Apple iPad launch video and review roundup

The iPad launch video clip

A roundup of Apple iPad reviewes

The New York Times gave it ample space, asking however some pointed questions:

Mr. Jobs, a consummate showman, presented the iPad to an enthusiastic crowd of around 800 employees, business partners and journalists, some of whom shoved their way in when the doors opened to grab the best seats. It was only his second public appearance since a leave of absence for health reasons last year.

Mr. Jobs posited that the iPad was the best device for certain kinds of computing, like browsing the Web, reading e-books and playing video.

The iPad “is so much more intimate than a laptop, and it’s so much more capable than a smartphone with its gorgeous screen,” he said in presenting the device to a crowd of journalists and Apple employees here. “It’s phenomenal to hold the Internet in your hands.”

One question Apple faces is whether there is enough room for another device in the cluttered lives of consumers.

“I think this will appeal to the Apple acolytes, but this is essentially just a really big iPod Touch,” said Charles Golvin, an analyst at Forrester Research, adding that he expected the iPad to mostly cannibalize the sales of other Apple products.

The Engadged review of the Apple iPad is rather lukewarm:

I know that I’ll find a reason to drop $500 (at least) on this thing — but for the vast majority of consumers, I think the case for the iPad has yet to be made.

Image via CrunchBase

There’s no question that much of what the iPhone and iPod touch do translates nicely here, and there’s no question that some of the tweaks made to native iPad apps are impressive, but nothing I saw made me sit up and think, “Wow, I need this.” It’s telling that the most intriguing user experiences shown off today were the iPad versions of the iWork suite. iWork? If Steve Jobs hoped to answer the question about why we need this third device, or how it’s better than a netbook, he didn’t make a compelling case. Where is video chat? Where is multitasking (honestly, only one app at a time for a device of this size and speed)? Why is the lock screen so embarrassingly empty? Why are there no active widgets to fill that huge homescreen space? Where is the expansion of the multitouch user experience? And seriously, where are the media partnerships?

Now there isn’t a doubt in my mind that the iPad will really come into its own when developers get their hands on it, and I know that I’ll find a reason to drop $500 (at least) on this thing — but for the vast majority of consumers, I think the case for the iPad has yet to be made.

This Wall Street Journal review of most relevant Apple iPad reviews crosses some essential t-s.

The rest of the blogosphere wasn’t all roses and unicorns about the iPad either. Engadget’s Joshua Topolsky also noted its lack of camera and SMS functions. He also felt the keyboard was “good, not great,” but perhaps more notably that “there’s no multitasking at all. It’s a real disappointment,” he wrote. “All this power and very little you can do with it at once. No multitasking means no streaming Pandora when you’re working in Pages…you can figure it out. It’s a real setback for this device.”

Still others noted the lack of support for Adobe Flash. “We want to watch Hulu on the iPad. It’s sort-of okay on a small phone-sized device, but it’s not okay on a 9.7-inch screen,” complained PCWorld’s Jason Cross.

Many early reviews called the iPad an oversized iPod touch. “Are people prepared to sacrifice the portability they get with the iPhone?” Crunchgear’s Nicholas Deleon, writing for CNN, asked. “I’m skeptical.”

Related articles by Zemanta

• iPad? Some are saying iPass (timesonline.typepad.com)
• Sitting Down with the Apple iPad (coolhunting.com)
• Apple iPad launch day roundup: everything you need to know (engadget.com)
• Apple iPad: bashed by bloggers around the web (guardian.co.uk)
• Debating the merits of Apple’s iPad (news.cnet.com)
• Ten Things Missing From the iPad (wired.com)
• Apple iPad: A Comprehensive Guide (mashable.com)
• Apple iPad: Views from the web (telegraph.co.uk)
• Apple unveils the iPad (vator.tv)
• 8 Reasons Why Even Hitler Hates iPad (Parody) (taragana.com)
• Apple’s iPad has pitfalls for enterprise (computerworld.com)
• Three Reasons the iPad Won’t Kill Amazon’s Kindle (bits.blogs.nytimes.com)