Stop the Noiz

iPad Score Card

Frank Fox - 2010.01.29 - Tip Jar

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Short link: http://bit.ly/b7qKTE

Steve Jobs has unveiled the iPad.

Did Apple delivery everything I expected? Not quite, but darn close. A camera, a hard drive, and a Mini DisplayPort would have been nice. I am a gadget nerd, so I would have liked the extra features.

Watching the demo, I see most of what I do with a laptop built into the iPad. With the attachable keyboard, it could replace 90% of my laptop needs. I like typing on the bed, and a physical keyboard is the better choice for me. If my wife didn't already have a laptop, an iPad would definitely be on our list of things to get.

Overall, I'd have to say the iPad turned out to be just what I expected.

Feature	Got it	Comments
tablet, not netbook	X	Jobs talked a lot about this decision
no built-in keyboard	X
anywhere Internet connectivity	X	3G
full Internet browsing	X	"best web browsing experience"
AT&T to remain exclusive partner	X	Sorry Verizon
custom computer chip	X	1 Ghz Apple A4 CPU
battery-friendly processor	X
iPhone App Store	X
multitouch input controls	X
motion sensors	X
onscreen keyboard	X
ebook reader	X
developers have new market	X	60 days before iPad is available
iTunes: music, TV, movies	X
news, book, and print industries	X
$500 price	X	lowest is $499 for 16 GB, no 3G
larger screen	X	9.7" definitely bigger than the iPhone
cheap hard drive	-	failed, Apple is up selling based on memory
optional pen/stylus	-	fingers only
fantastic drawing tablet	X	good artist can still make it work without a stylus
no DVD	X
no Blu-ray	X
Mini DisplayPort	-	one of those Apple imposed limits
1/2" thickness	X
tapered thin edges	X
good battery life	X	10 hours
integrated battery	X
video camera like iPod nano	-	no hard drive or camera, no need for video
cameras one area that Apple limits	X	Apple showed their thinking here
data in the Cloud	?	still has MobileMe
stream media from the iDisk	?	not sure how iWork get files
office app that uses touchscreen interface	X	iWork
Grand Central Dispatch	?	no word yet
OpenCL technology	?	no news
beats a single-core 1.6 GHz Atom	?	videos looked responsive, so maybe

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