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Tablets

paulgraham.com

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61–70 of 262 posts

Re: Tablets

#61

Post by asmithmd1 »

duck wrote: post #37

The fact that you can change font sizes easily means the iPad effectively replaces reading glasses. Really? I mean it might help someone not need reading glasses for the tasks they do on the iPad... but they still have to have them to read the dinner menu, instructions on the box of food, and so on. If you can't replace it fully how good is it? The iPhone replaced regular cell phones because of the fact you no longer…

I use my iphone to replace reading glasses all the time.

Snap a photo, two finger zoom of the photo and you are done

Re: Tablets

#62

Post by billswift »

duck wrote: post #37

The fact that you can change font sizes easily means the iPad effectively replaces reading glasses. Really? I mean it might help someone not need reading glasses for the tasks they do on the iPad... but they still have to have them to read the dinner menu, instructions on the box of food, and so on. If you can't replace it fully how good is it? The iPhone replaced regular cell phones because of the fact you no longer…

Or maybe an app that will immediately redisplay what the camera views in a larger format on the screen. Probably be a bit clunky, but might not be too bad. Might even help more for people who need high magnification for reading but whose distance vision is still good.

Re: Tablets

#63

Post by mechanical_fish »

asmithmd1 wrote: post #61
duck wrote: post #37

The fact that you can change font sizes easily means the iPad effectively replaces reading glasses. Really? I mean it might help someone not need reading glasses for the tasks they do on the iPad... but they still have to have them to read the dinner menu, instructions on the box of food, and so on. If you can't replace it fully how good is it? The iPhone replaced regular cell phones because of the fact you no longer…

I use my iphone to replace reading glasses all the time. Snap a photo, two finger zoom of the photo and you are done

Presumably there is an app for this. If not, there will be in 10...9...8...

Re: Tablets

#64

Post by theBobMcCormick »

xenophanes wrote: post #7

Another possible recipe for a startup (not saying this would be easy) is to find an important way that Apple is handicapping their devices and overcome it on Apple's own platform in a way that Apple will allow. If you can do that, users will love it and buy your product.

Or overcome that limitation on a different platform? (Android, WinPhone 7, etc)? After all, I think a lot of the early interest in Android came from overcoming the limitations of carrier exclusivity (in the US at least) and form factor limitations (options for hardware keyboards, replaceable batteries, larger screens, etc).

Re: Tablets

#66

Post by [deleted] »

someone_here wrote: post #6

The real thing that makes these "tablets" interesting is the number of features they have packed into them. The "ease of use" that people are talking about when referencing Apple's products is just a part of Apple's marketing for their devices. Android (and Maemo and MeeGo and etc) devices are much more capable and much more hackable. Why the praise for such a bland device such as the i-OSes when there's an awesome O…

[deleted]

Re: Tablets

#67

Post by piguy314 »

theBobMcCormick wrote: post #54
someone_here wrote: post #6

The real thing that makes these "tablets" interesting is the number of features they have packed into them. The "ease of use" that people are talking about when referencing Apple's products is just a part of Apple's marketing for their devices. Android (and Maemo and MeeGo and etc) devices are much more capable and much more hackable. Why the praise for such a bland device such as the i-OSes when there's an awesome O…

IMHO, for the "average" consumer, there's very little difference between the either the capabilities or the ease of use of either and Android phone or an iPhone. It's almost Pepsi vs. Coke. Hackability is completely off the average consumer's radar.

That's because innovation is a positive externality, people don't consider innovation when they buy an electronic device, but their choices do have consequences (which of course is the definition of an externality).

Econtalk did a great show about this and net neutrality: Relevant excerpt from show: What is worrisome--because the Apple iPad is not as open as the cloud? As the PC. That's a market response. That assumes the market response incorporates all externalities. It doesn't. Classic externality for the consumer to prefer the fantastic interface of the iPhone to the long-term innovation. You wouldn't anticipate consumers making buying decisions today incorporating the long-term value of a more innovative platform. No reason for them to do it. http://www.econtalk.org/archives/2010/04/benkler_on_net.html

Re: Tablets

#68

Post by harry »

duck wrote: post #37

The fact that you can change font sizes easily means the iPad effectively replaces reading glasses. Really? I mean it might help someone not need reading glasses for the tasks they do on the iPad... but they still have to have them to read the dinner menu, instructions on the box of food, and so on. If you can't replace it fully how good is it? The iPhone replaced regular cell phones because of the fact you no longer…

Just a thought - I've worked with a legally blind woman for a few years. She uses a variety of magnifying gadgets and devices during meetings to read handouts or lunch menus. I think that the present gen tablets are coming very close to being able to replace these expensive magnifying gadgets - and incorporate other technology.

A macro capable camera & some sort of lighting and suddently you replace one of these: http://www.independentliving.com/products.asp?dept=264&d...

Re: Tablets

#69

Post by acgourley »

This raises a question of how Apple will deal with "Made For iPod" interfaces that get increasingly generic. Right now they have a good framework for evaluating apps and hardware produced by one company to work together. They don't have a good way to understand hardware from company A working with software from company B.

What happens when someone wants to release a NES inspired D-Pad controller for iOS but wants to allow existing game makers to create apps that support it? Right now that is sort-of possible but it's very high friction.

Apple is a company who likes to build the whole stack from hardware to software; they feel like is necessary to create beautiful experiences. Will they compromise on this to facilitate a world where you can connect your iphone to any device in the house?

If they don't, progress may stagnate, hacks (like communication over wifi) will persist, and potentially they are giving up market share. Obviously they need to maintain the integrity and stability of the iOS devices but in my opinion they error too far on the side of caution.

Re: Tablets

#70

Post by archangel_one »

patrickk wrote: post #25

Other stuff being replaced by smart devices: watches, alarm clocks, portable radios, cheap digital cameras, spirit levels, dictionaries and perhaps soon your wallet and physical mass-produced books. Looking at some of the creative stuff people do with mounting their iPad in vehicles, perhaps iPad-like devices will replace traditional dials in cars in the near future. The only reason we even consider calling them "mob…

I think there's already been some slow moves in that direction - I recall the presenters on Top Gear playing with a couple of vaguely similar things, eg. a Lamborghini where you could cycle the appearance of the dials (so you could make it look like a "jet fighter" or whatever) and a Skyline that had a screen with heaps of different displays (g-force meter and what have you).

Those aren't near a fully programmable tablet but I think that's still a long way off since there might be regulatory problems, eg. maybe you have to be able to see the speedometer at all times. I'm not totally convinced I want a fully programmable display though anyway - I don't think that a million customisable settings would enhance my car. But I'm sure there are people who would like it...

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