1. You can’t type on a flat surface.
The design and ergonomics of the device have either been thought about too little, or thought about so much that they’ve managed to somehow flip back round again to a stupid way of thinking. You see all these pictures and adverts of users propping up their iPad at an angle an their knees, but what about those who can’t just pop their knees up on the same surface?
Of course, you could shell out for an iPad dock and an iPad Bluetooth keyboard, but then that would only transform it into a low grade, slightly upper-class netbook like device. You’d have to carry more stuff around with you and it defeats the object of having an ultra slim and portable device, frankly.
2. It breaks really easily.
I know this video seems a bit Clockwork Orange at first, but stick with it until about 1 minute in or so. With only a few drops from waist height onto a carpeted floor, it scratches and the screen screws up. Even though the glass screen seems to be scratch-proof even to a six-inch nail, the under parts seem fragile at best.
I wouldn’t really suggest buying something so likely to break after a couple of drops and a simulated beer, let alone last that long with spendthrift students who dispose of technology like the Mafia do with their enemies.
3. Universities are not full prepared yet.
Students will want to use the device in, on and around campus. But in some universities, their networks are not prepared for the bandwidth costs or usage, and some have outright banned the device until further notice until issues are fixed.
4. Content over 3G is disappointingly poor quality.
Some news reporters have shown clearly the poor quality of video transmitted over the 3G network. Though video calling has never been as popular as the industries had hoped, users of instant messengers who want to add that personal touch to their conversations will be disappointed by the poor video quality.
That would be the case, had Apple included a damn camera with the device. But sure, Wi-Fi has higher bandwidth than 3G at the best of times, but video playback on a screen size of this device just looks horrendous.
5. The glossy screen is awful to look at.
Those who have an Apple MacBook will know how painfully awful the glossy screen can be in a high-light environment, to the point where you could almost pluck your eyebrows or do your make-up in the mirror-esque screen display… or, whatever people do with mirrors, I guess.
The same can be said about the iPad. Forget working outside on a warm, summer’s day, because you’ll be blinded by the reflection of the sun; burned into your retinas for life.
6. Reading e-books is tiring on the eyes.
There have been quite a few posts about the iPad’s capabilities to read e-books in comparison to e-ink technology on rival devices such as the Kindle. It is of two major opinions - both colleagues of mine, Matthew Miller and Jason Perlow - that the iPad is probably not the best device to have for reading.
Perlow’s post sums it up nicely, while Miller is supportive still of the iPad’s efforts. Both are worth a read, and you can decide for yourself.
7. Flash will never be supported.
In a major tit-for-tat battle, the iPad and other Apple mobile devices will not include or support Flash. The popular web plug-in wasn’t included when the device was first released, suggesting it could just be late to the game. But as time prevailed, it turned out that it was an absolute, definitive ‘no’.
8. Apple royally screws over developers.
Mobile developers are a key player in keeping the mobile industry ticking over, with no age restrictions on developers allowing even the younger entrepreneurs to make their millions.
But with the Apple lock-in license agreement, it now means you cannot use any product other than Apple’s own tools to develop applications for the iPad. Even the federal authorities are investigating this as an antitrust enquiry, which roundly proves that Apple has a too-strict approach when it comes to iPad application development.
9. Digital rights restrictions stifles innovation and application freedom.
Again with the applications, but it has made Apple’s monopoly on the iPhone, iPod touch and iPad immeasurable to other device manufacturers. But the Electronic Frontier Foundation has criticised Apple’s move towards using digital rights restrictions on the operating system to make only Apple-approved applications installable on the devices.
It is also stated that Apple itself, and via “any other authority” can remotely disable and delete applications, media and data on the iPad as and when they choose.
10. Share and print? Probably not going to happen.
PC World said last month just after the announcement that the iPad not only doesn’t have a file browser but no printing support. Those putting finishing touches onto an essay or researching something quickly will have to email it to themselves only to print from another computer. You can share and export files through iTunes, but this would mean iTunes would be required on the other machine to download it again.
11. It was released with a serious networking fault.
One university really embraced the iPad; buying every new undergraduate student one for the next academic year starting this autumn. But, three other major universities outright banned the tablet - mostly because of a flaw which caused the entire network to slow down to a snail’s pace.
If you’re going to release a product, there are two simple rules. Firstly, don’t release it with a major bug. Secondly, try and avoid distributing it with malware (not that the iPad did, though).
Oh, and that university which embraced the iPad? Yeah, it’s now charging an extra $500 a year as “bandwidth fees” to keep the network ticking over.
12. Multitasking is necessary for university work.
Multitasking is absolutely essential for students. You’ll need one browser open (for research, but mostly for Facebook) and the other to be taking your notes on or adding that extra bit to your essay.
Well the iPad can’t multitask. It will in the future - along with the ever-popular iPhone, but the future isn’t now.
13. The name. It was like when the Wii first came out.
C’mon. The name? You could have called it the iSlate, the iTablet - maybe at a push the iScreen or the iTouch - though the last one does sound a bit sinister, and probably shouldn’t be read out loud around children. But no, they called it the iPad.
They may as well have called it the iTampon or something. Although, thankfully with time, it’ll overtake the actual meaning of it and be as perfectly normal as saying the ‘Wii’ - which, of course was mocked when it was first announced. On the other hand, we Briton’s didn’t really get the joke seeing as we don’t call a ‘pad’ a ‘pad’, as such.
14. There’s no stylus.
If there was just a little slot where you could put a stylus - regardless of the multi-touch support - that would have been nice. Sometimes you want precision, and with me and my genetically fat fingers, I’ll never get it. Seeing as nearly 60% of Americans are considered “obese”, you’re probably more likely to eat the damn thing than anything else.
15. It isn’t really designed to actually do ‘work’ on.
One nation-leader can use it when he’s stuck at an airport because a volcano screwed up the airspace, but the leader of the free world disagrees. Because Obama is… well, Obama, pretty much what he says goes. And he’s the man who’s embraced email and the BlackBerry culture like a Generation Y kid on steroids.
I would too agree that the iPad can be nothing more than a distraction. Isn’t that what smartphones are nowadays? What would you rather do in a lecture - listen to the lecturer, or play the highly addictive iCopter game on your phone?
16. It’s ‘cheap’ but the data costs won’t be.
Whether you use the in-built wireless capabilities or the 3G network, it may end up costing you dearly. Wireless access is usually free (though no doubt many of you will have to pay for your access at your favourite coffee shop), the 3G charges will cost a lot more.
On this side of the pond (Great Britain, though the prices aren’t really), it’s around £25-£40 a month depending on how much data you use. In my books, that’s not too bad. But if you look at the wider contract costs for data say, with a Microsoft KIN device, you’ll begin to realise how expensive 3G access can be.
17. E-books won’t replace paper textbooks (it’s a price thing).
Even though e-books on the iPad may not be as expensive as people thought, the textbooks that students need to get for their course modules not only probably won’t be on the iBooks store, but even if they are they won’t be as cheap as the rest of them.
I can pick out two textbooks required for my modules this year at random. One is a criminology dictionary and the other is an introduction to social policy. Not only are these two books (incredibly popular as they are) not on iBooks but they cost £95 together. E-books may be convenient for the reader, but it loses the author money.
18. There’s no high-definition output.
Picture the scene. You download a high-definition 720p film or television episode off iTunes and you want to watch it on your nice 32″ LCD television. You can, but seeing as there is no HDMI connection, your video won’t be in high-definition after all.
With that shiny, glossy screen and the fact you have to balance the device on your bent-over knees (which gives you pins and needles, by the way), you’ll want to plug it into an external monitor. Don’t get me wrong; you can, but the quality will be not as good as what you paid for.
19. Battery life doesn’t even come close to the average netbook.
My parents have a netbook running Windows XP which battery lasts for 14 hours. It not only lasts them through the departures and arrivals area, but also the 7-8 hour flight from London Heathrow to Phoenix. It’s incredible, take my word for it.
With wireless and 3G activity, GPS activated and maybe through watching a film or two, some people have to charge it up twice a day just to keep it going. Not ideal for a campus-travelling university student, I assure you.
20. No choice of mobile network (unless you jailbreak it).
Of course you could only go with a Wi-Fi only iPad, but for those true productive people who want to connect as and when they wish, the 3G model is for them. But seeing as the only network that offers the iPad in the US is AT&T, some customers are a little less than happy.
Even though I wouldn’t know - being a lousy Briton and all that - my fellow citizens will understand that AT&T is to Verizon, like O2 is to Tesco Mobile. It’s bad. Oh, and they don’t even seem to have the full infrastructure in place. That’s like buying all the windows and doors to your house when you don’t even have the walls up yet.
** NOTE ** the last one doesnt apply here in Oz... Optus, Voda and Telstra will carry this.
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