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Thursday, April 8, 2010

Should You Buy an iPad Today?

A friend of mine wrote me wondering if she should buy her husband an iPad for his birthday. And my advice to her was to wait. It seems I am not alone. "After all the hype, after all the reviews, tweets and blog posts analyzing every detail of the iPad, from the placement of the headphone jack to the reflective qualities of its glass screen, you may still be wondering: Should I buy one?
In one word: no. Well, let me revise that: not yet." And that was my same advice. Despite its potential, it is still a work in progress, just like the iPod and the iPhone were when they were launched. Apple creates amazing machines but they require a learning curve to get them to their best potential. And so the iPod became the iTouch and the iPhone found religion with 3G. The same will hold true for the iPad.

In fact, I can see its potential as a device in each room of the house, just like each TV in your house has its own remote. The beauty is that they all talk, not only to each other, but to your other mobile devices as well. Will the iPad become a more mobile device as well; perhaps in time. "It weighs too much to hold in the hand comfortably as an e-reader. It’s not so easy to sync documents with another computer. The Apple iPad case, which also serves as a stand, isn’t steady enough. And on and on." For this and other reasons, Apple needs time to get feedback, adapt, and grow. They have the appeal, they have the fans, they have the time. They have built another revolutionary device that over time will only get better. Apple is truly a leader in the industry.