LOL, if all I wanted to do was read a book I could borrow one for free (but then if I paid $139+ for sunglasses I guess I could go to Barnes & Noble) from my public library! Thats ALL their ebook readers can do… while iPads open up the entire world to its users!

The term ‘tablet pc’ was coined in 2001.

I don’t think the iPad killed the smartbook term, I think the tablet pc term killed it by coming out 8 years earlier.

Horrible article, and pointless, I want the five minutes of my life back I wasted reading this trash.

Chrome was suppose to be the Netbook/Tablet OS. However, Google will probably fix Android in 3.0 or soon there after.

Three years ago, I looked into an iMac. “The transition is smooth and it’s so much better than Windows,” some of my friends who went Apple told me. They’re still my friends; they still very much like that they switched to Apple.

Me? I wasn’t finding the “transition” so easy. Not all videos played, not all websites I wanted to see were perfectly viewable. To view Word files you had to pay an arm and a leg for the MacOS Office. But I still liked the iMac design. It was all in one, no tower, everything was nice and neat. I put WinXP on it and it served me for 3 years.

Fastforward to today, I got a wider, proper Windows machine, and I’m happy. I also got a netbook, and I’m happy with that too.

But when the iPad came out, I was seriously eyeing it. Not a Mac user, but it was still alluring. Nice, sleek design, compact, light, 10 hour battery, it’s beautiful. Once again I’m caught looking at all the pro-Apple videos. (Remember the “I’m a Windows computer, I’m a Mac computer” ads?)

So here are the reasons I would want to buy an iPad:

Beautiful, sleek design. 10 hour battery life. Since it’s all self-contained, I don’t have to drag around a mouse (the touchpad sucks on note and netbooks), don’t have to drag around an electric adapter to use the netbook when the 4-hour battery died. Since it’s a self-contained tablet, I can just take it out and start using it. I’m a writer, and I find the idea of a computer I can just take out and start inputing stuff into it alluring.

Here’s why I WOULDN’T buy an iPad:

No flash. Seriously? This is supposed to be the “best” net surfing experience when like half the sites I visit can’t be viewed properly?

I don’t mind the lack of USB ports so much. I see Apple’s side in that the iPad isn’t supposed to be a full-fledged computer where you can hook up printers etc. to, except that they make file transfering real tedious. Great. I created a text file to work with on a bigger machine. But why can’t I TAKE IT OUT?

No camera? Seriously? A netbook could handle a camera no prob. Even iPhones have them now. But not the iPad? Not that I would use it too much… but seriously?

Its strengths are its weaknesses; an iPad is real nice because it’s sleek, it’s compact, it doesn’t have a keyboard. But that’s also a reason it kinda sucks; I write. (or more appropriately, iWrite?) On the one hand, the sleekness is great, but on the other hand, it’s real hard to both hold the computer up and type with one hand. I’ve been to the Apple Store numerous times really trying to like this feature, or even picturing myself proping the computer up on the keyboard stand every time I need to type something. Not sure it’s gonna work.

There are other features that make me say no to the iPad, but these are the big ones.

My netbook offers a camera, it will run the programs I need, I can move files on and off it easily. Though more bulky, the screen and keyboard are one. I do have to wait for it to load up and open up Windows, but for typing what I need, and viewing all my websites, it’s worth it.

Allow Flash and maybe work out the bugs in the touch-keyboard? Maybe I’ll buy an iPad.

Maybe I’m not understanding who the “target user” for the iPad is? Fair enough; APPLE’S the one that’s gonna lose money.

One, carriers are once again controlling features and some applications on the phones running on their network. Apple has prevented that and all their functionality is available on every iPhone sold. The only exceptions are iOS features that are limited due to older hardware restrictions.

Second, Android devices are now (just like MS did with PCs) coming loaded with crapware – most of which you cannot remove. In essence, Google and the Carriers are dictating which software resides on my device. Software beyond apps core to the OS like the browser or mail. As well, while techies like the perception of “open”, the proliferation of ID theft through apps that are not vetted including spyware, viruses and the like are going to bring Android to its’ knees.

Finally, try and update your Android OS. (Great for the hackers but for the average user it sucks). Not only do you have to wait for your specific phone manufacturer to ensure compatibility with the OS update but you have to wait for your carrier to add in their crapware functionality and make it available for your specific model phone. That means security updates and OS updates can take months to reach your specific model.

I’m not even going into detail on how developers need to test on thousands of devices to ensure their software is compatible.

Fact is, Android is getting frustrating: bloated with crapware; hard to update; proliferation of spyware.

Say what you will but Android is the Yugo of automobiles while Apple is the Ferrari.

I think it is your reply that is dead wrong. Even the link you gave proves it: smartbooks are defined there thus: “A smartbook offer the best qualities of both smartphones and laptops in one convenient package, with always-on 3G access, a larger screen and a complete keyboard.”

There are no smartbooks without keyboards that I can find on the site.

Based on research examining Mobile Internet Devices (including tablets), we’ve identified five keys to success for new mobile devices (especially those creating new device categories). With the iPad, much as it did with the iPod and iPhone, Apple exhibited an uncanny ability to deliver on each these. The five keys and our assessment of Apple and the iPad are:
> Hitting the sweet spot on the “3 P’s” (price, performance, and portability) – A+
> Enabling seamless mobility (with instant on, affordable 3G, etc.) – A
> Creating compelling new user experiences (optimizing the device, especially, for apps for which it’s uniquely well-suited) – A+
> Cultivating and nurturing the ecosystem – B (there’s room for improvement here, despite the App store)
> Avoiding product-centric traps (especially positioning vis a vis existing device categories – see p. 3 at the link below) – A-

I’ve posted a graphic elaborating on these Keys at http://slidesha.re/bMc9Ze, with more discussion to come at the iPad and Tablets Conf.

We’re also in the midst of completing a significant research study examining consumer demand and preferences for Tablets. The results, to be presented at the iPad and Tablets Conf. next month (http://bit.ly/93D43Z) and published in a GigaOm Pro report mid-Oct., will show (i) which features are “must haves,” (ii) the appeal and demand for various Tablet configurations, (iii) price elasticity and other important insights. We will also be discussing implications for OEMs hoping to capitalize on this phenomenon and emulate the iPad’s success.

Our conclusion? OEMs had better up their game and deliver with laser-like accuracy – otherwise, Apple will continue to dominate the Tablet market and widen its already formidable lead.

Dr. Phil Hendrix, immr and GigaOm Pro analyst