Originally Posted by Taunton

Very cool! I like it too.

It's much like how I see BlackBerry vs iPhone - the iPhone is much more casual, BlackBerry is much better for work/business purposes.

This looks the same. I would never use the iPad for work... this Courier device however has work written all over it!

I know. OMG OMG
i want it so badly

Originally Posted by Afzal

o realy?

http://www.maclife.com/article/top_10_apple_flops

look at that mouse on the 2nd page...read what Jobs said about it, he says the same for every damn product they release!

Actually that mouse was a big hit. Back when MacLife was MacAddict they loved it. Many of these products were not from the new Jobs day (iMac to now).

#10. Mac Mini
- Way more popular than the cube (which is the only real Jobs flop I thought of)
-Still selling
- I know more people with Mac Minis than iMacs
-The people at MacLife are all into the MacPro's (the really high end machines) and don't really care for anything that isn't high powered.

#9. iPod Hi-Fi
-Ok so a relatively minor accessory product flopped

#8 Pippen
-Made by Bandai not apple
-preJobs

#7 QuickTake
-Killed by Jobs when he took over

#6 eWorld
-preJobs

#5 Puck Mouse
-it was just plain awesome and lots of people liked it
-would eventually lead to the current apple mouse which is widely loved among the apple community

#4 Copland
-preJobs
-ended up providing a lot towards future OS development

#3 Newton
-World's first PDA
-Killed by Jobs when it underperformed

#2 The Macintosh Office
-Their criticism is about the commercial which they previously included as one of the greatest Mac advertisements of all time

#1 PowerPC
-Uhhh this didn't flop at all it was far better than the other chips available at the time and offered a huge improvement over what they had at the time
-It was finally dropped when Motorola became unable to keep up with intel (which this same magazine thought would be the death of mac)

Read the comments. A lot of the readers disagree with this article.

Lol, think apple wont release a product that would flop? Did you even know apple had a gaming console?

*** Not saying the iPad will flop ***

Originally Posted by zango

Lol, think apple wont release a product that would flop? Did you even know apple had a gaming console?

*** Not saying the iPad will flop ***

I did in fact know that. (and it was NOT an apple product, it was a Bandai product made with apple hardware and software). The point I'm making is since Jobs 2.0 apple has very rarely made large mistakes. (G4 Cube probably the biggest, and not dropping PPC soon enough after IBM got consumed with supplying gaming chips and Motorola started to suck being the main exceptions). Its precisely because of Jobs' charisma and his constant selling of every apple product as the best thing since sliced bread that apple continues to make huge profits. That's why I have trouble believing this will flop. Of course by MacLife standards, it it doesn't have 8 cores, 1 TB of storage, and all the expansion slots you can ask for, while being priced under $1,000 dollars, including monitor, keyboard and non-puck mouse AND increase Apple's market share to 50%, its a flop.

Apple TV is a pretty big flop.

apple tv is actually a great product, my girlfriend has one and it's so useful. apple has always considered it a "hobby" product, it fits that description perfectly. a flop would be something apple would stop selling... apple tv has been around for a while, if it's a flop it would have "flopped" by now.

i was going to argue with that article, but arahbon got there first, so thanks!

the courier also looks awesome, but it definitely is going after a more power-user consumer. although i might buy a stylus for the iPad, might make taking notes easier...

Originally Posted by Souldier

Apple TV is a pretty big flop.

Well it seems to be doing alright. Its not the most exciting product but they continue to work on it and haven't killed it. I kinda see the iPad having the same sort of future. Sells alright, continues to develop but isn't apples most exciting or famous product.

It all depends on your definition of flop. If you judge it to be anything that isn't earth shattering then yeah Apple has had a few, but if you judge it to be something that likely lost Apple money and hurt its reputation then they've been NEARLY (but not completely) flop free since the return of the Jobs.

On the other hand the Macintosh TV was a big flop.

LOLOL.

I dont think Ipad is gonna be a disappointment nor will it be a huge success like the iphone. However, most apple customers are gonna buy this product, and even if they are not apple customers this device does have its upside besidse just the ebooks. It has a 10" display so most likely wont be carried out much, however it can be used for a lot of applications such as picture frame at times, or if you come back home you can just check ur ipad for emails/recents news instead of having for your laptop to boot up for a quick check. Unlike many other products, this product seems to be for middle ages people (28+ or so) who may not have the need to be on the computer much.

However, it does have its downsides. Many people aren't fans of virtual keyboards, but apple seem to have "improved" it this time but we will just have to wait and see. I still won't recommend editing documents on iPad. Also, 10 hr battery but its apple so most likely only 6, which is not too bad but could be a drag if travelling with it. Also, no flash drive in it, so can 't plug in ur external HD, or any of ur USB's which is a major disappointment imo. Doesn't come with camera either which can be a problem for some people.

We will just have to wait and see how it rolls out. for a new Apple product price seems to be quite cheap, although with starting price of $499 with 16 GB (low for this device) and no 3G (add $130 extra). So seems like a cool product in general, and no i am not an apple fan (PC > Mac).

Netbooks are done, btw.

Originally Posted by arathbon

Actually that mouse was a big hit. Back when MacLife was MacAddict they loved it. Many of these products were not from the new Jobs day (iMac to now)

A mac user actually told me how much he hated that mouse. It wasn't a big hit you know...

and that was for people who thought whatever Apple releases doesn't flop

Apple's stock rating before announcement was 205, after announcing the name ... 201, after the show: 208, 1 day after 199

says for itself, the reaction hasn't been so positive

It isn't some product that can do something a smartphone can't so what most people should do right now is just buy a damn Nokia N900.

They can check mail, hook it up to their TV for pictures/movies, read books, install Android on it, snap 5MP pics and oh yeah...they can call too

Originally Posted by Afzal

A mac user actually told me how much he hated that mouse. It wasn't a big hit you know...

And many others loved it so not a flop. And it lead to the current apple mouse which is a big success.

and that was for people who thought whatever Apple releases doesn't flop

Apple's stock rating before announcement was 205, after announcing the name ... 201, after the show: 208, 1 day after 199

says for itself, the reaction hasn't been so positive

There were some small fluctuations in stock value. The price was probably inflated because when people heard apple was releasing a new product some thought it would be the next iPhone. It's likely that Apple's price simply corrected to where it should be.

It isn't some product that can do something a smartphone can't so what most people should do right now is just buy a damn Nokia N900.

They can check mail, hook it up to their TV for pictures/movies, read books, install Android on it, snap 5MP pics and oh yeah...they can call too

It's also 1) Relatively small compared to the iPad and 2) A phone.

If someone wants a smartphone Apple's offering is the iPhone. If someone wants a portable media player/ web surfer/ ebook reader/ random apps doer that's got a decent size screen then Apple's offering is the iPad.

It is NOT trying to be the same type of product.

I have a phone already. I like my phones simple. I have a high end MacBook Pro. This product isn't for me.

Say in three years I decide to pass my laptop down to my brother and get a desktop. I still have my phone that's just for texting/ phoning/ taking pictures when I don't have my camera on me. I want something with a decent sized screen that i can watch on the bus, on my bed, in the back of a car, while waiting for class etc. It's the iPad market. It's a different market. The iPhone is a Phone with an iPod attached. The iPad is a giant iPod for those who hate the small iPod screen but don't need a portable computer.

Originally Posted by arathbon

It is NOT trying to be the same type of product.

I have a phone already. I like my phones simple. I have a high end MacBook Pro. This product isn't for me.

Say in three years I decide to pass my laptop down to my brother and get a desktop. I still have my phone that's just for texting/ phoning/ taking pictures when I don't have my camera on me. I want something with a decent sized screen that i can watch on the bus, on my bed, in the back of a car, while waiting for class etc. It's the iPad market. It's a different market. The iPhone is a Phone with an iPod attached. The iPad is a giant iPod for those who hate the small iPod screen but don't need a portable computer.

I think the argument is essentially done. The iPad isn't for the tech savvy crowd, the internet is abuzz with talk about it, but the general consensus in the tech blogs I visit (Gawker network, Ars Technica, Engadget, CNET, and TechDirt) has been a general "meh". We'll have to wait to see how apple markets this and if people begin to pick it up before we can really say whether or not it's filling some niche or not. I personally can never see myself needing it (Laptop/Desktop, Netbook, Smartphone combo will probably fulfill all my computing needs for a while to come), but like you and others have said, it may make sense for someone else.

on the stock, that really means nothing, pretty much every apple event causes the AAPL stock to drop. it's the "buy on the rumour, sell on the news" activity, also rumours tend to inflate AAPL so that no matter what they announce will not be "good enough" ie have every feature it was rumoured to have.