OT: Apple Announcement

[Geoff Grace]

I'm in the group with Bryce et al: I already have a portable kick-ass computer in my MacBook Pro. If I want something smaller, an iPhone would be fine. I'm not sure who/where the market is for this iPad.

I suppose I might be in the target group. I'm a desktop user who craves a little portability, but I don't want to pay laptop prices just to have a computer I can use anywhere in the house.

 

Best,

 

Geoff

[zephonic]

I suppose I might be in the target group. I'm a desktop user who craves a little portability, but I don't want to pay laptop prices just to have a computer I can use anywhere in the house.

 

Best,

 

Geoff

 

+1

[Mr.E]

Oops, this version of OS does not support multitasking.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Jazz+]

Im thinking that we have yet to see any significant differences between the iPad and the iPod Touch, other than its size.

[Jeff Klopmeyer]

I'm in the group with Bryce et al: I already have a portable kick-ass computer in my MacBook Pro. If I want something smaller, an iPhone would be fine. I'm not sure who/where the market is for this iPad.

I suppose I might be in the target group. I'm a desktop user who craves a little portability, but I don't want to pay laptop prices just to have a computer I can use anywhere in the house.

 

And the price point seems to be the swaying argument there, Geoff. It's way less expensive than my MacBook Pro. But I'm a person who requires specific apps with high compatibility, and the idea of being limited to iPhone apps (the only current applications that can apparently currently run on the iPad) would be a deal-killer for me. But that just means I'm not the customer... many others probably are who like the netbook concept.

 

In any case, it looks really neat. I like things that look neat.

[zephonic]

Yeah, the inability to multi-task (and absence of a webcam) is a dealbreaker for now. The difference with the iPod Touch: 3G, iWorks and the bigger screen; as far as I can tell.

 

I sort of expected Apple to include handwriting recognition with this device; I guess the technology isn't good enough yet.

 

Let's hope that the VI's will be ported to this device. Virtual Moog on your touchscreen with real-time knobs = neat. Or drawbars or whatever. Or Mainstage as a dedicated app without LogicPro.

[GovernorSilver]

I suppose I might be in the target group. I'm a desktop user who craves a little portability, but I don't want to pay laptop prices just to have a computer I can use anywhere in the house.

 

Best,

 

Geoff

 

What if you could run an updated version of the Pro Tools Controller app for iPhone on it?

[SK]

Outside of the coolness factor, I thought Apple might be making a mistake here. But as said, it's probably going to appeal to a lot of people who are left out, who want a bigger screen than an iPhone/iTouch and not spend too much on a laptop. The crop of netbooks isn't nearly as appealing.

 

The economy will push more people to consider a medium priced cool new gadget. I won't be getting one, but the folks at Apple are smart.

[BillWelcome Home Studios]

I think that everybody is missing the point here. Apple has a devoted following of customers, who wait for the next Apple product to drop just like I used to wait for the next Beatle or Stones LP. They will buy it no matter what it is, just as I'd buy the Beatles or the Stones.

 

It has nothing to do with need, and everything to do with need to have the latest/greatest/coolest.

 

Who really -needs- a smart phone? (of any brand.) Not important. People WANT them. As long as a marketing guy can create that sense of 'need', products are successful.

 

A fellow I know is rushing out to get a new Telecaster, because it has a pizeo pickup in it that 'makes it sound just like an acoustic guitar!'. Now, this guys doesn't play out and owns a couple of nice acoustic guitars, and never considered buying a Telecaster before.... but he 'needs' one now.

[zephonic]

As a live instrument it could blow a notebook out of the water. Not having to manoeuvre a pointing device in an emergency or when you have to do fast real-time adjustments is a major step forward. Just velcro it to your controller-keyboard and Steve's your uncle

 

Note of interest: Apple says that the new A4 chip that powers this device is an original design. Wow.

[Bobadohshe]

I think that everybody is missing the point here. Apple has a devoted following of customers, who wait for the next Apple product to drop just like I used to wait for the next Beatle or Stones LP. They will buy it no matter what it is, just as I'd buy the Beatles or the Stones.

 

There are a lot of devoted Apple followers on this forum, and I don't see any of them gushing praise.

 

Who really -needs- a smart phone? (of any brand.) Not important. People WANT them. As long as a marketing guy can create that sense of 'need', products are successful.

 

I guess you can define 'need' many different ways. But I know many people that need their smart phones in the sense that they are indispensable tools for their day to day business. Sure they got along before they were invented, just like humans got along without electricity or cars or the internet. But once those things were invented, they made doing business a hell of a lot easier, and became 'needs' and smart phones are no different.

 

That said, I agree with your basic point. People will find a use for this thing and people will love it, and Apple's marketing will have a lot of people tripping over one another on their way to their local Apple store to buy them. Not everything Apple brings to the market is a raging success however. I don't know one person who owns a Macbook Air.

[Dave Pierce]

I've never understood the appeal of a device that is too big for my pocket, but too small to be a fully functional computing, input and display device. As others have said, if I want something that doesn't fit in my pocket, I have a Macbook. Works great.

 

It's usually a mistake to discount Apple's marketing and design savvy, so I might be wrong. But I think they slipped on this one. People have been asking "where is Apple's tablet" for so long that Apple ended up believing there was a market for them.

 

I'm pretty sure any other manufacturer who is making tablet will tell you that, in fact, there is not.

 

--Dave

 

[FunkKeysStuff]

The screen is big enough for an octave of full-sized keys. Just sayin'...

 

I may end up finding this useful enough to spring for. Most of what I use my laptop for on-the-go seems like it would be at least as easy and convenient, if not more so, on one of these. (Then again I'm a big touch-screen fan, and the sooner the concept of navigating with a mouse/trackpad is universally regarded as "so '00s," the happier I'll be.) Also, I had been considering a Kindle before this. Now, not a chance.

 

My biggest surprise was the lack of a webcam, but hey, they have to leave something for gen 2, right?

[GovernorSilver]

Video demo of TouchOSC on iPhone controlling Ableton Live:

 

Now imagine an updated version of TouchOSC running on the iPad's bigger screen....

 

 

[zephonic]

It's usually a mistake to discount Apple's marketing and design savvy, so I might be wrong. But I think they slipped on this one. People have been asking "where is Apple's tablet" for so long that Apple ended up believing there was a market for them.

 

I'm pretty sure any other manufacturer who is making tablet will tell you that, in fact, there is not.

 

--Dave

 

But the fact is, that nobody has done it like this until now. People were building portable music devices like the walkman, discman or minidisc and then Apple did it better with the iPod.

 

I don't think the iPad is quite there yet, but I have no doubt that it will be.

Apple may be holding out full functionality for now so as to not hurt Macbook sales, but if this thing is successful I would not be surprised to see more powerful models later on and -pehaps- the eventual phasing out of notebooks altogether.

 

(Then again I'm a big touch-screen fan, and the sooner the concept of navigating with a mouse/trackpad is universally regarded as "so '00s," the happier I'll be.)

 

 

I can't wait for that day! Be gone with pointing devices. Until telepathic computing arrives, I think touch is the way to go.

 

Finally, I really hope that VI-makers will seriously consider making iPad versions of their instruments. Maybe even 'light' versions, you probably won't hear the difference live anyway.

 

[richwhite9]

Pundits are labeling it the iPaid, the iBooked and the iFail.

 

Will anyone purchasing a Kindle for 299 Spring for the Apple?

 

I'm not the market for this thing. When eReaders are selling at $99 I'm in

[zephonic]

Not everything Apple brings to the market is a raging success however. I don't know one person who owns a Macbook Air.

 

...or an Apple TV.

[Mark Schmieder]

This is a revolutionary device and will change several industries (including some I hadn't thought of, after reading Newsweek's article today).

 

I have no use for it, but have never bought consumer devices so don't plan to change that lifestyle now. It does appear to be a good alternative to laptops for commuters though, as well as business travelers. It seems a bit awkward to use as a phone. Probably a good alternative for games and DVD's though.

[Geoff Grace]

Pundits are labeling it the iPaid, the iBooked and the iFail.

 

Will anyone purchasing a Kindle for 299 Spring for the Apple?

 

I'm not the market for this thing. When eReaders are selling at $99 I'm in

I will never buy a Kindle at any price as long as Amazon retains the ability to retrieve any book it sells you without your say so.

 

Best,

 

Geoff

[Mark Schmieder]

I agree. How ironic that the books they "accidentally" deleted from people's Kindles were "1984", "Brave New World", and "Animal Farm".

[Bill H.]

People have been asking "where is Apple's tablet" for so long that Apple ended up believing there was a market for them.

 

I've been thinking - maybe we are all blowing this out of proportion. It looks like the best tablet out there, and for those interested in a tablet - well here it is. Apple is doing nothing but plugging a hole in their product line.

 

Just for comparison, I recently picked up a HP notebook for $600 (the low end of the price scale of this new device. Just like all notebooks, it blows away the Apple iPad in every application that I do - with the exception of passively reading. Even if I owned an iPad, I would take the notebook with me far more than the tablet. It's not that much bigger and it's so much more versatile.

 

Like all Apple products it's gorgeous visually though. I'm sure that it's going to be picked up by some people for no other reason than to make a cool fashion statement.

 

Be gone with physical QWERTY and pointing devices. Until telepathic computing arrives, I think touch is the way to go.

 

Just curious Zephonic - how many wpm can you type on a touchscreen? I know that my speed is cut in half.

[timwat]

There will always be a cadre of fanboy who will buy Apple's product to make a fashion statement. Usually they hang with a crowd that appreciates the gesture and rewards it in kind.

 

For guys like me, technology either is a tool that improves workflow (either incrementally or by an order of magnitude), or it's a chia pet. I've been wrong so many times on "Is there a target market for this gadget?" that I no longer pretend to be a soothsayer. Like everyone else, I just have my work and personal needs - and an opinion.

 

At first blush I don't see where this would improve any of my workflow needs. But it might - it may just be in need of some killer apps that I can't imagine right now. I think it would be a bit curmudgeonly to sound its death knell, just as it would be premature to laud it as the second coming of the semiconductor. But that's just my opinion.

 

 

[zephonic]

 

Just curious Zephonic - how many wpm can you type on a touchscreen? I know that my speed is cut in half.

 

That was a cut-paste error. You can see I edited that out long before your reply.

Nonetheless, I think that for non-intensive stuff like answering emails etc. a touchscreen QWERTY suffices. For serious typing I'd still choose a physical QWERTY, but I don't do too much of that nowadays.

 

[Bill H.]

I think it would be a bit curmudgeonly to sound its death knell, just as it would be premature to laud it as the second coming of the semiconductor. But that's just my opinion.

 

My opinion too Tim. Everyone is taking one extreme position (huge leap forward) or the other (massive disappointment). The actual placing of this new Apple product in the marketplace may well be somewhere in between.

[Bill H.]

 

Just curious Zephonic - how many wpm can you type on a touchscreen? I know that my speed is cut in half.

 

That was a cut-paste error. You can see I edited that out long before your reply.

Nonetheless, I think that for non-intensive stuff like answering emails etc. a touchscreen QWERTY suffices. For serious typing I'd still choose a physical QWERTY, but I don't do too much of that nowadays.

 

Oops sorry about that. But for a minute there I thought that you had technique on a touchpad that I needed to know about!

[zephonic]

Funny that, reading back I don't see anybody taking extreme positions?

[Geoff Grace]

I agree. How ironic that the books they "accidentally" deleted from people's Kindles were "1984", "Brave New World", and "Animal Farm".

I thought so too.

 

Best,

 

Geoff

[Mark Schmieder]

I wouldn't lump all Apple products together as fashion statements. I didn't choose the Mac; it chose me. When I evaluated all the DAW's some nine years ago, DP stood out from the pack as being the most analog-like and intuitive (for me). Therefore I had to get a Mac, which was risky as I had no prior experience (and what a hellish first year, simultaneously learning OS 9 and OS X).

 

These consumer devices though, are a different category, unless someone needs a specific iPhone App for professional work and that forces them to buy Apple over other brands of consumer devices.

[kanker.]

Not everything Apple brings to the market is a raging success however. I don't know one person who owns a Macbook Air.

 

...or an Apple TV.

I have an Apple TV, sweet piece.

 

As far as the Flash/Youtube thing goes, most content on the Tube is available in h.264, and this is what you see on the iPod/Pad.

 

Is the device the next best thing since sliced bread? No. Is it a device that most computer users need? Yes. Most users use email, the web, and the internet, and not much more. For those who need power, it's obviously not the right solution. For the average person, it's all they need.

[Bobadohshe]

Funny that, reading back I don't see anybody taking extreme positions?

 

Yeah I was thinking the same thing. Most of us are offering qualified opinions, like 'I don't see what use this has for me right now, but I've been wrong before and who knows.' That's hardly extreme in my book.

 

That's pretty much my take as well BTW, which I've already stated. Don't see what it could do for me, but hey maybe in 2 years I'll just need to have it.