion. The Newton never got off the drawing board really-it became the iphone as far as i can see. Apple TV (I love mine) has not really done it for most people but I am sure the concept will evolve into a device that does yield good results perhaps a flat screen TV that receives DVB & functions like the present device.
Publishing will be the cornerstone of the iPad I think wether it does for print media what itunes has done for audio and video is yet to be proved of course. Many people seem to have played down the significance of the A4 chip. Apple making their own processors could have huge potential. the fact that it runs at 1Ghz is significant for the iphone. It would be a large leap forward on present smart phone operation.
The iphone has done so well despite (much as I hate to knock apple kit) being a pretty poor telephone. The App store has blown expectations and the SDK has meant that imaginative people have created useful and often quite niche applications which have gone into a global marketplace. There has been the spirit of the open source arena too.
I do not claim to be particularly visionary but i have had many ideas sparked off by just watching the keynote speech and the promo. I do find it just a bit irritating that the word "Magical" is being It feels a bit Harry Potter. Having said that just think what an iPad edition of the text could be like.You could initgrate game play and film clips and hidden extras in a Tomb Raider kind of way.
To finish of people who can't see the potential in the iPad are using the wrong sense. I agree that touch will be the sense that really gets a workout on the iPad.
Apologies for late night typing syndrome. Errors a plenty in my text. Perhaps i would have done better on an iPad!