A lot of people are complaining this week about what’s missing from the iPad, and how it’s not everything it was supposed to be.
(Before its release, many people referred to it as “the Jesus Tablet”.)
I think what people are missing is that the iPad itself is just a platform.
It’s the applications that will make it the all-knowing savior from the technology gods.
Look at it this way – the iPhone in and of itself isn’t much more than a really slick touchscreen phone/iPod with internet access.
Add in all the applications (140,000+) and you’re got a device that can quite literally do almost anything.
The iPad is the same thing, and the bigger screen means the apps will be that much more powerful and useful.
Mark Cuban wrote about this much better than me, so I will stop here.
I do wish it had a webcam – it seems like a glaring omission, and as a communication device it’s definitely lacking in that area. (I don’t particularly like video calls, but I do need them at times.)
This is only the first version though, and frankly the 3G networks (especially AT&T) may not be able to handle a high volume of video calls yet.
Anyway, in this week’s newsletter I’m going to talk a bit about how small businesses could come up with some useful apps for this thing – you can sign up in the sidebar – thanks!
