Why I won't buy an iPad (and think you shouldn't, either) - Boing Boing →
Lots of good points here.
I really believe that the computing platform that will win is the one that gives the end user the most freedom. The iPad isn’t that platform. What it does have are the apps.
However, if you take that out of the equation, what really is so great about the iPad? If Android gains parity with the iPad/iPhone OS in terms of apps, what’s the real compelling reason to go Apple for mobile computing?Thank god other people agree with me on this thing.
No multitasking = an essentially worthless gadget.
Ah, yes, the good old “It doesn’t meet my needs, so it’s no good for anyone” argument. Of course uber-geek Cory Doctorow is the perfect person to evaluate a product not at all meant for or market to uber-geeks. I also love the “A better version will be out next year” chestnut. Really? They’re going to improve the product? I had no idea. I better wait for an expert to tell me when the final version is out and improvements are frozen so I know when it’s safe for me to finally purchase it. I am so fucking tired of “experts” telling me how stupid I am.
News Flash: Most people have no real concept of what computer “multi-tasking” means and they don’t really care. I know this must be shocking to geeks. These people have been enjoying their iPhones for a couple of years now and are looking for the same experience on a full-sized screen. You see, these “normal people” are actually out there sharing photos, connecting via Facebook, playing games with friends, and generally, finally, enjoying using technology. They don’t give a shit about open platforms, multi-tasking, or any of that, they just have stuff they want to do. They are more than willing to sacrifice a bit of flexibility if that means the technology gets the hell out of their way. They’re not stupid. I know that’s difficult to swallow for computer hobbyists who get off on installing Linux, tweaking performance, and messing with the latest open source video codecs for fun.
What is with this burning need some people have to be the first to explain why they’re not going to buy some new gadget? Are they so egotistical as to assume every new device is being marketed to their demographic? Maybe they’re just in a hurry to talk themselves out of wanting something so they have one less thing to worry about. I can almost hear the internal dialog: “Oh man, I really need to figure out why I don’t like this thing so I can stop wanting it.”
The more I think about people with a raging hate-on for Apple, the more I’m convinced they’re raging against a paradigm shift. The previous fifteen years or so of culture has fawned all over these geeks, giving them a vastly inflated sense of self-importance. They are personally offended that Apple would dare to ignore them and make cool products the majority of users might enjoy using. They are crying because they can feel themselves slowly being marginalized by popular culture. Computers are finally moving away from expert-level machines people are forced to learn, towards proper consumer electronic devices people can use. Dear geeks, one day people will look at you the same way they look at their plumber, electrician, or auto mechanic. They’ll be glad you are there with you expert knowledge when it’s needed, but they’ll resent having to deal with you at all.
I pre-ordered my iPad on day one.
I’m not a computer geek in the least, and have no special connection to or love for either Apple or PC-based architecture.
I just find it outrageous that this supposedly spectacular, paradigm-shifting gadget can’t do something that even the lowest computing device can.
When I described this to friends and family, none of whom are computer-savvy, they all decided such a device was relatively worthless.
I want to like the iPad, I really do. I think it’s an exceptional concept, much the same way netbooks and OLPC were. My worry is that all of Apple’s DRM-managed content, proprietary formats and other general nonsense will hold it back. Once the tablet market opens up and rest of the industry follows Apple’s lead, that’s when these devices will blossom and grow into something truly special. The formats will be freed, which is what the original poster was getting at. Apple seems to purposefully holding back the format by using all these controlled formats. The first company to make people realize that this is bullshit will be the big winner in the tablet wars.
And for the record, I hate elitist geeks. I hate having to troubleshoot a PC or install a wireless router (or, more likely, constantly fix a wireless set-up). I am afraid of trying to install a video card, something I was thinking of doing this summer, and harming my computer with static electricity in the process. I can’t wait to see the PC revolution move further on and leave the current machines behind. I just don’t think Apple is quite there yet. Sorry.
Yeah, I can really see how lack of multi-tasking has hurt iPhone sales.
For the record, every time I hear someone bitch about lack of multi-tasking and I ask them why, the only reason I’ve ever been given is a desire to run Pandora in the background. That’s it. It’s like people have been told “Multi Task Good,” even though they can only think of one use case they have for it. But geeks told them it’s important, so it must be. Is it a nice-to-have? Sure. When it eventually comes to iPhone OS I’m sure i”ll make use it, but like copy/paste, it’s absence isn’t exactly stopping me using and enjoying my phone. Also, I promise you, when multi-tasking does arrive, most “normal” people will barely use it.
