Although I’m big into tech I’m not really much of an early adopter. I tend towards buying 2nd- or 3rd gen products right as they’re released. My theory is that this is the sweet spot for cost/benefit.
The iPad is different. After watching the introduction video (twice) I couldn’t get it out of my head. Not because of how Cool it was, or – as an iPhone owner – because of how a bigger screen would “fix” some of the issues I have with heavy iPhone surfing. The brainworm that the iPad became was very subtle, and had to do with human interaction. Not so much human-and-computer, though there’s that, but human-to-human.
You might have a sense of how the iPad changes the game if you live in a house where more than one person has a smartphone with a web browser and you’ve surfed together after supper at the dining table. Or if you’ve had a dedicated computer in the kitchen or family room, where people can look something up on a moment’s notice and not break the conversation. Having an always-on Internet integrated with daily life (vs. the “computer” as something over there in the office) is just different.
So I pre-ordered the first-gen $499 iPad. And indeed, I still think it’s a big deal. It’s totally full of 1.0, but none of it matters. It’s been available barely a month, all that will get sorted out. And yeah, when they do add a camera it will be better, etc. But the social component is here now. And the way it’s changing websites is here now. The Apple/Adobe HTML5/Flash saga is all part of it.
John Gruber’s Daring Fireball has had a number of interesting links, as have others. Reading them in in bulk will give you a sense of what I’m talking about.
What iPads Did To My Family
Fred Wilson: I’ve changed my mind about the iPad.
The iPad, and the Staggering Work of Obviousness
The real reason why Steve Jobs hates Flash
Non-Apple’s Mistake
The Progress of the Platform
The Adobe – Apple Flame War
Scribd CTO: “We Are Scrapping Flash And Betting The Company On HTML5″
Introducing Scribd in HTML5 (Web geeks, try selecting some fonts….)
HTML5 and the Web
Understand The Web
Try reading all that and not getting a sense that always-on, always-with-you Internet will change your life.
May 11, 2010