By Patrick Pinder

The iPad has been unveiled now for a few weeks and there is a crazy media and fan based blitz going on about how much people love and hate the iPad. Being the “techy” person I am, I have had a few conversations with various people about this new and “glorious” iPad.

The iPad is Apple’s take on tablet, netbook computer and the Amazon Kindel all rolled into one.  It’s 9.56″ x 7.47″s and weighs 1.5 pounds (1.6 pounds if you have the 3G model).  It’s a touch screen with the option of buying a keyboard that connects to it.  It incorporates the iPodtouch and iPhone features,  with out the calling features.  A more humorous way of describing the iPad is that it acts as four iPodtocuhes taped together in a 2 x 2 square.

Okay, so the iPad is Apple’s newest toy. Yes I said toy, to call this item a useful device is a stretch. I will say this right now; I am NOT an apple fan boy, I was actually looking forward to seeing how Apple would respond to the overwhelming success of Amazon’s Kindle. I was, along with a good portion of the technological world, let down. I will even admit that I paused about wanting a Kindle or another e-book reader when I heard Apple would be unavailing its new toy, but I have changed my mind with the iPad’s release.

To say the iPad is a revolution is laughable right now. Sure, Apple may come out with a better version down the road, but after several years of hype and all we get is this inferior device, I just have to roll my eyes. There are several reasons why the iPad is not so hot that are  in no particular order :

#7 The name. Come on Apple! iPad? Forgetting all the feminine project jokes that have been made about this name, they thought out side the box with this one. Either no women work in the Apple marketing or the men don’t listen to them. A CNBC anchor even said “it reminded her of feminine hygiene products.” Another clue should have been that “ipad.com” is already taken.

#6 Storage. To me, this is another example of Apple milking its fan base for all the money they can get. Three sizes: 16, 32 and 64GBs and that’s it! Who is going to be able to get by with only 16 GBs of storage? Especially when sending and receiving photos, documents, music and other digital media?  If this was just a way for Apple wanted to keep the cost down and nothing more, then why is there no SD memory card slot to expand the memory? Has Apple not heard of SD cards? Some people have said if you want the extra space, just get a USB hard-drive and carry it around with you. Call me crazy but wouldn’t that defeat the purpose of this iPad? If you were going to do that, why not stick with your laptop or computer you already have?

#5 No multi-tasking abilities. It operates one app at a time, no more. Period. If this toy is suppose to be Apple’s attempt to get into the e-book, netbook, or tablet market… why doesn’t it multitask?

#4 No Flash. How is this toy suppose to be the “best web browsing experience” when most of the websites today use flash is one way or another?

#3 The price. The base prices start out at $499 for the 16GB, $599 for the 31GB and $699 for the 64GB. If you want the 3G ability, which is being touted as a “nice” feature, you will have to pay another $130. So to get the 64GB with 3G, it will cost you $829 + $30 a month with Apple’s favorite buddy – AT&T. For that price, you can buy a smart phone and a netbook with BETTER storage and specs. It’s an iPod touch and iPhone without the calling capabilities.

#2 Apps.  You can only buy apps from App Store Only. Controlling what people put on the iPhone is one thing. Telling people they can not install any software besides what the company says is allowed is 110 percent different. If this is suppose to be just like a netbook or table computer, then why can’t people put the software they want on an item they own? Again, this is an example of  Apple milking their fan base.

#1 Apple has been making a lot of noise about how this will be a great e-book reader, even showing off the fancy page turning. There are fanboys saying this is the Kindle killer.

The iBook app on the iPad

Nope, no way.

The first reason in the popularity of the Kindle. Just like the iPhone had a head start with smart-phones, the Kindle is running way out front right now. Most people who own a Kindle like to read and don’t want to carry around their books. They don’t want to show off a status symbol.

The second reason is price. The top of the line Kindle is in the same price range as the mid model priced 32GB iPad, but has no monthly fees for 3G; which is how the Kindle downloads its books.

The third and biggest reason is the screen. The iPad has a back lit screen, like a regular computer screen. True, it’s LED instead of LCD, but still pans out to the same issue of long term reading – eye irritation.

No matter how hard Apple tries to cover this last point up with all its fancy colors, animations and the ability to change your desktop background, the problem is still the same.

The list can go on about all the things the new feminine hygiene product… I mean latest iFamily member is.

Good job Apple. I will say though that with the price being under $500 for a entry model, a lot people will go out and buy the iPad without really thinking it all the way through, and thats what Apple’s plan B always is : Hype it up and they will buy it first, then ask questions later.

As for me? Maybe iPad v2.0, or even maybe something else.  I hear Google is going to be unveiling a new tablet soon, so who knows.