Apple unveils iPad

Ready, set, imagine.

We no longer have to imagine whether Apple’s theoretical tablet device might be real, or what it might be called, or any of the specs or pricing. Ranging from $499 to $699 (or for some of us, $629 to $829, but we’ll get to that later), the iPad is largely what enthusiasts imagined it would be: a ten inch tall iPhone that doesn’t make phone calls but is fully App Store-compatible. For once, Apple’s pricing is significantly lower than what most of us were expecting. Every one of your existing iPhone or iPod touch apps will work on the iPad without modification, although it’ll initially mean using them in only a fraction of the screen (or scaling them up, which may not be pretty), until app developers modify their apps for higher resolution. While a virtual keyboard is the default, you can buy a physical keyboard as an add-on. A modified version of Apple’s iWork productivity suite can be added for $10 per app. And you can even buy the device with or without AT&T’s 3G cellular data network service. So, except for those in love with Verizon, everyone got what they wanted.

Here’s the question, though: do we know what we want from the iPad? All through Steve Jobs’ presentation, I heard all about all the things you can do with it – and wow is it ever groundbreaking. This device could in fact, once the hardware grows up in subsequent versions, begin to replace the personal computer as many people’s computing device of choice. But what I didn’t hear anywhere in there from Steve was why you would use the iPad, where you would use it, when you would use it.

The iPod didn’t need those questions answered in 2001 because it sought to replace the Walkman. The iPhone didn’t need an answer because most of us had already been using a cellphone. But the iPad? Initially at least, it doesn’t replace anything. Here’s a device that doesn’t fit in your pocket so it doesn’t replace your iPod, and yet it doesn’t (currently) have enough horsepower to replace your laptop in anything more than a sometimes scenario.

I’m fairly convinced that the success or failure of the iPad is going to come down to the collective imagination of its potential userbase. If many of you are already thinking of real world situations in which you could put it to good use, then the iPad’s prospects are bright. At the least, this product will find niches, especially with this price tag, but I don’t think that’s what Apple is aiming for here.

Perhaps the most controversial initial aspect is that the iPad doesn’t come with 3G functionality unless you pay $130 extra up front – I see it as a mere toy without 3G (in which you’d be hunting for wifi), but the good news is users can each decide for themselves. The 3G is prepaid, no contract, $30/month unlimited or $15/month capped.

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