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Let’s face it, the iPad is eating everyone else’s lunch and that not only goes for other tablets but for traditional computers as well.
MG Siegler has a rather interesting and excellent post over on TechCrunch the other day that makes this point rather well. In it he argues that the iPad represents a Clear and Present Danger to the traditional PC market. The reason? Unlike those of us who write for a living (whether as bloggers or… say… clergy) and need something that we can use to write hundreds or thousands of words, the vast majority of people can use an iPad (he is careful to point out that he means iPad and NOT tablet — sorry haters, but the current numbers support this so… back off!) for pretty much all their computing needs. Not only CAN they do so but the number of people ACTUALLY doing this is growing rapidly.
I am seeing the same thing and am not surprised in the least.
Last spring I noticed that every other week or so there was an additional iPad present in a class I teach, as yet another participant got an iPad.
And yesterday… Well let me tell you about that.
My in-laws aren’t into technology in the least. Still, they like their MacBook and my father-in-law loves his iPad. (He was, in fact, insufferable until I got not one but both of their printers set up for direct iPad printing.) We were at their house for the day and, at any give point except when we were eating, one of them was on the iPad. They leave for vacation tonight, and one of the top “agenda items” for packing was… charge the iPad.
My brother-in-law came over too. A few months ago he got an iPad 2. When I asked him if he is using it he reached in his bag, pulled it out and said, “I love it and use it all the time.” He is due to upgrade his iMac but isn’t doing so because, quite frankly, since he got the iPad it is seeing less and less use than ever before.
This scenario is playing out everywhere; it is gaining traction, and with good reason: the device is great and only getting better. iOS 5.0 will add some great usability features, and we still don’t know exactly what the voice integration with Nuance’s technology will look like. In other words, the hardware AND software is excellent, and it is improving with each generation.
I have, and use, a MacBook Air much of the time. The keyboard is great and, even now, posting from the iPad is limited (it stinks!!!). But much of the time if I have the choice, I’ll reach for the iPad.
Want to read my RSS feeds? iPad.
Want to surf the web? iPad.
Play a game? iPad.
Read? iPad.
Check email? iPad.
Write a post about how awesome the iPad is for everything except writing posts? Well actually I wrote this post on the iPad too.
As Siegler noted in his post, the change isn’t coming… It is already here.
A Clear And Present Danger
