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Why the iPad isn't for me

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Re: Why the iPad isn't for me

#61

Post by Tichy »

glhaynes wrote: post #50
blhack wrote: post #35

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Assume adobe released a hardware platform and it didn't support javascript. If somebody were to suggest that the entire web development community was going to abandon javascript in order to allow adobe's platform to reach the saturation required to make it the "standard", then your argument might make sense. As it stands, the iPad exists in a state that makes it almost unusable for the overwhelming majority of web us…

Perhaps unusable as their only machine. That by no means makes it merely a novelty.

But it makes it useless as "the computer for mom".

Re: Why the iPad isn't for me

#62

Post by timdorr »

illumin8 wrote: post #54
Terretta wrote: post #15

> Just think about it on an airplane. I could load it up with movies and watch for an entire flight, thanks to the iPad's excellent battery life. Of course, because of the lousy keyboard I can't use it in place of a laptop, so I would have to carry the iPad and my MacBook. How is it that, for years, I've pined for a lighter laptop, and now I'm considering carrying an extra pound-and-a-half just to watch videos on an…

Good point. Also, the iPad + charger + Bluetooth keyboard is only 2.1 pounds. I challenge you to fit 10 hours of mobile productivity in a smaller footprint. For anyone that travels a lot and writes, the iPad is a godsend. Please see http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2010/4/11/856114/-My-iPad-...

Apple just solved the battery issue in their laptops: http://www.apple.com/macbookpro/specs-13inch.html A less disjointed setup (you don't have to worry about the laptop display falling over like the iPad might if bumped) and a more powerful system. It's 4.5 lbs, but that's still pretty damn light if you ask me.

Price is a big differentiator though. It's hard to compete with $500 + whatever the keyboard costs.

Re: Why the iPad isn't for me

#63

Post by nudge »

akadien wrote: post #60
towndrunk wrote: post #55

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm suprised you jumped in and bought one so quickly. Seems like "just another media consumpion device" could have been determined before purchasing.

You don't know me, so why are you surprised? I thought I would like it and could use it, it's not working out, I don't expect it to work out, so I'm returning it. It's not a political statement.

He doesn't need to know you to be surprised by your point (b), which would be possible to work out without buying the thing. It is surprising. It is similar to someone buying a Porsche and then returning it because, among other reasons, it is a fast car. This is something you know before buying it. To return it to the dealership, saying "I don't like it, because it is fast", is quite surprising.

Now, if you didn't know it was just another media consumption device - perhaps you thought you could also do some serious work on it - that would be different.

Re: Why the iPad isn't for me

#64

Post by cwilson »

tommorris wrote: post #39
cwilson wrote: post #30

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I have a Macbook Pro, I just don't like lugging it around on trips when it's overkill (the sucker is 5 - 6 pounds easily). A netbook? I hope that's a joke. Why would I want a cheaply built, underpowered (I'll bet the iPad out performs most netbooks), mini laptop that doesn't run OSX or iPhone OS (as in I can't stand Windows or any linux distro)? At risk of sounding like a fanboy I'm going to quote Steve Jobs himself:…

Depends on how you define 'underpowered'. The iPad is underpowered in that it can't run Vim or emacs. If you are a developer, being able to run a text editor is the baseline for a device. Why would you want a cheaply built laptop? So when your bag gets stolen or dropped or whatever, you lose a $200 netbook rather than a $500 iPad or a $1000 laptop. As for not running OS X? Google 'hackintosh'.

I actually mentioned in a reply above that the iPad will never be a good machine for development.

Honestly, life is too short, I'm not going to sacrifice quality because of a fear that at any moment my bag may be stolen. It's also pretty easy to not, you know, leave your bag sitting somewhere in public? A $300 difference is worth it because of the upgrade in quality and less frustration.

Again, this all comes down to your personality and lifestyle. Steve Jobs did not get up on stage and say the iPad is a laptop replacement. It's a device meant to replace SOME, not all, of your daily activities (heck maybe they are not even daily, maybe it's your weekend only device or something). If you don't see it fitting into your life, don't buy one. That doesn't mean it doesn't work for someone other then you though!

Re: Why the iPad isn't for me

#65

Post by blhack »

buster wrote: post #52
blhack wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Ehh...I'd say that, if anything, web developers don't want apple dictating how they design their websites. The reality is that the overwhelming majority of people aren't HN readers and really don't care that adobe has changed their CS5 pre-order app to flash. They like going to smugmug and having it just work.

Also people tend to forget that Adobe pretty much owns the whole creativity/content creation chain. Magazines, Books, Websites, Images, HTML, CSS, JS, Flash, whatnot. All those things are currently done pretty well with Adobes products alone. Granted, i'm no magazine editor and i don't do flash. I wouldn't use Dreamweaver for writing websites, but i can understand quite well when designers like to use Adobes tools as…

And this is something that I cannot believe apple seems to have overlooked. They haven't just pissed on some little obscure software company, they've pissed on the software company that the people they need to win over (content creators, designers) use for everything.

Re: Why the iPad isn't for me

#66

Post by blhack »

troystribling wrote: post #36
akadien wrote: post #6

Neither is it for me. I'm sending mine back. Things I don't like: (a) Eye strain, (b)It doesn't provide enough utility for me to justify another device in my life, and I don't want another media consumption device. In short, it's another toy. (c) An awkward device angle when touch-typing and trying to read what I'm typing.

That the iPad is consistently classified as a media consumption device seems an attempt to trivialize its significance by people who consider themselves power users. I agree that currently the use cases of most applications fall into this category, that it is expensive and I doubt you will ever do application development on a device of its form factor, but it is clearly not just a media consumption device. A few exam…

Who wants to spend $500 on something that kindof browses the web, and then needs a bunch of addon cruft in order to do anything useful?

Didn't apple learn their lesson with the MBA? Get the air...and a USB hub...and an external DVD burner...and an ethernet dongle...and an external hard drive! Look at how portable it is! (especially when thin notebooks have all of these things built in).

Re: Why the iPad isn't for me

#67

Post by [deleted] »

mortenjorck wrote: post #34
briancooley wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My wife is dubious. She doesn't like the lack of Flash. She doesn't like trying to type on the software keyboard. Her parents, definite technophobes, were intimidated by it. The first thing they wanted to look at was a slideshow on smugmug.com, some pictures of their granddaughter. Also Flash. They looked at me incredulously as I explained to them that you couldn't view the slideshow on the iPad. They tried to use th…

I still don't understand why Apple ever decided to play up the iPad's web browsing experience. I've written on this at length before, but even apart from Flash, the desktop web is simply not compatible as-is with a tablet interface. The iPad will make a fantastic browser for the tablet web, if and when that web is built, but today it's a poor substitute for a mouse and keyboard when websites expect those.

[deleted]

Re: Why the iPad isn't for me

#68

Post by troystribling »

MrRage wrote: post #53
troystribling wrote: post #36

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That the iPad is consistently classified as a media consumption device seems an attempt to trivialize its significance by people who consider themselves power users. I agree that currently the use cases of most applications fall into this category, that it is expensive and I doubt you will ever do application development on a device of its form factor, but it is clearly not just a media consumption device. A few exam…

>The typing problem you mentioned can be solved by a case that holds it an an angle, such as http://www.goincase.com/products/detail/CL57512 . That seems to be an extremely awkward angle for typing. > Also heavy duty typing can be handled with a bluetooth attached keyboard though for my needs the the onscreen keyboard has been adequate. Kinda ruins the mobility of the device compared with a lap top. You'll have to ca…

I think it is OK, in the most inclined position it is about 30 degrees with respect to the surface and you can rest your hands on the edge of the device and the surface on which it is resting. Your wrists are up slightly so it could get uncomfortable after prolonged use. It is more comfortable than hunched over with the device in your lap and arms perpendicular to the device as described in the article and is closer to the position of a laptop setting on a table. It would be no problem to use it to interact with this site for example. I would see the bluetooth keyboard as a docking station.

Re: Why the iPad isn't for me

#69

Post by necubi »

mortenjorck wrote: post #34
briancooley wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My wife is dubious. She doesn't like the lack of Flash. She doesn't like trying to type on the software keyboard. Her parents, definite technophobes, were intimidated by it. The first thing they wanted to look at was a slideshow on smugmug.com, some pictures of their granddaughter. Also Flash. They looked at me incredulously as I explained to them that you couldn't view the slideshow on the iPad. They tried to use th…

I still don't understand why Apple ever decided to play up the iPad's web browsing experience. I've written on this at length before, but even apart from Flash, the desktop web is simply not compatible as-is with a tablet interface. The iPad will make a fantastic browser for the tablet web, if and when that web is built, but today it's a poor substitute for a mouse and keyboard when websites expect those.

I don't think you've actually used the iPad to browse the web. Personally, I block flash on my desktop and rarely find reason to unblock it, so the lack of flash doesn't bother me. Meanwhile, surfing on the iPad is in general so nice that I've been doing it even when near my computer.
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