Nearly a year ago, I predicted in my Computerworld column that Apple’s iPad would not only eat into netbook sales, but sales of laptops and even desktop PCs. It was an unpopular prediction.
If you look at the 300+ comments attached to that piece, you’ll see that the majority of commenters at the time thought I was crazy, stupid or both.
One wrote: “Obviously Mike Elgan has gone off the deep end on this one. This article is so naive to the real world, and so far fetched it makes me think this is nothing but, once again, a biased article by an iSheep in its purest form.”
Another said: “This article made me laugh out loud. I thought I was reading The Onion!”
Still others were more direct: “I’m pretty sure this is the stupidest article on the internet.”
You still hear people dissing the iPad these days, of course, but nobody dismisses it. Sales of the iPad have far exceeded the expectations of all but a tiny minority of us who were very bullish from the start. Analysts have had to raise and raise again their unit-sales estimates. Early doubters have been silenced.
Now, you might think I’ve come to brag that I was right and my critics were wrong about iPad replacing PCs. A Gartner report published this week says that PC shipments are down from last year. Overall PC shipments in the United States fell by 6.1 percent. HP was down 3.5 percent. Dell dropped 12 percent. And Acer took a nearly 25 percent hit in unit sales. Meanwhile, Apple’s sales grew nearly 20 percent.
One analyst at Gartner said the PC declines resulted from buyers “turning their attention” to media tablets and other devices. The “media tablet” market is a euphemism for the iPad, which owns 70 percent market share and is expected to sell in the 45 million unit range this year.
But no, I’m not here to brag. The replacement of PCs I predicted hasn’t quite begun in earnest. The replacement will come. And I will brag. But for now, it’s more interesting to see how the iPad is gradually undermining the foundations of PC dominance.
Here’s how Apple’s iPad is setting the stage for the decline of the PC.
The iPad is:
Changing the game to Apple’s rules. The iOS platform, and its stunning popularity, is forcing the rest of the industry to play by Apple’s rules. Apple is the benchmark against which other companies attempt to reach. If you want to succeed with any kind of PC, laptop, netbook or tablet, you must have an app store, for example. You have to support lower-powered processors, like the iPad does spectacularly. (Microsoft has always pushed the envelope with new versions of Windows to require increasing microprocessor power. But Windows 8 will support ARM.) You must offer an iPad-like MPG (multi-touch, physics and gestures) user interface. You’ve got to have a retail store. These are Apple’s rules, and the success of the iOS has got everybody playing by them. Everyone can see who’s leading the market right now, and it subtlety weakens Microsoft’s leadership.
Creating uncertainty around the future of Windows. The future used to be so clear. Bill Gates has been talking for fifteen years about how in the future we’ll all use pen-based Windows tablets, voice command desktops and Windows-based mobile devices. By now, everybody was supposed to be using the Ultra-Mobile PC (UMPC) platform for mobile, and Windows Mobile or Windows Phone on cell phones. But that future, so clear in the minds of many PC users, is gone. The only conceivable future for the PC now is one that resembles the future Apple envisioned — MPG desktops, MPG tablets and MPG phones.
Poisoning the well for Microsoft’s “feature rich” credo. Einstein’s definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. By that metric, Microsoft is pretty crazy. Over and over again, Microsoft always shoehorns a too-big operating system on underpowered machines. They did it with various versions of Windows on the desktop. They did it with the UMPC (the vision was Microsoft Vista on an Apple Newton-size device). They did it with Windows CE and Windows Mobile. And now, in the most incredible blunder to date, Microsoft appears to have no plans to right size their tablet OS. Nothing could be more obvious than the wisdom of selling Windows Phone-based touch tablets. The Windows Phone 7 user interface would be incredible on a tablet. Designed for phones, it would be zippy and roomy on a slightly higher power, longer battery life touch tablet, just as the iPad was. But no. Microsoft apparently intends to forgo success again, and cram the ginormous Windows 8 OS onto touch tablets. That’s just nuts. Worse, familiarity with iPad’s performance and battery life has raised the bar for consumers, a bar that Windows is too fat to reach.
Acclimating Windows users to the Apple Way. A poorly appreciated phenomenon is that the vast majority of iPad fans are also Windows PC users. Millions of people are going back and forth between the two platforms, and this growing familiarity is chipping away at the number-one barrier to switching, which is the unfamiliarity and learning curve of a new platform. Many iPad users say they find themselves not only reaching up automatically to their laptop screens to perform iPad gestures, but also accidentally using Apple keystrokes for Cut, Copy and Paste. With each passing day, these millions of Windows users are becoming acclimated to the Apple way. Next time their Dell or HP or Sony laptop is due for replacement, they’ll feel very comfortable considering an iMac or MacBook. One related reason is that the iPad is…
Attracting Windows users into Apple stores. Millions of iPad-owning PC users have reason to visit Apple stores. And each time they do, they’re being exposed to those awesome iMacs, and MacBooks. Apple stores are chipping away at the exotic and alien nature of the Apple universe, in the minds of PC users.
Creating “second-hand cannibalism.” The iPad makes people want a touch tablet. But many people just don’t want an iPad. They hate iTunes, or they loathe Apple’s “closed” platform. The iPad is underpowered, doesn’t support Flash, lacks USB ports, etc. In countless conversations with readers, I’ve found that many just hate jumping on bandwagons. The iPad is a pop-culture phenomenon, and people instinctively hate the idea of being part of that. So they buy an Android tablet. Android is great, and some of the tablets based on that platform are very good. But let’s have no illusions — the huge demand for Android tablets was made possible by the iPad. Google is succeeding in a market that didn’t exist until Apple created it, and their success is based largely on redirected iPad lust. And Android tablet success hurts the PC market, too.
Becoming part of children’s culture. The single biggest way that the iPad is setting the stage for the decline of the PC is that iPad is winning the hearts and minds of children. In a sentiment equal parts true and idiotic, Whitney Houston sang: “I believe the children are our future.” If you’ve got kids, you know that children are obsessed with the iPad. The brand mindshare for iPad on America’s playgrounds is shockingly high, right up there with Disney. These kids will never, ever have any interest in using a mouse. The only way for PCs to succeed with this generation in the future is to copy Apple to the best of their ability.
Gartner’s report does not prove that iPads are “cannibalizing” the PC market. But make no mistake, the beast is going in the oven and the feast is coming.
282 responses to “How the iPad Is Really Eating the PC”
I haven’t booted my laptop since I bought the iPad (it’s been a year). I had planned to replace (update) the laptop. I won’t be doing that. I’ve changed the way I work, for the better, and I did that because of the way the iPad functions. If I went back to laptop, I’d likely remain working the way I do now, primarily focused online (rather than on an internal drive).
where are these commenters now? buying their own iPad2 that’s what. :) But the biggest point here is the one you made about the children. right on!
I think Android may be in trouble as well with the iPad along with MS. Apple is not only making others play their game but they’re also defining what a tablet is. People, when using a tablet, will expect it to behave similarly to an iPad. Honeycomb & Windows 8 goes off that trail. There were reports yesterday that tablet manufacturers are backing off of Honeycomb due to extremely poor Xoom sales. As of today there is only proof of an iPad market and not a tablet market.
As for those who don’t like Apple products, for whatever reason, they represent a tiny minority. The iPod is evidence of that. I bet that there are far more who wish they could get a Mac but probably couldn’t afford to get one. The iPad changes that.
Mike,
Initially many people laughed at the iPad, and said “what’s the point?”, “why do I need one?” “is there a need for a new machine between phone and PC?” … now people have started to subconsciously realize that the iPad (or other tablet) fits their needs perfectly (those needs only being poorly met by the only real alternative in the past, the PC).
Many people only want to surf the web, read books, read/send email, etc.; others may want more, but still also want these things for a significant part of the time, and the iPad does these things well.
And so, for many people (not all) the tables have turned, and the laughter is now on the PC – “why do I need one of those? … it’s not pretty, it’s bulky, it’s complicated, it’s expensive, it’s difficult to use when sitting on a sofa, …”.
I find my iPad great (when I can get it out of the hands of my children, and when I’m not letting my wife use it). I still use my laptop, mostly to finalize my blog posts. But the iPad is what I use most often now.
Matt
I was a PC user early in 2007. I never heard of Apple but people told me it sucks and stuff. I was that band wagon till my father’s friend recommended i try his computer MacBook 13 inch. I instantly fell in love with the quality and begged my dad to get me one and he was okay with it. Been on the wagon for 4 years! It always makes me tense to know the next big thing.!
I agree with most of the article, but sad as it is, I use Windows 7 on my Macbook Pro far more than I use OSX due to Apple’s inexplicable lack of expertise when it comes to making efficient graphics drivers for gaming. Apple needs to remedy that before they can truly start giving PC holdouts no real reason to not own a mac and be able to use both operating systems on a single machine, and spending said $2000 for a machine that you can buy comparable hardware from a PC manufacturer for less than $1000.
wait! what “android tablet success”? I’m pretty sure there isn’t a single android tablet that is a success thus far. The Xoom, the most promising offering up to now, is speculated to have sold no more than 100,000, and the latest headlines read that manufacturers are worried by the weak adoption rate, some have consequently pushed back the release date of their android tablet launch.
The iPad is slowly killing Microsoft and giving Apple the ‘halo effect’ where everyone who checks out the iOS devices in the Apple stores play with the Macs and take one home. Apple wins both ways!
I agree to a certain extent but Apple products have their limitations. Apple’s deficiency is evident in their computer line in three aspects:
1) Office software – failure to compete with Microsoft Office (specifically, nothing competing against OneNote, and true compatibility with the Windows version of Office)
2) Hardware – this can be further broken down into two categories which are related:
a) Configurations/options – Macs are limited to ibooks, mac minis, macbook pros, mac pros, and now the iPad… and the vast majority of PC users make computer purchases under $1000; which leaves them with either the iPad or the MacMini. Not only that, the component options (hard drive, processors) are VERY LIMITED and EXPENSIVE compared to every other computer company.
b) Outdated – The mac minis and the ibook are still bound by outdated processors (Core 2 Duo) which likely lead to decreased sales.
3) Inability to meet demand – The fact that the Apple iPads sold out within the first few days. No multi-billion dollar company should have supply-side problems. It’s like handing over customers to your competitors. Ridiculous.
In conclusion, Apple needs to clean house. Fire some execs that are clearly not doing their job. Apple should also be more open, and focus on software… for instance, I’m sure if they sold an open version of OSX that worked on any computer, profits would soar, and Microsoft would be eating dust… or a version of OSX that could natively run Windows software. But I’m no executive… just one lowly guy with a ton of ideas.
I agree to a certain extent but Apple products have their limitations. Apple’s deficiency is evident in their computer line in three aspects:
1) Office software – failure to compete with Microsoft Office (specifically, nothing competing against OneNote, and true compatibility with the Windows version of Office)
2) Hardware – this can be further broken down into two categories which are related:
a) Configurations/options – Macs are limited to ibooks, mac minis, macbook pros, mac pros, and now the iPad… and the vast majority of PC users make computer purchases under $1000; which leaves them with either the iPad or the MacMini. Not only that, the component options (hard drive, processors) are VERY LIMITED and EXPENSIVE compared to every other computer company.
b) Outdated – The mac minis and the ibook are still bound by outdated processors (Core 2 Duo) which likely lead to decreased sales.
3) Inability to meet demand – The fact that the Apple iPads sold out within the first few days. No multi-billion dollar company should have supply-side problems. It’s like handing over customers to your competitors. Ridiculous.
In conclusion, Apple needs to clean house. Fire some execs that are clearly not doing their job. Apple should also be more open, and focus on software… for instance, I’m sure if they sold an open version of OSX that worked on any computer, profits would soar, and Microsoft would be eating dust… or a version of OSX that could natively run Windows software. But I’m no executive… just one lowly guy with a ton of ideas.
Very interesting. What kind of laptop was it? Windows or Mac?
And what’s your iPad workflow like? How are you getting stuff done?
Apple with a 70% market share? Given the Android tablet sales numbers to date, doesn’t that percentage seem on the low side?
This is exactly the iPad’s appeal — it does the things people want to do better than in the past. Surfing is better; reading is better; email is better; battery life is better; carrying it around is better.
I traded my failing Windows 7 PC for a new MAC wth a 27″ cinema display. I also bought an iPad. Wonder in which statistic this leaves me?
I agree with the thing that the iPad (and the 2 others iDevices) makes PC owners switch to Mac.
In my case, I have had an iPod Touch 2 (since late 2008) and 4 (since late 2010). And I love them so much that my first Mac, a MBP 2011, is being shipped to my home right now ;)
Clearly you don’t have a clue. If Apple should be firing execs, when it’s firing beautifully on all cylinders and destroying the Wintel PC franchise at a growing pace, whom do you have in mind? To suggest becoming an OS whore like MS Windows or Google’s Android simply proves your cluelessness. Every company in the world would die to be in the position Apple is in – to be a sell-out beyond their wildest expectations and pushing their suppliers’ mighty production facilities to the limit.
Some people look and actually see and understand.
But there are a few like you, so blinded by prejudice, that you look but refuse to accept what you see.
You may be a lowly guy, but your ton of ideas seem to be losers, every one.
What have you actually created, Dan, apart from a lot of snidey, bitter-loser hot air?
And btw, there is no such computer as an iBook any more. An iBook is an eBook.
Catch up.
I think everyone is looking at this from a slightly skewed angle. Ignoring branding, what’s a PC? A personal computer, which lets you do personal computer-y stuff. In that sense, the iPad really IS a PC, and it’s a PC for many people who’ve never had desktops or laptops before. It’s simply a PC in another form factor, an evolutionary step which makes it more user-friendly, portable and accessible.
Seen in that light, all that talk about the iPad eating into PC sales aren’t necessary. We humans like to neatly categorise things. Put Apple’s marketing prowess on top and I can see why most of us think the iPad is a new category of products when it isn’t. It’s just the next step in personal computing.
I haven’t booted a desktop since buying an iPad. As a matter of fact, I sold it. I use an Air mated with a 27″ Apple Cinema Display for work at the office and aside from document creation, I use my iPad almost exclusively for stuff on-the-go.
Many people still live in Windows old era… They don’t realize and not see the future needs. iPad for the children good are learning, gaming, social and good for parental use. For the Old people they not a technical like geek so they want something that easy to use like iOS even my mom and dad 60yrs+ know how to use but they dunno how to use any Windows OS or Mac OS. easy and direct user experience is important for every user, so many ppl will buy this gadget. Don’t always stand on your point because you know how to use computer but not everyone know how to use it. Try to stand to normal people like Steve Wozniak mention and what Steve Jobs doing right now. That’s why iOS device succeed.
I’m not so sure Apple will ever invest more in gaming drivers. PC-gaming has been on life support for years and more and more gamers are switching to consoles each and every month. Heck, I was an *avid* PC gamer who *swore* I would never go to the console but I have gone to the PS3 and I’ll never go back.
is Windows user switch to Mac. PC mean ( Personal Computer ) Mac also include as ( Personal Computer )
You are right… for normal ppl they just need to surfing the web, reading, emailing, social chit chat or checking fb or other social network, gaming, instant on and easy to carry. This all iPad did well and far more better than laptop. Not everyone is geek need to do their technical works like web design, graphic design, coding stuff… Many ppl use computer for leisure not technical… iPad fit it all…
12″ Powerbook G4. In terms of workflow – I still do the lion’s share of my photo work on my desktop. At the office (where we use Windows 7 Pro, networked), I manage email and calendaring with the iPad, primarily. I use Simplenote extensively for meeting notes and minutes, which has been a huge productivity boost. Draft minutes are in the chair’s inbox before s/he is back at their desk.
The most significant change is only partly related to the iPad – I’ve also shifted to Chrome and the Google app store for a lot of the day-to-day (image resizing, social media, etc.) tasks.
I didn’t intend to buy an iPad when I went to the store in Tennessee (we were on vacation and the iPad hadn’t been released in Canada), I just wanted to have a look. It took 20 minutes to realize that it was going to be a definitive tool in my workflow.
I still get a hard time (eyes roll when i walk into meetings, people smirk when I’m carrying it down the street), but it’s nothing like the old days when admitting you used a Mac brought derision and Windows prosthelytizing by people who were essentially unilingual when it came to technology.
I’ve decided to add the Powerbook to my tech museum – it delivered remarkably from the date of purchase in 2003 to April 2010 when it retired.
And I need to add: in a meeting the other day a colleague came over with his tablet and said, “Can your iPad do this?” And then proceeded to scrawl something with a stylus and watch as it converted to text. Then he went to the other side of the boardroom table, got out his power cord and plugged his tablet in….I had to ask, “Why do you need to plug in a portable….?”
Please remove morphed Steve graphic- it is offensive!
Rob – those aren’t PC holdouts. They’re gaming holdouts – different animal.
What an awful image of Steve Jobs… Are you stupid?
We’re Apple Fans…
I’m never coming back to CULT OF MAC.
While I agree with the premise of your article and I, myself, am bullish on the iPad, I don’t see it replacing the PC market but providing the intermediate form factor between the PC and the smartphone. Of course, it will cause changes in the PC. Witness Apple’s latest OS X iteration, Lion. Even I, a loyal Apple fan since the 1980s, underestimated the success of the iPad… but, my stock portfolio with my AAPL stock is happy! Interesting times ahead…
Thank you, I very much agree but he is talking about MacBooks when he says iBooks, that’s how out of the loop he is. You cannot compare companies product lines from 5 years ago with current companies line ups; actually with apple you can. You are paying for a certain fit and finish and polish that makes everything work so well. There products from years ago were so well made as they are today that their advances in design are years ahead of other companies. I accidentally dropped my MacBook pro once and all I got was a small scuff. A friend of mine dropped his Dell laptop and there was a nice bug crack throughout the inclosure. I realize that that is only one computer however most windows running pcs are make terribly while Apples are made amazingly durably.
“As for those who don’t like Apple products, for whatever reason, they represent a tiny minority.”
I wouldn’t be so sure about that — I actually think quite a large number of people despise Apple — for one reason or another (and the reasons are diverse) — they wouldn’t be caught dead with an Apple product.
The trouble is, their reasons are very diverse, thus no one product (or type of product) is likely to attract huge numbers of them. Some of them don’t want a tablet, period. Some want Windows only. Some are Android fans, but are convinced Android must mean cheap/free and the cost of Android tablets is keeping them away. Etc.
I do agree with the premise that so far there is no tablet market, just an iPad market.
Dan, your level of ignorance is astounding. Apple’s stock is soaring while Microsoft’s is floundering. Apple has profit margins that make other companies green with envy. When new Apple products are announced, lines form early in the morning and stretch for blocks at every store that carries them. They can’t build products fast enough to meet demand. And you want Apple executives fired? Are you on drugs? Seriously, WTF were you thinking when you wrote that?
The Mac Mini is an entry-level system. Of course it doesn’t use a cutting edge CPU. Who cares what processor it has if it’s fast enough for the people using it? My GF is a professional editor, writer, and web content developer and she’s using a 1.83ghz Mac Mini and sees no reason to upgrade. WTF does she need a 2.4ghz, four-core Core i7 for when she’s using Word, e-mail, or a web browser? This isn’t 1990; the CPU speed is completely immaterial to most users. All CPUs are far faster than they need.
There is no problem with the range of choices and options that Apple offers. That’s obvious by the market response to them, with Apple gaining share while the Windows competitors are losing market share. Consumers don’t want to choose between 500 different configurations. And Apple doesn’t want to fall into the Microsoft mess where there are so many configurations that it’s impossible to support with internal developers. Do you actually think that Apple customers want to e-mail some company in Taiwan for tech support, wait a week, and get a message back in broken English that just proves that the company does not understand the question?
Who complains about computer prices when a high-end MacBook Pro can be had for about $2K? Are you ten years old? It’s not like the old days, where a high-end laptop computer cost 25% of your annual after-taxes take-home pay. In 1988, a Compaq SLT/286 laptop cost $6000 and had a 16 bit 80286 CPU running at 12mhz, 1MB (not GB) of RAM, a 40MB (not GB) hard drive, and a 10″ 640×480 display.
Apple computers are extremely good values because they are built to a much higher standard and come with support that you can’t get from Best Buy. A professional will pay more for a top-quality display, keyboard, and trackpad. They will pay for a case milled out of aluminum rather than something injection molded like a Mattel toy. It is a tool of their professional trade, so they pay for quality and support. Garage mechanics invest tens of thousands of dollars in tools, so why would an engineering or business professional care that a high-end apple laptop might be $2500?
It’s just like in cars: You can get a car with the same number of wheels, same top-speed, and same horsepower as a Mercedes while paying a lot less. But that doesn’t mean you got as good a car.
This part is hilarious – “the huge demand for Android tablets was made possible by the iPad.”
KIndly show a link to the huge demand.
Android tablets are xoom but xoom is sunk and the galaxy tab is great on paper but lousy in consumer demand.
good article,i agree with most of it but please change the photo :). maybe you can find a photo of some person wearing a Windows t shirt while using an iPad :)
Yeah, I meant Windows to Mac OS.
Here is a dirty little secret, Apple is really a “master of miniaturization”. When Apple came out with the first true “PC” the “Apple ][“, it was “tiny” compared to Mainframes & Minis of the time. The old guard chuckled and said it will “never” replace the big powerful room sized machines, 10 years later it mostly did. When Apple came out the first popular “Laptops”, the “PowerBooks”, the old guard chuckled said they will “never” replace the big powerful Desktop machines, 10 years later they mostly have…
Now we have the “tiny” extremely fast, touch based “iPad”, the old guard is at it again, “it will never replace Laptops or Netbooks”, 10 years later it mostly will.
People are forgetting there will be 13 inch, 15 inch, perhaps even 17, 20 inch iPads in the next few years. Apple lined all this out in the late 1980’s, they were just waiting for Moore’s Law and manufacturing technology to catch up with their vision.
“Firing beautifully on all cylinders” – you’re joking right? Why don’t you tell that to all the people that waited in line just to get an iPad, just to find out they couldn’t get one after waiting in line all night.
“OS whore”? – I think the bottom line is revenues. That’s how capitalism works.
“Blinded by prejudice” – Ummm… I’m a fan of Apple but see room for improvement, unlike most of you brainwashed Macphiles who jump on anyone that criticizes Apple products. Criticism is room for growth.
My ideas are losers? Well, there must be a reason why Apple computers make up so small a percentage of the PC market. Instead of blindly sucking on Steve Jobs’s cock, you should stop, wipe the cum off of your lips, and think what improvements can be made and share them. That’s how change happens.
“Bitter-loser hot air” – Well, I think the losers are people who resort to personal attacks because they disagree.
iBook/Macbook – Wow, you really got me there. Let’s focus on the trivial errors, and not the major assertions. Good one!
“Catch up” – I was writing programs when I was in the fifth grade. I think you’re probably the one that needs to catch up.
I’m the consumer most of you seem to be talking about if only to implicitly compare me to tech savvy WEIRDs. I am black, a woman, gen x and, as an academic, officially poor but with disposable income.
A month ago I posted to Facebook about my disdain for iPad users at Starbucks in their Che Guerea Teniers and reusable totes. I’d just entered Mac-land six months earlier when my hp died. Fear about protecting my research with a machine that would outlast my dissertation led me to invest in a MacBook pro. Still I liked my android phone and refused to be seduced by Apple. What happened?
Spending $2000 at the apple store was made brilliantly easy. I’m busy. I’m often tired. Getting dressed to visit a mall is often a barrier to productivity. The idea of doing all of that to stand in a long line for the privilege of draining my checking account makes me break out in hives. Apple, literally and metaphorically, came to me. In and out with a machine that worked right out the gate before I had time to doubt my purchase. Bringing the POS to the customer now just feels respectful. Lines are really unnecessary. Apple taught me that. Apple also taught me that junk software isn’t a prerequisite. Niether is a 200 page user manual. My MacBook worked just as I intuited it should from the first use with only minor adjustments.
Still I thought I didn’t need an iPad. It made no sense…until it was time to travel. Then it hit me that laptops, not even my beloved MacBook, had never really delivered on their most basic promise: portability. Carrying a laptop in a purse for longer than an hour will send you to the chiropractor or, worse, force you to buy the horrible rolling bag. My android phone (and I assume the iPhone) is great for reading content but not as great at producing content. Emails or notes longer than a few lines become a hassle. I quickly realized that an iPad is purse size, gives almost full usability without sacrificing my back, and with a Bluetooth keyboard is a cool traveling academics’ best friend. One trip and I’m never looking back.
I say all that to say that I’m a tech outsider. As a woman and a POC who eschews exclusive yuppie brand cults there’s no way I should have looked at Apple and felt an immediate connection. And I didn’t. I doubt I’m their target market at all. As a scholar I’m pretty sure I signed a blood allegiance to paper forever and ever, amen. I simply discovered needs I didn’t know I had that Apple fulfilled elegantly. And if I say that? PCs may, indeed, be in trouble.
Oh yeah, I typed this on my iPad while reclining on the sofa. My PCs never afforded me that convenience.
Wow, cool… more personal attacks. Here’s one for you – get off your knees and wipe Steve Jobs’s cum stains off of your shirt you fuckin zombie.
Nicely said
Demand is different than sales. I believe there is a lot of demand, but the high price is a deterrent to sales. i.e. the most fundamental economic formula: the higher the price, the lower the ‘quantity’ demanded. Price doesn’t effect demand. It effects the ‘quantity’ demanded.
real gamers won’t leave PCs. They will always buy the most expensive hardware and get best performance and incredible graphics out of their PCs. I have xbox with kinect, but still PC gaming is my preferred choice. Don’t try to generalize you own experience onto universe. IMHO, consoles are likely to be used by casual gamers or kids, while real adult gamers with real adult jobs would stick to their $3K+ PCs.
Sadly, i don’t think its a Mac problem anymore. Macs missed the gaming boat already… sure there are more games now for Mac but… Gaming companies are investing less and less in desktop platforms and more in consoles. Mouse and keyboard gamers are screwed either way. The future of gaming seems to be consoles (which I bloody hate) and little Nintendo/iOS/PSP type devices (which I also hate). Dumb games like Angry Birds will never satisfy hardcore gamers like us.
This guy, Dan, seems to like the blow job meme a lot. I wonder about that. Kind of icky.
That’s just gross
welcome to our world. Thanks for sharing
apple haters got powned.
specwhores see deficiency where none exist.
“it’s the UX stupid.”
clueless troll is clueless.
Now you’ve shown your true colors … when logic fails … then get nasty. If you really look to the future look at the world of graphics, video and info sharing … Apple just opened the door to show us Final Cut Pro. Adobe release three apps for iPad2 that stir the creative juices. MacBook Pro is already outfitted with with Thunderbolt … 20 times faster than USB2.0. While this has not been announced, patents show Apple using a 30 pin adapter with Thunderbolt output … that means that creative work done on ipadd2 will be rapidly transferred to Macbook Pros to complete hi end post movie editing and the like. Office and particularly Excel is one of the truely great programs ever developed. Did you know word was developed by Apple originally? But the world is moving towards digital. Communications are becoming more wireless in nature. Apple builds all the devices that work beautifully together with top grade security and operational integrity at every level.
If you can turn off your Nasty perhaps you can contribute something worthwile. If you can’t don’t waste our time.
It is stupid! = fun.
No way!
People are stupid, still buy myth about Apple.
Just check BBC tech page.
…says the clone. Hey, so if someone responds in kind, then they should be condemned? I guess we shouldn’t bother fighting wars either. I never said Apple sucks in general. I just said there is room for growth, and was affronted with name-calling and personal insults. Yes, Apple is the leader in innovation but there’s a lot more to be done. That’s all I was saying.
Also, I noticed someone deleted their comment to make it look like I fired the first shot…
@ Dan
“you’re joking right? Why don’t you tell that to all the people that waited in line just to get an iPad, just to find out they couldn’t get one after waiting in line all night.”
-Why do you think there are lines to get an iPad? It’s incredibly popular, so much so that Apple can’t make them fast enough. How many lines have you seen for ANY other electronic device?
“I think the bottom line is revenues. That’s how capitalism works.”
-Apple is one of the largest companies in the WORLD and the most valuable technology company in the world, yes Dan, that includes Microsoft.
Here’s a link, welcome to the 21st Century.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A….
“Ummm… I’m a fan of Apple but see room for improvement, unlike most of you brainwashed Macphiles who jump on anyone that criticizes Apple products. Criticism is room for growth. “
-You are not criticizing. You are typing pure non-sense and I guarantee that most reading these comments view you as an IGNORANT TROLL. Need another fine example?
Here: “My ideas are losers? Well, there must be a reason why Apple computers make up so small a percentage of the PC market. Instead of blindly sucking on Steve Jobs’s cock, you should stop, wipe the cum off of your lips, and think what improvements can be made and share them. That’s how change happens. ”
-Oh here is another one, except this one is also incredibly ironic considering your prior statement:”Well, I think the losers are people who resort to personal attacks because they disagree.”
-The reality is that there is no point in discussing technology with someone like you. You are rude, obnoxious, ignorant, and above all a bitter man who obviously has a problem with people enjoying their Apple products.
http://www.nizkor.org/features…
Just to help you brush up on what a personal attack is and is not… and hopefully to let you see the irony of your post.
Been a Mac user for as long as a can remember, iPad 2 owner, iPhone 4, iMac 27(upgraded from old MacBook, realize I’m a laptop guy). But can’t wait for a MacBook air with MacBook pro specs, till then np upgrades.
People tend to use the insults that they feel are the most “extreme” and the most extreme thing they can think of is the thing that they are most scared of themselves.
Thus men who use the blowjob meme a lot are typically homophobes at best, closeted gays sometimes, and very often … violent.
This is because to use such an over-the-top reaction to what is essentially a fairly mild disagreement usually denotes a really deep seated anger problem and/or self-loathing.
Apple is primarily a hardware company. Even if you use an OS other than the one shipped with your system, you still bought the hardware. Apple won a sale. It’s not a Microsoft vs. Apple game in this instance, it’s a Dell/HP/Toshiba/Sony etc. vs. Apple game.
How is it offensive? It’s a movie reference. Can you explain the offense?
Yep – iPad is a classic example of why people don’t know what they want until they see it – a user study isn’t going to invent something radically new.
People would say we need better PCs just like they said we need faster horses before the Automobile came along.
As a side note the Halo effect still plays a huge role. A friend just bough an iPhone, and a MacBook Pro to go along with it… his first Mac.
Here’s a link to huge demand for Android tablets:
http://mashable.com/2011/04/11…
It’s obviously less than Apple, but if you compare Android tablets to any other platform, or to all platforms prior to the introduction of the iPad, it’s very big demand.
The 12″ G4 PowerBook is a legend. I still see people using it occasionally. Apple didn’t make a compelling, small machine like it until the 11″ MacBook Air in 2010. Even the original MacBook Air was larger area-wise than the 12″ G4.
Let’s not assume that iPad will eat into PC numbers simply through people using iPads instead of PCs. That’s one scenario, but there are many others. The iPad can bring people over to the Mac side on the desktop. The iPad can drive people over to Android, as I said. The iPad of today can spoil children today, which will make them not want a PC tomorrow, etc.
Again, the test isn’t whether an iPad today can replace a PC for everyone. The test is whether the iPad is driving a change in how people think about computers, a change that disadvantages Windows.
Recent Starbucks experience in Chiang Mai, northern Thailand: On 10 or so tables, there’s 1 Mac laptop, 1 PC laptop, and 5 (!!) iPads including mine. I was stunned.
Totally true. But it’s also true that real gamers will always be a minority. The majority want casual gaming, and right now iOS is by far the biggest platform.
Agree – Gamers are not going Apple, at least for the moment.
Casual gamers like myself are pretty happy to play games with no fuss on the iPad.
On the iPad, I can get very nice casual games for something like $5 – $7. There is no “installer”. There is no “DRM”. There are no hiccups, and there is no tweaking. I never got a console as I am far more likely to play games on an airplane or hotel room than anywhere else – the iPad clearly solves that problem beautifully.
Yeah but I think it’s clearly developing into a (large) niche. They’ll be there, just like car tuners … a market, for sure, but not the majority of people. It’s just another niche, same as high performance computing, or others.
I think the iPad has the capacity to please hard core gamers, to be honest. I can already play some incredible games on it. The small screen is the _only_ limiting factor. But it’s got touch, which makes for completely new and interesting interfaces. Angry Birds – that’s nothing compared to what’s going to come.
13 Year old here, my iPad 2 is fab for all that, thought I still needed my MacBook for things like FTP. But I just downloaded an excellent FTP app. The app store is slowly but surely replacing other devices (‘other than phones).
“Firing beautifully on all cylinders” – Oh snap… how do you like the new Macbook Pro? You have to download a program just to keep the laptop cool. Sweet.
I went to a FutureShop (Canada) to try out an iPad; I spent 10 or 15 very contented minutes learning how it worked – like all Apple products function compliments intuition.
I moved to the other side of the Mac display table to try the iMac (27) because my iMac (21) needs replacing. I was immediately struck by the awkwardness of using keyboard and mouse. The previous 10 minutes with the iPad – that amazingly gratifying tactile experience, synching hand and eys- had conditioned me to reach out to touch the screen with my fingers and I was annoyed that I had to reach for the mouse and track it on the page.
That intuitive ease of use with Touch technology changed my whole perspective on computers. I am convinced that my experience multiplied millions of times with similar experiences of other users will be the key that will eventually make your prediction come to fruition.
I can’t wait until my resources and the availability of the product coincide.
The Wintards are always yapping about shoehorning their beloved Windows desktop into every device imaginable. Saying about how powerful an OS it is and it can do everything. Windows sucks on tablets and it sucks on netbooks. The only thing that netbooks ever had going for them was that they were dirt cheap. Although, dirt cheap at a price. Netbooks are underpowered slugs with that anchor of a Windows desktop holding them back. Same with Windows tablets. They either had to be powerful and heavy with good battery life or light with horrible performance and battery life. I don’t see why Microsoft just give in and build a light OS for Windows tablets. I guess their pride and Wintard fanbois won’t let them.
Microsoft might have a decent chance with Windows tablets if it can port it to ARM processors, but that’s still going to have a lot of code to run and require much more memory and processing power than a light tablet OS. I’ll really be surprised if consumers ever take to Windows tablets. It’s just more than what consumers prefer. Microsoft seems to have a rough road ahead when it comes to Windows tablets, but maybe they’ll figure something out.
Actually I am pretty sure they kept the core duo in the mini’s because nvidia is not allowed to make integrated GPU for the core i3-i5-i7, and Apple’s OS gained better performance with a core duo chip with good graphics than a faster CPU with a lesser intel GPU. That might change with the more powerful integrated intel CPU they just released however.
maybe aTV version 4?
@ Dan
“I think the bottom line is revenues. That’s how capitalism works.”
No. The bottom line is profit. In well run companies, revenues matter only in that they need to exceed costs, in other words profit. Apple is very good at being profitable.
In regards to OSes, Google and MS have entirely different business models than Apple. They all make profit. To argue that Apple should change how they run their business to look more like another company is total insanity and not what capitalism is about.
which part shows huge demand in the article? I can only see the 2010 data that is fact. The 2011 data onwards is only theory. We all know that Android is not doing that well.
And nobody needed an iPhone before Apple invented it. The same is true for the iPad—nobody needed it before it was invented. Now everybody needs both. And every company is doing their best to catch up to Apple’s innovation. Like Apple or not, you have to admit that they have created 3 big electronic revolutions: the iPod (while not the 1st, Apple really perfected the MP3/multi-media player and created the 1st practical one), the iPhone, and the iPad.
I look forward to what Apple will create in the future that we can’t even imagine yet…
Actually, they have created / popularized 6 revolutions, the first PC, the Mac, the Laser Printer, the iPod, the iPhone, the iPad.
Also it’s mostly done by children.
Just remove it!
It IS offensive!
A lot of it also has to do with hating the leader. To see the effect for the amount of flak a company gets, compare Wal-Mart vs Target or McDonald’s vs Burger King…
Any source that uses facts has come in at 90+%. The 70% fiction is being propagated by the Droid clones.
I run into these same dudes every day and have found a large percentage of them soon packing a Mac, iPad or iPhone and are then newly converted Apple Zealots. The louder the whine the quicker the conversion and the harder the fall. Don’t worry about these people because when you have a conversation with them that isn’t threatening it is quickly revealed they are talking out their ass with zero knowledge and only the usual PC Windows era propaganda as the basis for their “opinion”.
Take them slowly into the reality of the Apple universe and they melt like butter in a hot pan. Then they become the newly converted and the cycle expands.
I’d like to see even one example of an iPad owner going off and buying a DroidPad. Ain’t going to happen my friend.
For years, I was a diehard PC. It was all that I had ever known, and all that I needed to know. However, my entire point of view began to change when I started with my first iPod Shuffle. Sure, it was extremely tiny, and not exactly fantastical, but it was the start. From there I moved on to the iPod Nano 3rd Generation, with the cute square screen. I began to notice the popularity of iPods with my peers, and the regular releases of newer models. Finally I took the big step, and moved to the iPod Touch. I loved it like my life, but still hadn’t moved past the PC. When it got stolen, (T_T) I replaced it with a lovely green iPod Nano, with an FM/AM Radio and Video Game. You think that I’d learn, but this one as well was stolen, only to be replaced with another iPod Touch, which I own to date.
All of this was incredibly important, because each time I bought a new iPod, I was conditioning myself for the sky-high prices and futuristic aesthetics. So when my horrible, god awful, Acer Netbook would no longer turn on, or hold a charge, I went into my search for a new laptop. Mostly I was still frightened of the Apple world, simply due to its price, and completely alien OS. Thankfully, my immediate relatives are die-hard Apple fans, and gave me the reassurance (and supporting funds) to take the final step into Apple-hood. Now here I am, completely impressed with my MacBook Pro, its efficiency, ability to quickly execute several applications at once, and my perpetual learning experience. Every day I learn something new and nifty about my Mac that makes it that much easier to use.
And how does this relate to the iPad at all? Well, due to my immense love for Apple, I was very excited for iPad to be released, and I still love it today, but I’m extremely hesitant to give in to its allure. While I see a large iPod for a LARGE price, I also see a very usable small computer. Yet here I sit watching the local news ramble on about schools buying iPads for their kindergarteners to learn letters, and all I can think of is our growing dependence on technology. Both pros and cons….
<3<3< 3<3<3
<3 Apple <3
<3<3< 3<3<3
Apparently the iPad isn’t helping you learn XD
I want that picture of Steve on a t-shirt. Epic. Great article, and sort of mind blowing actually. The facts are intense and I’m sure you’ve just inspired an Android user to beat you with a Xoom. Nice…
apple is taking its users for granted and getting complacent, the ipad 2 is indicative of that. i have an ipad, but it’ll not replace my iMac ever! what i’d like is an imac with a touchscreen and retina display.
as for the iOS platform, sorry to disappoint you; i think the android is infinitely better and evolving rapidly! as for the future, apple’s is intrinsically tied to steve and thats as far as it’ll go!
Seriously!?… Guess it must be that time of the month for you huh?
Recently I got my first Apple product. It’s Mac Book Pro. I have no doubts of getting iPad as my tablet, while still keeping my solid Android phone. It feels like having best of both worlds. And Windows as my desktop.
There is something about Windows, as much as there is something about Android. But Apple’s laptops and tables, are pure gold.
Also need to add, as the price of iTunes song starts to decline, we’ll see more and more of Pirates, switching to high quality proprietary music. 1$ per song is still the privilege of upper middle class and higher. When paying for music becomes available, nobody will mind the closed system…
I agree that tablets spell the long term demise of the PC as we know it. Eventually, I’ll walk in my office with my tablet and my peripherals (keyboard, mouse, monitors, etc..) will wirelessly connect with it and come to life. Most of my data will reside in a server (or the cloud) somewhere and be available to me wherever I am. When I need to leave for a meeting or to go home, I’ll just pick up my tablet and leave. I’m looking forward to that future.
Tablets, and especially iPads are penetrating organizations from the top down. The iPhone greased the skids for its introduction and when senior executives and board members want to use an iPad, IT listens and implements them.
In the meantime, tablets are extending the lives of PCs and notebooks significantly. When a user spends a significant portion of their computing time on a different machine, the speed and age of their desktop or notebook matters less and they don’t replace it.
When the iPad has the full capacity of my 13.3″ MacBook Pro, I’ll consider using one.
Until that time, I have no use for it, although I recognize that others do.
Three problems, the third of which is an inability to meet demand. I guess that third problem more or less cancels the seriousness of one and two.
A person making a new discovery about ways they can better interact with the world around them is always a good thing.
Mind you, I’m hoping that in your statement “Bringing the POS to the customer now just feels respectful.” that you are referring to the “point of sale” as opposed to what some apple haters might misconstrue as “piece of sh!t” instead. :)
Welcome to the dark side. We have been expecting you.
I absolutely agree with you. It´s just a matter of time. For the vast immensity of people, to managa a whole operating system sucks. They want their mails, their webs, their mpovies and pictures, ans the they want them NOW.
(1) iPads are the best selling tablet
(2) PC sales are going down
Therefore (1) must be causing (2)
It’s a bit like Lisa’s rock that keeps tigers away;
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v…
yah, that too :)
Yes, children from 5 to 95 years…. ;.)
i’ll give you a 6/10 in your trolling efforts.
I
I too, have experienced this.
A good friend of mine (who is well educated and a sharp guy, all around) made the offhand comment to me the other day that Apple is falling apart and all of the market research indicates that the company is in serious trouble and will probably be going out of business soon.
Not even joking.
I thought HE was joking. I was waiting for the smirk, the knowing smile, the sly grin — it wasn’t there! And I should point out that he’s not an Android die-hard or anything of the sort (he owns a 2nd gen iPod Touch, I believe); but someone had told him this somewhere recently, and for whatever reason he was stating it as gospel. It was baffling.
And he mentioned it so casually. No emotion. He wasn’t trying to start a rampant discussion or anything. Just shooting the breeze. I, however, didn’t feel like getting into anything with him, so I just politely nodded and changed the topic of the conversation.
It was kind of surreal.
Thank you, a very nice and perceptive post.
I don’t own an iPad and probably won’t until the old MacBook I’m writing this on bites the dust. The iPad would have been this traveler’s dream. I’m now a retired scientist (2004) who spent the final decade of his career working in nuclear arms control. This necessitated frequent trips across the pond to as far as Siberia. I carried my trusty TiBook but it was a pain in the keister. In its case, it weighed too much and TSA required starting the thing at the security check point, requiring a large fraction of forever wating for the damn thing to boot. This alone would have driven me posthaste to an iPad.
My computer needs when traveling were minimal. E-mail, occasional web access, minimal note taking (mostly reminders), and access to Microsoft Excel for its math and statistics functions to occasionally prepare a technical point for the next day’s discussions.
But there are other benefits of luxurious convenience that I would have enjoyed. Ten-hour battery life would have allowed me to use an iPad during a full day of discussion without having to plug it in, a nuisance but not a major hindrance. My trips lasted several days with long flights from the west coast. I would now be relieved of having to carry several books for those flights and free time at the end of the day. Furthermore, an iPad is small enough to have been used on a tray table when the 300-pound passenger in front of me in economy class attempted to recline his seat with the intention of crushing my knees (I’m six-foot three).
“…it’s more interesting to see how the iPad is gradually undermining the foundations of PC dominance.”
Well, MicroSoft is certainly doing it’s part to destroy with PC market with it’s products (particularly Windoze), so don’t be selfish with all the credit!
“Apple computers are extremely good values because they are built to a much higher standard and come with support that you can’t get from Best Buy.”
For less than a Macbook, you can get a Lenovo Thinkpad, which has magnesium alloy protection along with an internal roll cage. You can drive a semi over them and the hard drive will still be intact. Thinkpads also come with a fingerprint reader and a spill resistent keyboard.
Specwhores? there are a shitload of issues with Macbooks, including them getting warped, overheating, and freezing… so, you basically pay $2000 bucks for a “quality machine.” ya, right. the only great thing about Apple is the stability of the OS. i highly doubt its hardware longevity.
I had a client drop his Toshiba ToughBook on the corner and it splintered into many, many pieces. So much for buying quality.
If Apple licensed their OS, they would very quickly go out of business, as the vast mojority of their profit comes from hardware.
Not true. Companies like Fujitsu sell huge amounts of tablets to vertical markets like hospitals and legal.
Take it easy. English is a 2nd language for aramishero.
I’m first in line for the iMat. Multi-touch Twister!
Editors: This comment would make an excellent front page piece. :)
We have been dependant on technology since the age of agriculture. It’s part of our species way of getting things done.
Is 2.5 million huge or tiny? Your call. My point is that much of those sales are deflected iPad lust.
congrats dude for your new mbp.
I wonder if Gene Roddenberry(creator of Star Trek, Dragnet, etc.) knew it all along… the perfect prop is an ipad! :-)
AppHole has turned the world into morons. Thanks iSucks!
And when the automatic starter came out for the car, people thought ‘Who needs that’ I can crank start my car just fine.
Actually, the first Mac “Portable” (laptop was being generous) was ginormous, and weighed like 20 lbs.)
That was not a Steve Jobs or Jonny Ive type product though, it was Jean Louse Gasse’ who designed it. It used lead acid batteries.
But yeah, you are right, I get your point, but just wanted to point this out.
The new iPad 2 is beautiful. I want one, but mostly it’s the PC people who are getting them! I am fine with that though, more power to them, about time they woke up to the fact there is more to computing then freaking WINDOZE.
Haha, what ELSE is causing the near collapse of all things PC? Riddle me this, PC fanboy, what puny little girly laptop-esque form has been propping up the entire, bloated PC market for the past 2-3 years?
I’ll give you a clue. I rhymes with Debtbook.
Such a stretch, I must be to think that the iPad is a step up from that little toy? Which one looks like ancient technology and which one looks more like science fiction?
Apple already took the high end of the computer market. With innovation, they did this. And now, with that same method, they are ripping the heart out of the walmat shopping demographic. And PeeCee lusers are leading the way. Good for them! Life is short, it’s so good that they will actually experience technology that is not brain numbing for a change.
i am a die-hard mac guy and a professional photographer. when travelling, you have 2 choices: a ‘photo vault’ hard disk drive with very bad software written around it or a netbook. both cost the same, the netbook is much bigger.
my last trip i considered using an ipad but there were a few limiting factors:
1. inboard storage is too small. i can shoot 100 gigs (raw format) in a day.
2. no usb port. i backup everything to usb every download
3. (at the time) no raw image file handling / light processing
a macbook air is just too big and too expensive for this task. a netbook is the only real solution (much to my chagrin). stinks, but there you have it.
I agree. I admire Steve Jobs and what he has done for California and most of the friends I have. It’s offensive. Please have some respect and remove it.
Absolutely great takedown of the iPad’s impact on computing. And yes, you will be bragging later.
I did. My Xoom is far more useful in my profession (sysadmin), and outside of browsing webpages and using the fairly limited complexity of available apps on my iPad it was extremely difficult to get work done. This obviously doesn’t apply to everyone, but for a large majority of the technical field, it does.
You are full of it. ToughBooks are friggin tough dude, I support them daily at work, where maintenance staff has done things such as: Lay them on 1000+ degree tempering furnaces, Drops from 12ft ladders, and forklift rollover mishaps. The only issue I have ever had with one was a broken USB port. And it still worked, but the separator had broken off.
I completely agree with the point about attracting the youth and kids of our time. I was fortunate enough to have a grandfather who bought me my own Apple IIc. I learned about computers when I took that machine apart and disected it. I also remember vividly when I was in grade school the Macintosh computers and how blown away I was. Then came the early to mid 90’s and Windows based computers. I regretfully lost my way down the wrong path for many years until I came across a revolutionizing phone we all have now come to respect. That phone would later lead me to a tablet we all admire. And now as I’m sitting here typing on my Gateway notebook, wishing I could just throw it away and get a MBP, I feel like I’m starting to find my way home again. These kids today are experiencing what I experienced over 20 years ago. Let’s hope they stay on the right path.
I just recently got a new MBP (my first apple computer product), I have been a Windows user all my life and will probably continue to be a Windows user for a long time. Apple has made some really good advances with their laptop design, be that as it may they are more expensive then any laptop I have bought in the past. With that in mind I hate most of their other products! I do not like the iPad or iPod and see no real use for the iPad just yet. I do think they make a fun toy, but a rather expensive toy. I feel that right now Apple has the “cool” factor, like all the other kids are doing it. I am not taking away that the the products are functional and fill a niche in the market. I like my MBP and I am using more and more, but I always feel very limited using Apple products. From a making money preceptive I think Apple is making all the right decisions.
@Mike – my interpretation is it this graphic is WAY over the top. Despite Hannibal Lecter being somewhat sympathetic in Silence of the Lambs, he is none the less a dangerous sociopath (though fictional.) It is unlikely that anyone other than an Apple hater finds an inference like that involving Jobs tasteful. For me, it doesn’t rise to the level of offensive – but it almost led me not to read your piece.
If your headline had been “Apple really eating PCs vital organs”….. It might go with a “darkly humorous” graphic.
Mike – your point regarding the interest in tablets, almost wholly caused by the iPad, deflecting to Android tablet is valid. However, there is evidence the 2.5 million figure is false since it relies on unproven Galaxy Tab numbers; the truth of the 2010 Galaxy tab numbers are largely shipments to resellers – not sales. We’ll not go into the sizable returns that have been reported.
I’ll still grant your implication – but I really do quibble with the “…huge demand…”
Herbert, don’t assume that Apple haters (neither most or all) have zero knowledge. Yes, often what people know is FUD, but there are plenty of times that real (negative) experiences led them to their “beliefs”.
One of the most often cited – real negative experience – is listening to a “smug Apple zealot”. As a long time, Apple user – Macs, iPods, iPhones, etc, I will say that talking up a product you enjoy is great, but being dismissive of competitors products (even when most might agree) is unnecessary and worse. I apologize for getting on the soap box. For the record, the same sort of irritation applies when discussing hard core fans of sports teams, or almost any other product you can imagine.
My partner is a .net developer with a cranky back and a two hour commute from LA to OC. I recently convinced him to purchase a Macbook Air, light and easy on his back. He logs on to his computer at work using Go To My PC via wireless USB service and as suspected it’s flawless.
Mike means that a tablet curious potential buyer might go get an Android based tablet. Maybe they don’t like Apple one of the many reasons some don’t, or maybe the Xoom or Galaxy tab or next Android tablet that steps up the Android experience is the first one they get a look at.
The logic is sound. The iPad is the first handheld computer with a compelling enough experience to begin a real change in how people use and conceive of using / interacting with their computer.
ha….
Dan – chill. Your points about the hugely flexible and, most often, less expensive options of PC hardware are valid – great. Your vehemence demonstrates the one of many valid (dare I say) “good” reasons that some users don’t like or at least don’t want Apple devices. It also demonstrates an apparent animosity for Apple. I see direct two responses, and only one was remotely personal.
That doesn’t have much impact for the vast majority of users. Mike’s article focuses on how the iPad is changing user perceptions of how they want their computing devices to interact with them.
We are all a little childish at times…. some of us when we are “correcting” others.
this.
Thanks! :)
thanks, i’ll be sure to have your rating tattooed on my forehead!
Personally, I think a 6/10 tramp stamp would be better.
Personally, I think a 6/10 tramp stamp would be better.
You hit the nail on the head. I am a PC but I own an iPad. Yes now I am thinking about Macbooks and so on. I love the iPad and I am constantly looking for new ways to use it in every aspect of my entertainment and work life. I am having a real dilemma deciding how I am going to replace my old Dell desktop. I still like the USB port, jump drive accepting, non-onscreen keyboard aspects of a desktop. Lately I have been writing most of my blog posts on my iPad but I am still using the PC to do the final draft and edits.
My job requires me to know how to use Windows 7 and XP and Outlook so there is still that corporate culture of the PC we have to work with and it may be that that is where PC and Windows will continue to be the dominant player.
You couldn’t have stated your point any better. You are absolutely right. I have been using Windows for years and refuse to convert to Mac. But, you are correct about children and their obsession with iPads. While I may never convert myself to Mac, I am open to the idea that the rest of the world probably will.