Apple unveils iPad.
So, some of my predictions were right, some were wrong. Apple really surprised me by delivering a price point that has the potential to make this thing relevant.
They also did something interesting with the wireless 3G options. The rumors about the iPad being tied to a carrier by contract initially worried me; but Apple handled this right. You can buy an iPad with the modem in there. Need some data? Buy 250MB as you need it for $15, or drop $30 to get unlimited for the month. No contracts, stupid simple. I like this option, and I'd considering buying an iPad with the modem in there, just in case.
The lack of an OLED display is deeply disappointing for me, though. Going LCD gave them this price point, but OLED would have made a major difference. If anything holds me back from purchasing this generation, it's because I'll be buying into the first OLED-based model.
Is the iPad important? I think so. I think that Kindle is the Diamon Rio of the ePublishing industry. Trailblazing, but flawed. The iPad will be the iPod of the ePublishing industry; the iPad mainstream it, commoditize it.
Apple made some disappointing choices, though. They've not indicated that their App Store will undergo any reform. There are still no background tasks, no GPS. It's still a completely vertical platform, which Apple is maintaining a stranglehold on.
And in the end, that's the most important thing. I won't argue that a completely vertical platform like this won't be a commercial success; I think that it will. But it annoys the inner geek. Let's see what the Jailbreaking community can do to make this thing the ultimate Tablet, rather than the one that Apple's restraining.
Will I buy one? There's a chance, eventually. I'll have to play with one, and there will need to be killer apps crop up. But I could see asking for one for Christmas or such; it definitely won't be a purchase that I need.
