Apple has sex appeal, don’t get me wrong, but I have long been questioning the usefulness of some recent products – AppleTV, iPod Touch, Air…The iPad only continues me to wonder “Really, what is the point?”
Really, just take a look:
Come on, it’s a giant iPhone!
This isn’t a device that is “bridging the gap” between the iPhone and the Laptops… this is Apple’s moment of corporate masturbation where they try to push a device to the public, based on pure sex appeal, in the belief you will buy it simply because this is their latest “it” thing.
It is not worth it. For the wonderful price point of $499 you get:
- 9.7-inch diagonal LED-backlit glossy touchscreen (1024×768 resoltuion)
- 1GHz Apple A4 processor
- 16GB, 32GB, 64GB drives
- WiFi (802.11 a/b/g/n), Bluetooth 2.1 with EDR support
- 3G model: quad-band GSM/EDGE (850/900/1800/1900MHz), tri-band UMTS/HSDPA (850/1900/2100MHz)
- Digital Compass, A-GPS (3G model)
- 3.5-mm stereo headphone jack
- Built-in speakers
- Microphone
- SIM card tray (3G model)
- Height: 9.56 inches, Width: 7.47 inches, Depth: 0.5 inches
- 25Whr lithium-polymer battery, up to 10 hours web surfing via WiFi, watching videos, or listening to music
Call me crazy but why would I want to spend $500 for a device that is, admittedly, sexy but can be easily matched or outperformed by other devices? Case in point, the Freescale Tablet. The semiconductor company recently introduced their own line of tablet devices for $300 less than Apple AND it includes the additional features of:
- Built-in webcam
- Adobe Flash Support
- USB Ports
- Bluetooth
- A full OS, not iPhone “lite” OS Apple will be slapping on this
If I want a tablet, I want one that will allow me the free will to do what I please – be it program and develop to my standards or simply surf websites that utilize flash. While one can debate the need for a tablet device that only holds minimal processing power, the need for an iPad seems flat out pointless when there are clearly more cost effective options on the market.
So, Apple, what is the point?