The Reality of the iPad Part 1

As with most products from Apple there is always a buzz surrounding their launch and those that love them and those that love to hate them. With the launch of the newest offering from Apple, the iPad, this has never been more true. On March 5, 2010 Apple showed us what “they” have been working on, for what has been rumored to be years in the making, the iPad. On the day of the press release people were going into the conference with the preconceived perception of what they thought the iPad was going to be or more what they felt it should be. On this very same day thousands if not millions felt let down by what was actually announced. This is the nature of what Apple does, they hide their secrets with lock and key leaving the consumers, whom think they know exactly what is coming, to build up the perfect mindset of what they want. In most cases we are very close or even surprised at the things we didn’t think of. I call this the “fruit syndrome”, you knew it would be awesome but oh how sweet it is when reality hits. However in the case of the iPad many felt it simply didn’t stand up to the bar that was set by the hush hush pre-release rumors.

On Saturday March 3, 2010 Apple put the iPad at the doorsteps of thousands of Americans to grease up the screens with a passion of being the first kid on the block to own the latest from Apple. Regardless of the criticism following the iPad initial press release the voice spread throughout the Internet that the iPad was here and was the greatest thing since sliced bread, or in Apple’s case the iPhone/iPod. Over 300,000 iPads were sold at launch which regardless of what you think of it is amazing. For what the iPad lacked in features it made up for with top notch media consumption and with third party apps like iMockup for design and production.

Being an Apple user means that most reviews are biased based on the love of all things Apple. Apple has some of the most loyal fans in the market and will continue to with the wealth of media and developer following. I too am a user but over the years I have grown far less affected by “the fruit syndrome” that many still feel themselves encapsulated in. When you find yourself forcing sayings like “its incredible” or “pure revolutionary” just because it is from brand you love and trust you are more than likely not taking a step back and looking through the consumers goggles.

Now that we have made  one side of the fence utterly disgusted with me lets peer over to the other side. There may be a lot of Apple fans out there with the “fruit syndrome” but there are just as many if not more with the idea that everything Apple is evil and a total waste of space. The majority of the users that hate Apple have never even used a device for more than their friend would allow them to play with their iPod, iPhone or now iPad. There is something about Apple that makes many users simply hate the company and everything related to them. Is everything Apple puts out revolutionary, not a chance regardless of what the other side says but do some of the products change the way the industry uses technology, absolutely. Apple is not for everybody and for a lot of their products that includes me. Simple is not always better in certain applications. Apple continues to use the minimalist approach to designing products to gain the widest market adoption as possible. For the “rotten Apple” crowd I urge you to clear your thoughts and test out devices for yourself and determine without bias if it works for you. If you hate it, truly couldn’t find yourself using it, now you have ground to stand on but until then don’t judge what you don’t know.

Success, we now have both sides of the fence throwing iPads’ and slates’ at each other let us get to the point. A week after launch I have decided to try out the iPad myself instead of criticizing it for its lack of features that I have been stating publicly. How can I base a decision about what some are calling a new revolution in computing without putting it through my daily work-flow as a designer, programmer, business owner. At this moment I am the fence not leaning either direction, standing tall. I have been scarred on both sides but I stand strong. Let us see which side breaks through first. Let the reality of the iPad begin, day one.