Slim majority of users would rather have a netbook or laptop over an iPad
At least that's the word from an NPD survey that says among 18-34 year olds, a key iPad demograhpic, 51% would rather have a more conventional portable than the Apple iPad. Even among current Apple product owners 44% would prefer a more functional computer like a MacBook over an iPad.
"The most interested potential iPad customers see it primarily as a music device, or for its internet access capabilities," said Stephen Baker, vice president of industry analysis at NPD. "Considering what people are planning to use the iPad for, it's not hard to understand why people who have these capabilities on other devices, such as the iPod Touch or a notebook/netbook, may not want to spend $500 or more on a similar device. This points to the need for Apple to close the content deals that focus the iPad on what is likely to be its best long-range value proposition around high quality media consumption."
Surveys like this, before a product even shows up in the market, don't mean a hell of a lot, but I do think many Apple users would like to see something more powerful in a smaller package. We had a pretty good discussion of this the other day when many of our users told about the good and the bad of using a Dell or other netbooks and converting them to OS X based devices.
It's clear that Apple is going to sell an awful lot of iPads over the next few weeks. As our readers are Apple-centric, what are your views? Ready to pull the trigger on an iPad?
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[via Electronista]
