iPad roundup: Letterman licking, Colbert chopping, MobileMe and Remote support
By Vlad Savov 
posted April 2nd 2010 8:03AM
posted April 2nd 2010 8:03AM
posted April 2nd 2010 8:03AM
Apple Remote
Apple iPad 3rd-gen
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@Atkins What is "the most important argument for the "ipad"?
My answer: Profits for Apple.
@booch Great answer/s. Nice addition to the discussion. You don't like it, we get it.
@jeff stamos
For me, personally, two things:
1) I love the 'pick up, use for task x, put down' usage pattern, since that's what I do at home all the time. Except right now I have to boot my laptop and start some application on it, use a trackpad and a keyboard, etc. Not to mention the fact that I have to download, install and configure these applications first, which isn't always a pleasant surprise. A few years ago I loved building my own PC, I loved tinkering with my OS (first Windows, then Linux), and I loved figuring out all kinds of crazy stuff so I could stuff done thats common now. SInce I started working with computers full-time, I don't enjoy tinkering with computer stuff in my spare time that much anymore, especially when I just want to do 'x', I don't want to be doing 'y' and 'z' before I get there. I've gone through this progression from curiosity, to experimentation, to excitement, to annoyance multiple times with computer related stuff: building my own PC (now I just buy an all-in-one), building my own linux distro (now I just slap Ubuntu on it), keeping an up-to-date game PC (now I use an xbox and a PS3 for that), tweaking my OS to completely suit my needs (now I just use OS X, which is better than what I can tweak myself anyway). The iPad suits my usage pattern perfectly. I don't care about multitasking, I have a PC for that. I don't care about Flash, because I resent it anyway, only using computers outside the WIndows world for years now (Flash also sucks on Linux). I don't care about the gated app store, because I know 9 out of 10 apps are shit anyway, if Apple sorts out the really bad ones, that saves me the trouble wading through millions of fart apps. Maybe you now get my point: even as a tech-savvy person that makes a living writing pretty advanced Unix software, I *want* a device that treats me just like the other idiot that doesn't know computers. If I want to do complicated stuff, I'll use a PC.
2) Contrary to what many people think, the app store is a huge benefit to developers, and in my case, the iPad even inspired me starting on my own iPad application. It doesn't suffer from piracy as much as other systems. The API's are excellent and based on modern, up-to-date concepts. The average quality is better than your random PC shareware, WM or Android app. You have a much better chance of making money off your work. You can push your software much further because you know in advance what hardware it will run on. For me, the App Store is a godsend, I would never invest any time in writing Android apps for example, because I'm not confident I will ever get a penny out of all the hard work I have to put in. You might argue that these points are all only relevant to developers, but it also benefits users, and the ecosystem in general, because it attracts the better developers, and improves overall quality of the applications.
So here you go, my $0.02...
@Atkins but an android tablet will run more apps than an android phone, same with windows. im asking what makes it THE tablet (tho jobs refuses to call anything apple makes by its real name) to own, rather than the preferred tablet of those who, well, prefer apple.
@ghostdog it's pretty hard to not fail when every media network seems to be more excited about the product than the consumer.
If apple got the same treatment sony, dell or HP get they would be bankrupt by now. And don't say that those companies are not innovating anything, because they clearly do.
@drange Maybe we should make a new forum that works. Wouldn't it be cool to have a real discussion?
@Atkins
I think that would probably fail, unless we would enact some serious censorship. I regularly visit 4 tech/gadget sites, and it's the same story everywhere. Somehow tech sites attract a lot of people that find it hard to imagine that not everyone is like them, and not all people value the same attributes of a product. Apple is a great target for these people, because their primary market is 'normal' people, and because their products are in the premium segment, which means: more expensive, not indispensible, and often performing a task for which cheaper alternatives exist. So be it, it's just a shame that the only places where I still find sensible criticism about Apple products, is on sites dedicated to Apple products. Everywhere else its just rants, hate, bigotry and recycling of narrow-minded or irrelevant arguments.
@drange Yes, the censorship would be the only option, but if we have enough moderators we can get some pretty decent experience. Also if we keep it a forum, i.e. no actual news, maybe it would attract some interesting audience?
Is there a way to PM here? Or some other forum you are visiting?
Is the media beating Apple's drum evidence that the geek-base doesn't care about a content-controlled, overpriced, overblown iPhone/Touch? The iPad seems to be getting a collective "meh" from everyone i have talked to about it.
@booch .. how is the iPad content controlled ? .. I can play my own MP3, AAC, H.264 content without ever having to visit the iTunes Store. In fact, if the battery life is what people have been finding (around 12 hours for videos) it will be my dream portable TV.
@taligent It is content controlled because Apple approves everything that goes on it. Unless you unlock/jailbreak/hack the ipad you can only get content through Apple, and only content approved by Apple.
@booch Big deal.
@booch So, when I add a CD or DVD I own that isn't in the iTunes store, apple has to approve it first? My, that IS controlling.
@Gicalgary If all you want is music and video then get a touch. Do you really want to watch movies and TV shows on a tiny monitor with a crappy aspect ratio? The reason i say it is a closed device, and really there is no arguing otherwise, is because you can not add an application without Apple's approval, or by hacking the device and that is what upset me. I see the iPad as a move to strengthen Apple's DRM and control content distribution and that is it. People are not going to cure cancer with iPads, they aren't going to design sky scrapers, or rocket ships, they will do the same crap they did with their Ipod touch, but with a bigger screen, big deal.
Its a cable box you hold in your hand, enjoy.
LMAO it does make delicious salsa!
Come on, my 3G iPod touch can make salsa just fine.
@Atkins You can't run any of those programs on a HP machine either. You'd wait ten minutes for the dang thing to load. Those are (real)PC and Mac programs, not for Atoms.
@ghostdog
HD video. Netflix streaming. ABC/CBS streming? Support for USB or Bluetooth keyboard.
HD video ? oh wow 1024x768 is HD ? LOL. ipad nano has usb and bluetooth support as well, as for the keyboard , why would you hook up a keyboard when it's made for the sole purpose of touch ? there's a netbook for that. as for the streaming, they are applications not hardware. applications because you can't view them in a normal website since Apple blocked you from using flash.
@jdm28690
1024x768 is HD. When will you people learn.
@CoreyMac
Yep... 768 horizontal lines, SD is 480, HD is 720 & 1080, so indeed correct.
@bullshitexpresscom That is exactly my point. Many people say how a full-blown OS gives you a LOT of freedom, and granted for flash is true and also the multitasking. But apps? They are already limited by the processor.
For Canadian viewers, because Comedy Central links are useless outside the states:
http://watch.thecomedynetwork.ca/the-colbert-report/full-episodes/#clip284297
:)
@Picklesworth actually that video up there worked fine from EU
definitely getting one now just for the free family oh my mom will be Sooo proud!!!
Anyone who subjects themselves to network television has to wonder how much Apple spends inserting it's products into TV shows. Every laptop on TV has an Apple logo... defying all logic considering Apple's relatively tiny installed base.
Hell, this week's episode of Modern Family was a 22 minute iPad commercial.
iPOS !
LOL that was funny. it's actually a bit hard to say if Colbert was getting paid for this, since I highly doubt Apple would actually pay him to do what he did.
ahh.. gotta love Cobert.. and the iPad
Wow Dave is licking that iPad like a female employee!
So the home screen image on Colbert's iPad is upside down at the beginning... (Home button on top from front, he turns it around and the apple is upside-down)
Imma wait until I see how jailbreaking makes this thieng so much better. I would actually like to see LogMeIn Ignition for iPad?! People?!
I love Letterman!!! :)