Apple iPad: Hype or Revolution?
Posted April 3, 2010 – 02:20 in: dhp1080, syndicated
It’s been a long time since we’ve seen a truly revolutionary device enter the computing world. Within the past decade, computers have grown in performance while shrinking in size. However, the way we interface with computers has remained unchanged. The first computer mouse was prototyped in 1963 and has been the de facto method of interfacing with computers ever since. Apple’s iPad attempts to change that.
Now, note that I refer to the iPad as a computer. Many skeptics make the iPad out to be only a "giant iPod Touch". I can guarantee that is not the case. Not only is the A4 processor in the iPad significantly faster than its iPhone counterpart, the 1024×768 screen real estate makes the possibilities for this device infinitely greater than those of the iPhone.
The key to the iPad’s success lies in Apple’s App Store. Mobile application stores have been around for ages, but none have been remotely as successful as Apple’s iteration. By providing developers with a readily accessible SDK, the iPad App Store will have over 150,000 applications available the moment early iPad adapters get their hands on one. This is mainly due to the existing iPhone apps which can run on the iPad at a native or pixel-doubling resolution. However, hundreds of developers have already announced iPad native applications, some of which are simply excellent.
Because of the iPad’s increased screen size, many applications that would be infeasible to run on an iPhone will be available on the iPad. One great example is "Mixr" (seen above) which is a high-quality DJ app that will be launching on the iPad soon. Due to the sheer size needed for crossfading, equalizing, and effect controls, the iPad opens new possibilities unavailable to developers on the iPhone. This same increased size promises more productivity and unique experiences than ever before.
While I will agree that the iPad isn’t necessarily a very revolutionary technical device, I reject any claims of it not being revolutionary to the computing industry. The iPad will be the first device to take multitouch computing, put it in the hands of the masses, and do it properly. This is not another tablet running an existing OS where everything seems to be awkwardly modified to be touch-capable. This is a user interface that has been built from the ground up to be used solely with a multi-touch experience.
While I haven’t personally pre-ordered an iPad, I’m absolutely interested to try one out. As Walt Mossberg of the The New York Times states, "My verdict is that, while it has compromises and drawbacks, the iPad can indeed replace a laptop … a lot of the time." While not for those who are doing heavy content creation, the iPad serves as a perfectly usable device for browsing the web, watching movies, and internet communication.
Providing that, in the first week alone, 190,000 iPads were pre-ordered, the technology will definitely be in enough hands to make for a new App Store gold rush. My verdict: don’t write the iPad off before you try one out. Chances have it, it might change the way we think about computer interfacing as a whole.
Via dhp1080 from 1080degrees
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