Thoughts on the iPad
January 31, 2010
Now that we have had a few days to contemplate all of the iPad news and announcements, we just can’t wait to get our hands on one. Sure, we are Apple people and you would expect us to feel that way, but we just cannot begin to express our excitement about this product.
At a quick glance on Wednesday, it appeared that the iPad was a somewhat underwhelming device. Sure, we all wish it had a video camera in it, and we are convinced that version 2 will indeed have a camera. Having said that, allow us to explain why we are counting the days until the iPad arrives.
The iPhone has sold over 40 million units since its release. Why? Because, as you all know, it is so much more than a phone. It’s really a handheld computer that happens to make phone calls, and a very powerful computer at that. The critical difference here is that the iPhone is not just a handheld computer, but it’s a computer that requires absolutely no knowledge of traditional Windows or Mac operating systems. Anyone from age 4 to age 90 can figure out how to use an iPhone in about thirty seconds. No mouse or keyboard required.
If we really think about it, we have been interacting with computers in the same way for almost thirty years now. As much as the hardware and software have advanced, our interaction with both remains the same. It has been clear for years that computing needs a new form of interaction, with many anticipating the next phase is voice interaction. But the smart folks at Apple had another trick up their sleeves. It’s called “Multi-Touch”.
So while we don’t really think much about it, what makes the iPhone so hugely appealing is that all we need to use it is our finger. No menus. No trying to figure out why the menu bar does not relate to the application we think we are currently using.
But as much as I love having my iPhone in my pocket at all times, I find the screen too small to do any meaningful work. Enter the iPad.
If we take a quick look back at recent history, the computing industry is littered with failed tablet-like devices. Why? Because every single one of them depends on using existing computer operating systems, not an entirely new OS developed solely for use without a mouse or keyboard.
The iPad changes everything. What do you use your computer for? Reading email, surfing the web, storing and viewing photos, etc? Sure. A few other things too? Yep. Well the iPad will give you all that and more. And it will give it to you in an all-new way.
While we have yet to get our hands on one, we have a few friends who were lucky enough to be at the introduction on Wednesday. We spoke to a some of them and every single one says that once you hold the iPad in your hands, and start surfing the web, or reading email, it becomes instantly apparent to them that this is indeed the future of computing.
We truly believe that the iPad will become the way we read the newspaper and magazines. The fifty pounds of text books that our poor kids hump around in backpacks every day will be replaced with a 1.5 pound iPad. Imagine sitting at the breakfast table and reading the morning paper, in all its glory, using just a finger to navigate.
We anticipate that content providers will create stunning new applications for the iPad and that it’s only a matter of time before print goes away entirely.
We also expect that the developer community will create mind-bending applications for this new device. There are over 140,000 applications for the iPhone and it’s tiny little screen. Can you imagine using genealogy software on an iPhone? Not a chance. On an iPad? You bet!
One of our favorite software developers, The OmniGroup, is so excited about the iPad that they took the unusual step of announcing Friday that they would immediately get to work creating iPad versions of five applications. They will be quickly joined by many, many others.
While we have much more to say, let us leave you with this one concept. We all spend countless hours surfing the web. And while you heard Steve Jobs say on several occasions on Wednesday that the iPad is a more intimate way to surf the web, our friends who actually held on in their hands cannot stop carrying on about how different, and better, the web surfing experience is when you are holding the entire internet in your hands.
We are firmly convinced that in the long haul, the iPad will become an even more important device than the iPhone. In short, it’s a game changer. Now if only we didn’t have to wait 60 days to get one…
