Pre-orders for the Apple iPad toped 51,000 in two hours. today says Mashable. That doesn’t even include orders for pick-up at Apple stores. I think it will revolutionize how we read, view photos and seek information. It is too soon to see how it will work the the regular folk. So many technical writers have been lamenting the lack of this feature or that. We have started to see articles about its potential. I see the iPad as the device for the folks (like my husband) who want their computing device to work like the refrigerator. Open the door, the light goes on and you pick out what you want to use. My husband (age 76) has been lamenting for years, “Why can’t this machine work like a refrigerator.”As the sys op (System Operator) in the household, I am used to the tweaking and fixing required of a computer.Many grandparents would be happy with an iPad instead of getting hand-me-down computers so the kids can send pictures of their grandkids playing T-ball. I did some computer tutoring down in Naples and I spent more time with PC folks making sure the PC didn’t have viruses, worms or malware rather than teaching the fun stuff. Just think how nice it would be to use an iPad to surf the web, do email, look at photos, etc. My parents would be a candidate for use. My dad, at age 93, could stay in his recliner to check email from the kids when his back is sore. He has DSL so a router would be easy to set up.
No longer do we have to have cables to attach iPods to the TV to show photos or show them on a tiny camera screen. Just pass around the iPad. The tech savvy older users can take the iPad on trips instead of lugging laptops along. I like that idea. I use my iTouch for reading books using the Kindle App, listen to music, play games and have multiple apps using Wi-Fi. Just think what it would be like on an iPad.
The iPad will be used in ways we can’t imagine today. I can hardly wait. My birthday is in April and I have my present already picked put.