We all know what an iPhone and iPod are, but have you ever heard of the iPad? Well, you have now. This article “The Anti-Hype: Why Apple’s iPad Disappoints” explains what the let downs are from the iPad (which looks like a bigger iPod Touch actually). Many Apple users were excited because they were finally going to get a transformational device – but they were wrong. Apple CEO Steve Jobs launched the iPad as the middle device between the small iPhones and big MacBooks. The author shared that Jobs and his colleagues said the iPad is “the best way to experience the web, e-mail, photos, and videos. Hands down.” But it’s not, according to Samuel Axon – it’s not even close.

One main quote Apple keeps saying about the iPad is it’s “the best way to experience the web.” It might be of the best ways to browse the web on a mobile device, but laptop and desktop computers – even netbooks – are still better. Even if you lug around the keyboard dock, it will be a tad awkward moving between the keys and the screen to interact. To add insult to injury, the iPad’s browser does not even support Adobe Flash, the foundation of media on the web today.

Another objective advertisers use to suck you in to buy an iPad is that you can read books from it, compared to The Kindle, Barnes & Noble’s Nook, and the Sony Reader. Unlike these other forms of technology to read books easier (and here’s a shocker folks) – the price is more to buy books and read them on the iPad. Even as impressive the 10 hours of battery life for the iPad, the Kindle can run reading for a week without recharging (and even longer if the Wi-Fi is disabled).

Basically, if you own a smartphone, like the iPhone or a Macbook, you don’t need the iPad. It’s not significantly better at anything than those devices. It can’t be used as your daily workhorse computer on the go because it doesn’t multitask. In addition, your laptop or netbook very likely has a web cam for video, and your cell phone probably has a camera (or video camera) for capturing while the iPad has neither. If that wasn’t all enough, the iPad cost between $499-$829, and that is just a ridiculous price.

So, why on earth would they 1.) make this product and 2.) name it the iPad? Could they not come up with a better, cool name? The ideology of Apple is whatever they make must be the coolest new thing out there, also the most expensive, and a MUST have. Typically, this assumption is correct. However, after the release of the iPad, it makes me ask which direction is Apple going? If Apple always makes the cool and slim iPhone, fun iPod touch, high-tech Macbook, and then comes out with a device that they did not need to make – why? I believe consumerism took over here. For the buyers (customers) it is the hot, new toy out on the market. For the sellers (Apple) it has been a couple years since the iPhone came out, and they were scrambling around to put something out there really quick to have everyone purchase one.

In the end, you are going to finish reading this and either have one or not. You are either going to say to yourself, “Andrew, I don’t care what you say – it’s the hottest thing out there and I have to get it!” In contrast, you are going to think, “Andrew, I totally agree that this is the stupidest thing ever invented.” Whichever you think for your own personal reasons is your choice. But, are you really going to spend $499-$829 on a device that does the exact same thing that your mobile phone and computer can do? If you buy it, you’re still going to need your computer and you’re still going to need your mobile phone. Do you really NEED an iPad?

Andrew

p.s. – here is the link: http://mashable.com/2010/01/27/apple-ipad-downsides/

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