3 Reasons the iPad is Crap
Friday, January 29, 2010
These are deal-killers on their own, and put together, they're like, a triple-deal-killer of death:
- No camera. Come on. The one is so freaking obvious. Skyping with mom and dad is like, half the use I get out of my netbook.
- No flash. Done.
- What do all existing computers, typewriters, terminals, televisions, and video game consoles have in common? Their input devices are largely horizontal, while their viewing devices are vertical. Unless you have this thing propped up on your legs with knees bent -- which is fine, but not always the best option -- you can't type on it and look at it at the same time. Phones are an exception because you type with your thumbs.
Like I said, done. There's all these apologists coming out of the woodwork talking about how I don't get it because it's not supposed to be a computer and shit, but these are three basic, UI-based fatal flaws in this device. Even if you don't mind that it's closed and doesn't multitask -- which you fucking SHOULD -- there's 3 things that, even given those limitations, don't make sense.
And you can fix #1 & 2, but you can never fix 3. It works for a phone because we type with our thumbs, but it is never, ever going to be comfortable to type on a flat surface while you're sitting because YOUR HANDS ARE LOWER THAN YOUR EYES, so this is either pointed at the ceiling (for your hands) or at your face (because that's where your eyes are.
Also, the 'Apple wants to ween us from flash' thing is see-through and disingenuous: they don't like anyone else's proprietary software which is fine, but it's not like they're doing us a favor. They're just fighting for market share.
Re: the camera, maybe they fix that, but given that this as a Skype tablet would almost have made me overlook #2 & 3, leaving it out on V.1 was LAAAAAAAAME.
In closing, this thing is awesome, but I won't buy one because it doesn't do things I place value on any better than things I already own. It's not a gamechanger in any sense, and also, it's twice the price of a netbook.
posted by henry |
1/29/2010 12:04:00 PM|
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