As Steve Jobs unveils the latest Apple creation (or re-creation) the sceptics are out in force ‘slating’ the iPad (no pun intended) before it even goes into full production. But where will this reincarnation sit amongst all our other techno- gadgets, and is it likely to be one step too far in an already overcrowded marketplace?  Will its niche in the market remain just that – a niche market composed mainly of Apple junkies?

There are a number of pointers that may indicate that Apple/Steve Jobs may have the thinking right on this one (again).  We know that there are already a plethora of similar devices all vying for our attention, but with perhaps one big glaring difference.  All the tablets, e-readers, Kimbles and the like have  never quite hit the mark when it comes to simplifying usability.  When the The iPhone entered the mobile device fray it was initially met with a mixed reaction(apart from the Mac devotees who embraced it straightaway) –  yet it has revolutionised mobile phone  ’architecture’, leaving others slightly lagging  despite all their best efforts.

The iPad incoroporates all the ‘touchy feeliness’  of its pocket predecessors with touch screen, drag, flick, etc navigation but now  in a larger format, which has to be better for typing and thumbing the pages of e-books.
But why (I hear you say) does the paperback  continue to prevail? Maybe its to do with the tactile way we can browse a book And its certainly not through the want of trying by Sony, Amazon et al.
Mr Jobs and co’s philosophy has always been to build devices with the end user user experience in mind rather than fill it full of gadgetry. Exactly the reason why the iPhone became such a hit leaving other devices playing ‘catchy-uppy’.

End our love affair with the mouse?  - Never!

Perhaps we have now become too attached to that little slidey object by our computers and now is the time  to embrace the touch-screen with both fingers. ( If champanzees have mastered it I’m sure we can in time. )
Seriously,  its high likely all the appealing ‘ergonomics’ of the iPhone will work beautifully in a bigger device and entice us even more.

Size matters
I think the iPad’s achilles heel may in fact be its size (I bet they thought long and hard about this). Again it all depends what we use it for, although for a portable its a tad heavy to pop into your trouser pocket, but perfect for a college or office bag, which perhaps indicates the target market.  However I can see major advantages of having a bigger device  for car journeys  - maps, web browsing, watching movies etc .

Conclusion

Will the iPad find a place in our lives alongside the other techno-toys? – too early to say perhaps.   It might be trying to do all things quite well but none really well. And its market share will only ever be marginal. Nevertheless, I have to admit that I still want  one – in the certain knowledge its probably going to be damn good.

Some (stolen) stats

• 9.7 inch display
• Touch screen
• 1.5 pounds, 1/2 inch thick
• 1 ghz apple A4 chip, 16 to 64 GB flash storage
• WiFi 802.11n
• Bluetooth 2.1 +EDR
• Speaker, Microphone, 30-pin connector
• Accelerometer & Compass
• 10 Hours of active battery life, 1 month of battery life on stand by
• Earth-friendly!
• Every iPad has WiFi support, some models have 3G support
• lack of built in camera and 3G support as standard.  There is also
• iBooks store interface just like iTunes.
• Turn pages by swiping, just like a real book
• Interface very similar to the iPhone, but bigger. Flick and touch controls throughout
• New version of iTunes specific to the iPad, flick controls
• iBooks is next. This is where Apple tries to take on the Kindle
• iWorks for the iPad.

• “The gadget is a premium mobile device, not a computer; as such we see some iPod Touch buyers stepping up to the iPad, but consumers looking for an affordable portable computer will likely stick with the MacBook line up,” said Gene Munster of Piper Jaffray.
• Analysts also believe the gadget could cannibalise the e-reader market, currently dominated by Amazon’s Kindle and Sony’s Reader.
• A 32GB iPad will cost $599 (£376) and a 64GB will cost $699 (£439). Apple has given no hint about exact UK prices and final costs may be higher than direct conversions suggest.
• Can only run one application at a time – major weakness!

(stats courtesy of BBC technology pages and  others)