By Jenna Mitby
I own a Macbook Pro, iPod, and iPhone, but I’m far from a diehard Apple supporter. Rather, I resent Apple for their sleek and sexy products, and I have a long list of problems with each one of them. I still use my Dell laptop regularly as well as my hp netbook, so I consider myself in the middle of these tech wars.
That said, Apple has created a classic. However, for Gen Y, it’s not there yet.
I’m not going to review what the iPad can do from its apps to its e-book reader, although I probably will never turn on my Kindle again. Instead, I want to explore how the iPad fits into Gen Y’s lifestyle.
The design obviously attracts us just as most Apple products do. It’s fast, fun, and looks just like our smart phones, so we already know how to use it. Great, but does it do anything that my other products can’t?
To be frank, not really. Apple understands our desire for everything to be in one place. I may own a ton of different products, but if one does it all, it wins. The best part of the iPad is its ability to integrate every part of our lives in one device.
But, Apple ignored its fatal flaw with the iPhone: multi-tasking. Gen Y demands the ability to multi-task, and thankfully, come September, Apple’s software will allow us to multi-task. For Millennials, this is enough to discourage us from buying an iPad now.
Considering the iPad’s nature, a hybrid between a smart phone and a laptop, it’s amazing to me that a few things were left out. Where on earth is the camera? Gen Y wants to have the ability to video chat, or at least take pictures to upload to Twitter or Facebook. If you hold the iPad up, it would be difficult to take a normal picture, but with it sitting on your lap, it’d be perfect for video chatting.
Also, what’s with the no Flash? The possibilities for the iPad as a mobile TV, connecting to sites like Hulu, are enticing, but require flash. Gen Y watches content online constantly, if you want us to buy the iPad we’re going to need a little bit more from you, Apple.
My opinion of the iPad is more favorable than this article may make it seem. I could play with my iPad all day, but I’m also into new products. Gen Y will demand more from the iPad before most will shell out the minimum of $500. The iPad has the capability to do everything we want it to, but for now, our laptops and smart phones will suffice.
The iPad’s use with older generations seems clear to me. It’s easy to use, has improved business functions, and brings together the important parts of a laptop and smart phone in one place. It won’t be long before Apple and its iPad evolve to meet the desires of Gen Y because, once again, Apple hit the mark.
Photo Credit: ivyfield
Speaking as a Gen-X, it just misses for me. It's not laptop enough. If I could run Quicken and TurboTax on it, it would be my new home computer. Also don't like that I can't create folders to hold Pages files. Odd.
Really nice post Jenna,
I agree with all your points… i have no desire to buy an ipad. One of the main reasons why not is that it does not do everything that i want it to. I have come to expect a lot from apple products, and this one just seems to be missing a lot.
Not to mention, that in 6 months they will come out with a new version that will address some of the issues we all have with it. For me it is also an issue or aesthetics: the ipad looks like one of those large calculators for people with vision problems… its like, “well if you can't see your itouch well enough, here is this much larger, though less powerful version”
But overall i think you are right… it won't be long before the ipad is the new ipod and we will all be craving the latest edition in the newest colors
I think the closed nature of the iPad (like other Apple devices) is another detractor, from hardware (1 Apple-proprietary port to connect through) to the software (you'll only be able to legally run what Apple approves). In the past 10 years the open source community has grown, and tech. companies have taken notice of the success that products which (partially) crowd-source software development and allow customization. The increase of open betas from larger software companies is a reflection of this. Apple's desire to control (and patent) every aspect of the device has more to due with ensuring healthy markups on their hardware than ensuring the proper user experience. This strategy nearly put them out of business 15 years ago, and may again if companies are actually allowed to freely compete with them. As one who was a computer geek before it was chique, I always remind folks that with Apple you pay almost 100% markup to get that logo on your device. There's a number of touch interface netbooks coming to the market soon enough, and as you already said, it does little much more than an iPhone our Touch can't already do (and most of us already own).
Or maybe they'll re-release the iPhone and call it the iPad Nano.
Sorry, That was supposed to be a response to Jen Schmidt…
I dont have an iPad or an iPhone… I wouldn't get the former, but most probaly would invest maybe in an iPhone. I must admit the fact the iPad couldn't mutitask, something laptop computers have been able to do for at least a decade now was a surprising flaw. Then again you could say they rushed to get it out. You know how it is, and its how its always been, Microsoft Vs. Apple. Microsoft, still today has the upper hand, think in the nineties it was Microsoft this Microsoft that. Nows its more Apple this, Apple that….or more so iThis or iThat.
Apple want to take the power rug from underneath microsoft, but of course its going to be very hard… think if you put in front of someone aged 16 today, a Mac & a PC…which one do you think they'd go for… im pretty sure the PC, as it has just generic but easy controls, in comparison to the artistic but confusing GUI.
This is something we will see develop over the next few years…just wait, we'll be getting iBuses and Microsoft Cars next.