i'd consider losing the iPad if I hadn't upgraded iOS to 4.2 Beta 3.
It's better than what people are using now.
I've had my iPad jailbroken since the first jailbreaks became available for it, and being able to multitask does make it a lot more useful. More recently, I found an app store app called FileBrowser that allows me to copy files to and from my iPad and my home/work networks. Now, I can copy a document off my computer to my iPad, edit it, and copy it back to my computer without going through work arounds like emailing it to myself or uploading then downloading it from the cloud. I use the iPad mostly for reading websites and ebooks, posting to forums, and casual games like Angry Birds or Bejweled. But it also lets me get real work done while I'm on the subway or bus, or sitting at a coffee shop.
For instance, the other day, I went to the Apple store to check out the Air, then sat down at the bench for people waiting for their Genius appointments, and tapped away on my iPad while I waited for a friend to show up. The Air might have been a better tool for that job, considering I was typing up a business letter, but I'm much more likely to be carrying my iPad with me. I wasn't expecting to have to wait for my friend when I left my house, so I wouldn't have known ahead of time that I'd have a chunk of free time I could use for work. I don't think I'd carry around the Air "just in case," but carrying the iPad everywhere is a no-brainer. And the Air, or even the biggest notebooks, is just not as comfortable for "real" multi-hour work sessions as a real desktop with a full-size keyboard and monitor. So the iPad takes care of my portable computing needs, and I have desktops at home and office. As cool and sexy as the new Air is, in my case, if I get one, that will be the "toy." If I needed to make a lot of business trips, or maybe an extended vacation during which I needed to get some work done, then maybe the Air might make more sense, but right now, I don't do either. To me the iPad is computer enough, and nothing beats it in terms of portability. Well there's the iPhone/iPod touch, but *those* are too small!