Quick Thoughts on the iPad

So many comments have been posted about the iPad… I don’t expect mine to shed any new light on the views already shared. And, I haven’t seen or touched one, so that diminishes the value of my opinion even further. Nonetheless, and for the sake of reflecting upon my initial thoughts later on, I will post.

First, I think its an interesting idea… but I don’t think its wicked cool yet. It doesn’t seem to do a lot more than an iPhone or iPod touch, except have a bigger screen. In that sense, it feels like an iPod touch for those with diminishing eyesight who also like to buy large format scriptures and complain about small fonts.

Because it is not a phone, I still need an iPhone. And even though I have two iPod touches, I rarely use them because I have my iPhone. I don’t even like iPod touches for working out or running, because they are too big. Nano is great for those occasions.

Because it is not a real computer, I still need a laptop (I have a Macbook Pro). My MacBook is awesome, and with Parallels and Windows XP installed I essentially have two computers in one. And even though the iPad is not as big as my laptop, it doesn’t fit in my pocket so I still need a bag… in which case I might as well bring my laptop.

I’ve heard the iPad doesn’t support Flash (like the iPhone). Both lame… too many cool websites I like use Flash.

I wonder about battery life with the iPad. With all the apps on my iPhone the battery doesn’t last one day, even without making many phone calls. With a bigger screen and bigger videos and games, will the battery make it through the day with much use?

Because it can’t replace my phone and can’t replace my laptop, when/how will I use it? Maybe at home for fun? Maybe take it with me on trips if I have room in my already overpacked bag? And is that worth the pretty hefty price tag they’ve got on them now?

In addition to that, with AT&T as the exclusive data plan provider, I have serious concerns. I use AT&T and haven’t been overly impressed with their coverage or their customer support. And with the problems they have had in NYC and SF regarding bandwidth, and AT&T execs going on record that they may penalize high-bandwidth users or find ways to ‘encourage’ users to throttle back their bandwidth use, I think the iPad will have significant challenges on an already-stretched AT&T network.

I didn’t see a stylus, which would have been cool… and quite possibly a 3rd party peripherals company like Logitech will develop one, but using your finger (if they are as thick as mine are) is just not a good way to write yourself a note or make a drawing. And, if someone created a stylus that would work with the iPhone I’d probably just use that instead (unless I was an architect or artist).

I may be part of a dying breed on this point, but I like print. I like being offline sometimes. I love magazines and books and even though I’ve used the Kindle I still prefer the non-digital experience that some of my magazines provide. Granted, I do love video and I like the interactivity of digital for certain uses, but I can use my laptop very easily for those cases. Will someone buy an iPad that doesn’t have a laptop? Probably… although again it is pretty expensive to use it just for web surfing, games, or email.

Lastly… I will be interested to see/hear about the iPad’s speed. My iPhone 3G (not S) is pretty slow. When I type emails or Tweets, the typing lags behind a bit. Frustrating sometimes, but I put up with it because it is also my phone. If the web browsing experience, gaming experience, or video watching experience is very slow for users, it might prohibit widespread adoption. I certainly wouldn’t want to pay that much money for slow performance.

I am anxious to see one and look forward to hearing from friends who buy them. I’d love to be wrong about my concerns. We’ll see if Apple can create new marketshare with the iPad, or if it will take a bite out of both iPod touch and MacBook Air sales…