iPads aren’t for work, iPads are for reading. The might sell lots of them (though soon when the Android competition comes out that has all the reading capabilities at the price of a Kindle that’ll probably slow down) but it cannot replace computers. They don’t have the computing power, the screen size, the typing capability or the storage capacity to replace the desktop or laptop.
And those integrated keyboards are a joke. They’re cute and all but nobody is going to be doing 100 WPM on those things. Pads, i or otherwise, are readers, nifty gadgets, but nothing more. They’re no more likely to replace computers than remote controls are to replace TVs. They’re supplemental, not replacement.
That may be so with the first generation. But computing power and storage capacity will grow exponentially with future generations. The screen size is almost perfect just the way it is (to preserve portability) but I'm sure larger screen sizes will be offered in the future for those who want them.
I do think that the keyboard-in-the-pants idea has potential. Again, it will develop over time. You will always have the ability to plug a standard keyboard into an iPad should you desire that.
Strange... I sure get a lot of work done on my iPad. The dental office I manage for one of my major clients is going to be adding iPads to replace manual writing of patient notes and entering procedure codes directly into the office management software completely eliminating one step in the billing process. That's work.
It's likely that none of the Android tablets are going to work with any of the vertical solution software out there. . . Just like none of the car makers are making Android dedicated interfaces for their vehicles. The small price difference to go with iPads instead of a somewhat cheaper alternative will not be a major factor when you're paying thousands on a mission critical software and a device to interface with it.
Other clients of mine are using iPads to read x-rays, access patient records, and even order prescriptions. Sorry, that's work, too.
I'm entering this post on FR on my iPad. Not work, but it could just as easily be. By the way, my Bluetooth keyboard works just fine with it... and while i'm not that fast a typist, my daughter CAN type 100 WPM on it.
Screen size? The iPad's 9.7" screen is almost an inch larger, and has far higher resolution, than the original Macintosh screen had in 1984, a screen which redefined desktop publishing and magazine production.
Oh, and storage? I keep my documents on my computers at home and in my office and they are all instantly available to me on my iPad. That's about four Terabytes of storage. I think I have enough.
“iPads aren’t for work”
I teach programming. Got mine so I could grade, test, and communicate with students anywhere anytime. It has paid for itself.
“nobody is going to be doing 100 WPM on those things”
Duh. And nobody is going to haul around a full-sized keyboard, dual monitors, multiple terabytes, and multiple media readers everywhere they go (clamshell notebooks being a rank compromise thereof).
“They’re supplemental, not replacement.”
This. So why are naysayers so he11-bent on burning the straw man of “you can’t do X on it”? iPads work great for some, not so much for others. Just because it satisfies 80% of my needs (leaving portability a non-issue for the other 20%) doesn’t mean you should throw away your computers and try to use an iPad for what it is not good at.