The Case for iPad

I stayed up late to follow the iPad announcement via Twitter and the Gizmodo Live Blog. I talked with friends and read far too many online comments. The overall sentiment seems to be:

This can’t possibly replace a laptop or even a netbook. No Adobe Flash. No Multi-Tasking. No Camera.

For the people that really know how to Multi-Task, they should also be able to figure out how to Jail Break their iPad and use Kirikae or another multi-tasking app as many of us do on the iPhone right now.

Personally, I use Saft to disable Flash in Safari on my iMac, so I’m happy to avoid Flash on my iPhone and soon my iPad. Increasing the share of the internet who does not have Flash will hopefully force web designers to gradually abandon flash.

An expensive gadget in this economy that doesn’t replace better/faster/cheaper something I already think I need every day, and instead proposes to tell me there I things I didn’t think I needed that I now gotta have and

If it is bigger than pocketsized, it enters a class of “it doesn’t matter how much bigger than pocketsized, it might as well be WAY bigger since I have to carry it in a bag or under my arm.”

I’ve been using a MacBook Air as my primary computer for the last 2 years. Tasks like compiling software or running Photoshop are downright painful on the Air though. Fortunately, the iTab should be able to basically replace my Air on a daily basis: (Email, RSS, Books) and do so in a much more comfortable form factor than either my iPhone (screen is way too small) or my Air (how do you use it on the sofa? do you like looking like a geek at the airport?)

During these 2 years, I’ve basically had my Air with me every day, 24×7. Almost anytime I’m out, I’ve got my Air in my bag. At only 3 lbs, it’s been working great. However, getting almost the same resolution (30% less pixels) with 4x the battery life, half the weight, and for more adaptable to every day human life. Use it at the dinner table, sitting on the sofa, or standing and chatting with friends.