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Yes but limited functionality and at a near similar price point many people are getting rid of their Kindles for the iPad. When you have the tech savvy crowd abandoning the Kindle for a more rounded device, you lose the crowd that would recommend the Kindle.
If the Kindle wants to stick around, it needs to drop it's price dramatically.
umm... the kindle is 250 with free lifetime 3g.
the bottom of the barrel ipad is 499, and the 3g models will start at 629 plus 30 a month.
that is not a comparable price point. not counting content, over the 1st year of ownership the kindle costs 250. the lowest 3g ipad, 999. over the 2nd year the kindle costs, gee let me see... 250. The ipad is up to 1350+.
They most assuredly are not the same price range. Honestly, the kindle will do fine. Its a reader. E ink is so vastly superior for reading the ipad cannot match it there. No, the ipad is essentially a netbook replacement. Even in that area, it is overpriced. But then, that's Apple for you.
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Just so you know, once cracked the iPhone/iPad can be used on other Wireless networks, except any network that uses CDMA wireless, which includes Verizon. So no matter how much you crack them, they will not work on Verizon, it is a hardware issue not a software issue.
That was one of the reasons we had a delay in wide scale deployment up here in Canada. We had to wait for 2 of our largest telecoms (Telus and Bell Mobility) to add GSM service alongside CDMA.
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It has the capabilities to do exactly what those users want a computer for in the first place. It is SUPER PORTABLE and easy to use.It can't install Microsoft Office, and never will. It can't install any number of vertical applications for medical, legal or regulatory agencies. It won't run any of my small home business applications or allow me to do my full time paying job of a Sr. Systems Engineer.
It has the capabilities that SOME users want. And that's just fine, without all the hyperbole.
didn't say all, I said THOSE users. That is, the users that the iPad is targeted for.
And to be fair, the iPad is not designed for any of the uses you point out. That is not its purpose. It's like complaining that a Chevy Cobolt is a poor choice to use for putting out fires. DUH! lol
As far as Microsoft Office is concerned... Pages, Keynote and Numbers all import and export to Office and Open Office. Office cannot use all of their features unfortunately (mostly animation for presentations and graphs). But even then it will import and export and you can still use your office docs fine.
It can't install Apps for medical, legal and regulatory agencies mainly because some of the Apps have not been written yet. Yet interesting you brought them up. Many reporters I have seen that have written about the iPad believe the iPad is the perfect platform for Medical and Legal use. There are HUNDREDS of small business Apps available- they don't do everything of course... yet. Remember those programs did not exist for PCs in the very early days either. The iPad is CURRENTLY targeted at consumers, not professionals- not the target market.
However, I think within a few years more professional apps will begin to appear, whether for iPad or HP Slate or some other tablet computer. Remember I am not saying iPad is THE computer of the future, just that this TYPE of tablet is the computer of the future.
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Yes but limited functionality and at a near similar price point many people are getting rid of their Kindles for the iPad. When you have the tech savvy crowd abandoning the Kindle for a more rounded device, you lose the crowd that would recommend the Kindle.
If the Kindle wants to stick around, it needs to drop it's price dramatically.
umm... the kindle is 250 with free lifetime 3g.
the bottom of the barrel ipad is 499, and the 3g models will start at 629 plus 30 a month.
that is not a comparable price point. not counting content, over the 1st year of ownership the kindle costs 250. the lowest 3g ipad, 999. over the 2nd year the kindle costs, gee let me see... 250. The ipad is up to 1350+.
They most assuredly are not the same price range. Honestly, the kindle will do fine. Its a reader. E ink is so vastly superior for reading the ipad cannot match it there. No, the ipad is essentially a netbook replacement. Even in that area, it is overpriced. But then, that's Apple for you.
Kindle is seriously overpriced compared to iPad. I just don't agree with you there. Amazon pays for the 3G network that IS cool. iPad works with Wi-Fi for free. So back down to $499. :) Now as a single purpose product that has no use beyond reading documents Kindle is a VERY good product. But overpriced. Even before iPad I would NEVER have bought a Kindle just due to its price. If it were under $100 then it would be priced about right- and IF it provided me someway to read at night besides having to use a headlamp.
BTW if E ink is so awesome... tell me... just how do you enjoy those full color illustrations in the books? Oops...never mind sorry, forgot the Kindle is still the 19th century version of electronic readers.
It DOES have a 30 day battery, which is super cool for those months I don't bother to sleep and read for 720 straight hours.
Oh BTW... free lifetime 3G... until they decide to not support that anymore... big business does that unfortunately, they change their minds. What will happen when the price point for the Kindle drops to $50 and Amazon can't afford to keep paying for the 3G service? I don't think the 3G providers will volunteer to keep it free...
Yes but limited functionality and at a near similar price point many people are getting rid of their Kindles for the iPad. When you have the tech savvy crowd abandoning the Kindle for a more rounded device, you lose the crowd that would recommend the Kindle.
If the Kindle wants to stick around, it needs to drop it's price dramatically.
umm... the kindle is 250 with free lifetime 3g.
the bottom of the barrel ipad is 499, and the 3g models will start at 629 plus 30 a month.
that is not a comparable price point. not counting content, over the 1st year of ownership the kindle costs 250. the lowest 3g ipad, 999. over the 2nd year the kindle costs, gee let me see... 250. The ipad is up to 1350+.
They most assuredly are not the same price range. Honestly, the kindle will do fine. Its a reader. E ink is so vastly superior for reading the ipad cannot match it there. No, the ipad is essentially a netbook replacement. Even in that area, it is overpriced. But then, that's Apple for you.
Kindle is seriously overpriced compared to iPad. I just don't agree with you there. Amazon pays for the 3G network that IS cool. iPad works with Wi-Fi for free. So back down to $499. :) Now as a single purpose product that has no use beyond reading documents Kindle is a VERY good product. But overpriced. Even before iPad I would NEVER have bought a Kindle just due to its price. If it were under $100 then it would be priced about right- and IF it provided me someway to read at night besides having to use a headlamp.
BTW if E ink is so awesome... tell me... just how do you enjoy those full color illustrations in the books? Oops...never mind sorry, forgot the Kindle is still the 19th century version of electronic readers.
It DOES have a 30 day battery, which is super cool for those months I don't bother to sleep and read for 720 straight hours.
Oh BTW... free lifetime 3G... until they decide to not support that anymore... big business does that...
Color e-ink is only a year away.
BTW if E ink is so awesome... tell me... just how do you enjoy those full color illustrations in the books? Oops...never mind
LOL. So you only buy books with pretty pictures in them? Enjoying those Dick & Jane readers, are you?
Woah?! Should you still be up... must be past your bedtime.
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BTW if E ink is so awesome... tell me... just how do you enjoy those full color illustrations in the books? Oops...never mindLOL. So you only buy books with pretty pictures in them? Enjoying those Dick & Jane readers, are you?
Woah?! Should you still be up... must be past your bedtime.
The problem is with Reference books, educational books, and RPGs. Other then that a normal novel it is great for, but I agree with Chrome, I stayed away from the Kindle because of it's price. For what it does it is way over priced by a couple of hundred dollers IMO.
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They just got the non 3G version iPad here on Base in Germany, I was proud of myself when I did not buy one. Afterwards I decided to think of what the Ipad needs to have for me to buy one so I came up with this list in the order of importance for myself.
1. RPG PDFs readable
2. RPG must have App
3. Battery life for a full day at a convention with one break for recharge.
4. 64 GB+ Ram
5. Affordable unlimited 3G network access capability
1. I am still unsure, I played with the demo they had at the BX and I am worried that a PDF at fit to screen, which is what I want, would be too small to read.
2. I can say the Aps for RPGs are lacking still, and I have heard of nothing coming out that I would have that Must have! feeling. I would like to see more support from the publishers.
3. This is close, with only 9 hours of battery life using the 3G network that is cutting it really close.
4. This it has, My PDF collection fits easily in 64 Gigs
5. The current price of $30 a month is very affordable for me.
Things that would be nice but can live without.
1. USB Port built in
2. Native PDF reader
3. Adobe Flash capable
4. HDMI port
5. SD card slot
1. A USB port with the ability to take files off of it would be nice, but not a necessity
2. Currently as far as I know you still need apps to add/read PDFs to the iPad, which is annoying because the stuff I need to do to do that, but it is more of an inconvenience then a game stopper.
3. This is annoying, there is so much more I could do with the iPad if it ran Flash.
4. HDMI port would be nice to connect to my HDTV to play videos off the iPad
5. SD card slot would be nice to move pictures to the iPad from my camera.
All in all the iPad is very close to being a product I want, but just short. Once I figure out if my PDFs are easily read and it gets more support from RPG publishers I will get one.
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1. A USB port with the ability to take files off of it would be nice, but not a necessity2. Currently as far as I know you still need apps to add/read PDFs to the iPad, which is annoying because the stuff I need to do to do that, but it is more of an inconvenience then a game stopper.
3. This is annoying, there is so much more I could do with the iPad if it ran Flash.
4. HDMI port would be nice to connect to my HDTV to play videos off the iPad
5. SD card slot would be nice to move pictures to the iPad from my camera.
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I don't think you can move generic files from the iPad right now, but if you could in future, all you need is an adaptor for the male end of the 30-pin connector.
PDFs can be read with the built-in Preview on iPad, which is a useful but limited function.
I think HTML5 is the way ahead. Even ABC and CBS are running HTML5 sites, which your Mac or iPad will autodefault to. Flash has never (that I can recall) crashed one of my Macs, but flash-apps like Hulu have crashed, probably once a week at least; and extended use (halfway through an episode of 24, for example) of Flash on my Macbook really spins the fans. If Hulu moves to HTML5, the day is made for me.
The HD programs from iTunes are still 720p, so the component connector you can buy for the iPad should give you the same fidelity as an HDMI connection.
I'd like an SD slot, too. There are some Bluetooth cameras out there, but I don't have one, and I've only ever seen a few. The camera connector might make this a nonissue.
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I don't think you can move generic files from the iPad right now, but if you could in future, all you need is an adaptor for the male end of the 30-pin connector.PDFs can be read with the built-in Preview on iPad, which is a useful but limited function.
I think HTML5 is the way ahead. Even ABC and CBS are running HTML5 sites, which your Mac or iPad will autodefault to. Flash has never (that I can recall) crashed one of my Macs, but flash-apps like Hulu have crashed, probably once a week at least; and extended use (halfway through an episode of 24, for example) of Flash on my Macbook really spins the fans. If Hulu moves to HTML5, the day is made for me.
The HD programs from iTunes are still 720p, so the component connector you can buy for the iPad should give you the same fidelity as an HDMI connection.
I'd like an SD slot, too. There are some Bluetooth cameras out there, but I don't have one, and I've only ever seen a few. The camera connector might make this a nonissue.
Like I said, those were would be cool options but not Game stoppers, with flash it is flash apps I want not the ability to watch movies using Flash. Being able to use my Marvel Digital Comic subscription on iPad would be awesome! but it uses flash :-(.
The camera connector also has a SD slot in it, so that could be used, would rather it be have it built in though.
Component is not a replacement for HDMI, 1 you may be able to get 720p out of it, it is not as nice as using HDMI, also you cannot get surround sound put currently through the iPad, with HDMI you could, so those HD movies/TV with surround sound you can get the full function out of them with a HDMI output. Currently I have an Apple TV doing that, which works great!
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didn't say all, I said THOSE users. That is, the users that the iPad is targeted for.And to be fair, the iPad is not designed for any of the uses you point out. That is not its purpose. It's like complaining that a Chevy Cobolt is a poor choice to use for putting out fires. DUH! lol
This is where we'll have to agree to disagree. In my experience, those mythical users don't exist anymore. The Consumerization of IT is a demonstratable reality nowadays, and not just a buzzword.
As an example, Facebook isn't just a social media site anymore, it's a business tool, an advertising agent, and much more. Consumers have begun demanding that the technology they use in their everyday life; whether SMS texting, social networks, iPhones or plain cell phones be usable and accessible to them in both their professional and personal lives.
The iPad is a halfway point that is going to frustrate a lot of people who are expecting a device to bridge the gap between a full size laptop and an ultraportable. The apps just aren't going to cut it.
It can't install Apps for medical, legal and regulatory agencies mainly because some of the Apps have not been written yet. Yet interesting you brought them up. Many reporters I have seen that have written about the iPad believe the iPad is the perfect platform for Medical and Legal use.
Nice. We've been installing tablets into those vertical industries and more (manufacturing mostly) since Windows XP Tablet Edition in 2002. It's nice to see Apple catching up, hopefully they'll set the bar for more adoption.
There are HUNDREDS of small business Apps available- they don't do everything of course... yet. Remember those programs did not exist for PCs in the very early days either. The iPad is CURRENTLY targeted at consumers, not professionals- not the target market.
'Eh? Some of the first full blown applications for PCs were spreadsheets. The first use for PCs, period, was for businesses. Trust me, I remember. Anyways, the apps that really matter like your Quickbooks and Simply Accounting are shadows of their grown-up selves.
However, I think within a few years more professional apps will begin to appear, whether for iPad or HP Slate or some other tablet computer. Remember I am not saying iPad is THE computer of the future, just that this TYPE of tablet is the computer of the future.
I'm not disagreeing, I've been a proud user and supporter of tablet PCs for year. I just think the iPad is limited in an era where people want more power, more flexibility, and more options in a smaller space.
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Kindle is seriously overpriced compared to iPad. I just don't agree with you there. Amazon pays for the 3G network that IS cool. iPad works with Wi-Fi for free. So back down to $499. :) Now as a single purpose product that has no use beyond reading documents Kindle is a VERY good product. But overpriced. Even before iPad I would NEVER have bought a Kindle just due to its price. If it were under $100 then it would be priced about right- and IF it provided me someway to read at night besides having to use a headlamp.BTW if E ink is so awesome... tell me... just how do you enjoy those full color illustrations in the books? Oops...never mind sorry, forgot the Kindle is still the 19th century version of electronic readers.
It DOES have a 30 day battery, which is super cool for those months I don't bother to sleep and read for 720 straight hours.
Oh BTW... free lifetime 3G... until they decide to not support that anymore... big business does that...
There is no way you can say kindle is overpriced compared to the ipad. Overpriced in general? sure.Btw, explain to me again how ALL apple products are not overpriced? you can't because they are- Apple's notorious for it all the way back to the dawn of macs. the 3g kindle is 250 with free 3g. The 3g ipad costs a 1000 to own for the 1st year. Sure the wifi is cheaper, but it doesn't have equivalent functionality. lets make the comparison fair, shall we?
And why did I compare the 3g ipad to the kindle? Because they have the most similar functionality. Sure the wifi ipad is cheaper. So were some of the non 3g ereaders i didn't buy. The 3g connectivity is the selling point.
Look, there are some people who largely use their laptops for internet, playing media, minor office work, & don't mind touch screens for who the ipad is perfect. It obviates the need for an ereader and a laptop. That's cool.
There are 2 techy groups this won't work for. 1st, gamers & powerusers who will want a more serious laptop. Heck, most of those people skipped netbooks, and other than snazzy styling and ridiculous amounts of hyperbole, that's all a wifi ipad is.
The other group is the heavy readers, who want longer (weeks) battery life, very readable screen, and don't care about flash and glitz of the ipad.
Essentially, the ipad is likely to appeal greatly to Apple's groupies, moderately to casual laptop/ereader users, and not much to the techie mainstream. I think the ipad will sell well (but not better than the iphone), but is unlikely to be able to destroy kindle's massive market lead as an ereader. What is more likely is that the ipad will make inroads, kindle 3 will have a mirasol color screen (that plays video AND keeps the current battery life) and still be far cheaper than the equivalent ipad. The market will stabilize with Apple and Amazon as big players & the rest fighting for scraps.
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It can't install Microsoft Office, and never will.
Who cares? Documents-To-Go is a fully compatible portable office suite. It's been around for as long as handheld devices have.
It can't install any number of vertical applications for medical, legal or regulatory agencies.
I heard this before.. you know, back when PDAs and cellphones were separate devices. Do you know what happened? Compatible software came out.
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umm... the kindle is 250 with free lifetime 3g.Yes but limited functionality and at a near similar price point many people are getting rid of their Kindles for the iPad. When you have the tech savvy crowd abandoning the Kindle for a more rounded device, you lose the crowd that would recommend the Kindle.
If the Kindle wants to stick around, it needs to drop it's price dramatically.
And all it can do is read books.
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And all it can do is read books.umm... the kindle is 250 with free lifetime 3g.Yes but limited functionality and at a near similar price point many people are getting rid of their Kindles for the iPad. When you have the tech savvy crowd abandoning the Kindle for a more rounded device, you lose the crowd that would recommend the Kindle.
If the Kindle wants to stick around, it needs to drop it's price dramatically.
riiiggghhht. See, that's why the kindle & ipad are not direct competitors. Ipads will take some of Kindle's market, but take a much larger bite out of netbook sales. the netbook is the ipad's real competition.
Arguing that the ipad will kill the kindle because it can read ebooks is just stupid marketing hype. netbooks can be used to read ebooks, yet they have been out and popular for the kindle's entire run. People who want the kindle want an optimized book reader. No amount of Crapple glitz will make it as good a reader as the Kindle or the Nook. People who chose a dedicated reader when netbooks and other option (iPhone?) already existed are unlikely to snap up the ipad to replace it.
Now, the people who bought netbooks so they could have a super portable laptop for web surfing and casual use are much more likely to take the ipad for a drive.
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And all it can do is read books.umm... the kindle is 250 with free lifetime 3g.Yes but limited functionality and at a near similar price point many people are getting rid of their Kindles for the iPad. When you have the tech savvy crowd abandoning the Kindle for a more rounded device, you lose the crowd that would recommend the Kindle.
If the Kindle wants to stick around, it needs to drop it's price dramatically.
See. Right now you think all it does is display a book you ordered. But it can do more.
If I'm an assassin in the field I might dial up a download of your face so I can see who the target of the day is.
If I want an area map I download a map from Kindle.
If I want the blueprints yo your house i download them from the Architect or building office.
Kindle is a poor man's ipad.
And all it can do is read books.umm... the kindle is 250 with free lifetime 3g.Yes but limited functionality and at a near similar price point many people are getting rid of their Kindles for the iPad. When you have the tech savvy crowd abandoning the Kindle for a more rounded device, you lose the crowd that would recommend the Kindle.
If the Kindle wants to stick around, it needs to drop it's price dramatically.
See. Right now you think all it does is display a book you ordered. But it can do more.
If I'm an assassin in the field I might dial up a download of your face so I can see who the target of the day is.
If I want an area map I download a map from Kindle.
If I want the blueprints yo your house i download them from the Architect or building office.
Kindle is a poor man's ipad.
Considering that Kindle came first it should be, iPad is a rich mans Kindle.
Everyone seems to be forgetting that the ipad's main competition is from the onward march of time. In two years someone will be posting "the day the ipad died" when whatever new tech gadget comes out.
Seriously though, $1000 in the first year for the ipad?! Is there an embargo on white plastic that's driving the price up?
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It can't install Microsoft Office, and never will.Who cares? Documents-To-Go is a fully compatible portable office suite. It's been around for as long as handheld devices have.
Depends on who you're talking about. One of our Government bodies of 45,000 clients just happens to have standardized on MS Office - and all the alternatives are just S.O.L.
Without an MS Office deployment, since they're heavily invested in custom macros and forms, means that a device that doesn't support it, in either MS or Mac, will never see the day.
And just to nitpick, I've used Documents to Go in various incarnations since the Palm III, and unless it has changed substantially it's still no match for a full deployment.
Different strokes for different folks.
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Seriously though, $1000 in the first year for the ipad?! Is there an embargo on white plastic that's driving the price up?It's not a $1000...
Come on man, I showed irrefutably that it would cost 1000 for the cheapest 3G ipad with the monthly service fee for unlimited 3g access. You can deny the pricing for that device all day, but it doesn't make you right.629 for the device, 360 for the access. you do the math.
I know you can get the wifi model cheaper, but that's a cop-out. You can't be online unless you find a hotspot, are at home, or can leach off someone else. For even connectivity comparisons you need to compare the 3g ipad to the kindle. And the 3G ipad costs a grand the 1st year of use.
Case closed.
I use my laptop for work...I don't like reading PDFs on it because my eyes are already tired from looking at the screen for 12+ hours a day (8@work, 4@ home)
E-ink is for reading E-NOVELS...not necessarily PDFs...Color E-ink, that will be nice...think I'll wait for that.
iPads can't run everything I need either. Maybe in a few years I'll get one.
Eventually I'll prolly own both...for now...LapTop...E-Reader Next...iPad when they break $300
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It's 3 AM-ish and I've had two of 18 year Auchentoshan (yet, still I can't sleep). The last thing I should be doing is posting, but the internet is so much cooler at 411 MPH. What can I say.
I don't think the iPad is a Kindle-killer because comparing the iPad to the Kindle is like comparing Apples to IBMs...I mean oranges.
Kindle has a specific purpose, and iPad can fulfill that purpose for some people some of the time, but not everyone all of the time. The same goes for nook (but probably not Sony's eReader, because it's too small and generally not as easy to use; plus it's still a little pricy for what it does).
I read a lot of Kindle books on my iPhone (I have never experienced this mythical eyestrain syndrome of which so many speak); and I just finished Stieg Larsson's The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, read with Kindle-for-Mac on my Macbook (hey, I've been flying since 11:30 AM CST). If it weren't for the fact that VA has onboard WiFi, I would have read exclusively and been done with a couple books by now. The point is, access to the web substantially slows my reading because I'm constantly looking things up while I read. While this makes me very informed and gives me a greater understanding of whatever I'm reading, it often doubles the time it should take to finish a book. If I really wanted to solely focus on a novel (in digital form), I would never read one on the computer, iPhone, or iPad--I'd use a Kindle or nook.
I guarantee there are a gazillion and more who would do the same, and who will stick with a simple e-reader for that reason alone, if nothing else.
And now, for another two fingers of Auchentoshan ;-)
I've had a Nook for about three weeks now, and love it. I thought about iPad, but I honestly do not want anything to distract me from reading. Nook tells me what time it is and that's about it - no popups, no keyboard to waste space, no tempation to go browse for an update on paizo messageboards because it's been, like, three minutes since I last looked. It handles like a book and is easier on the eyes than a computer since the screen is not backlit.
I hope e-readers are around for a good long time, because I plan on keeping this puppy. I'm finally reading again and am very happy.
I've had a Nook for about three weeks now, and love it. I thought about iPad, but I honestly do not want anything to distract me from reading.
You are very much like Penn Jillette then. ( Language NSFW.)
I've had a Nook for about three weeks now, and love it. I thought about iPad, but I honestly do not want anything to distract me from reading.You are very much like Penn Jillette then. ( Language NSFW.)
Yes! I even like that the Nook practically forces me to read the book sequentially. I stop skipping around and actually get the rise and fall of suspense the way the author designed it! It's possible to jump around the book, but laziness trumps impatience. I simply turn pages as the good Lord intended. Electronically.
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Yes! I even like that the Nook practically forces me to read the book sequentially. I stop skipping around and actually get the rise and fall of suspense the way the author designed it! It's possible to jump around the book, but laziness trumps impatience. I simply turn pages as the good Lord intended. Electronically.I've had a Nook for about three weeks now, and love it. I thought about iPad, but I honestly do not want anything to distract me from reading.You are very much like Penn Jillette then. ( Language NSFW.)
My wife contracts for the military, so in typical Army fashion, she's one of three dentists in the entire clinic at Fort Wainwright. This means she has very little free time during the work day--no reading at the computer when she should be conducting position improvement on that never-ending PowerPoint, which describes me--and gets an hour for lunch. She bought a nook for exactly the reasons you and Penn describe. Her reasoning is--
-the nook is easier to carry than an actual book
-she can carry hundreds of books at a time, in case one gets tiresome
-she can read a Decandido Supernatural novel and no-one is the wiser
-all she can really do is read the book, which means she actually reads
When the technorati got their hands on the beginning specs of the iPad and priced out what the parts that were going to have to go in would cost.... they calcucluated that if Apple was going to have it's usual 30-50 percent markup, the cost of the lowest end model would have been over $1000.
I have only found this price breakdown that suggests Apple is getting 50%+ markup. And it is no where near $1000.
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Essentially, the ipad is likely to appeal greatly to Apple's groupies, moderately to casual laptop/ereader users, and not much to the techie mainstream. I think the ipad will sell well (but not better than the iphone), but is unlikely to be able to destroy kindle's massive market lead as an ereader. What is more likely is that the ipad will make inroads, kindle 3 will have a mirasol color screen (that plays video AND keeps the current battery life) and still be far cheaper than the equivalent ipad. The market will stabilize with Apple and Amazon as big players & the rest fighting for scraps.
Well, it's been about two months since the iPad's debut. In those two months, more than 2 million iPads have been sold. It took the iPhone roughly twice as long to reach that sales figure. According to retailers, demand for the iPad continues to be very high (in most cases, they have trouble even keeping the iPad in stock). Add to that the fact that these sales figures are for the US only - the iPad just recently went on sale world wide and early indications show similar high demand in other countries as well.
So, actual data would seem to indicate that the iPad is, if anything, proving to be even more successful than the iPhone.
Much like the iPhone, I'm pretty sure many more people than just Apple "Apple's groupies" are buying, and will continue to buy, the iPad.
Will it be the Kindle Killer? I think it's still too soon to say, but it very well could be.
Note that Apple does not own all the software technology that goes into these things. There are a lot of technologies here that require licensing payouts, and of course Apple's cost for coding it's own software as well.
There is actually very little Apple has to pay for software in the iPad. Because most of what is used is "recycled" from other products and the costs have already been paid.
OS: iPhone OS - maybe with some tweaks. Minimal cost
iTunes: Already written - maybe with some tweaks. Minimal cost.
Apps: Mostly written by independent developers, and generates money for Apple. Minimal cost.
The only things I can think of are codec licenses, and maybe a license deal with Microsoft for compatibility with iWorks. Many of those Apple is a licenser for. I don't think they can just use the licenses "for free," but they do get a much better deal than most other manufacturers.
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There is actually very little Apple has to pay for software in the iPad. Because most of what is used is "recycled" from other products and the costs have already been paid.
OS: iPhone OS - maybe with some tweaks. Minimal cost
iTunes: Already written - maybe with some tweaks. Minimal cost.
Apps: Mostly written by independent developers, and generates money for Apple. Minimal cost.The only things I can think of are codec licenses, and maybe a license deal with Microsoft for compatibility with iWorks. Many of those Apple is a licenser for. I don't think they can just use the licenses "for free," but they do get a much better deal than most other manufacturers.
I agree. I know from working with them before that they use a system of plug-and-play with their personnel. There aren't necessarily any new hires to develop iTunes for iPad, it's simply a team from the iTunes development group retasked to focus on a port for iPad.