The Real Demographic... and some other thoughts

[samcraig]

As I've said in a few threads - the iPad is simply not for me - not in its current incarnation and not while I'm content with my 3GS, MacBook Pro and Kindle2.

It's hard for me to "understand" the place it could have in my, personal, life. But perhaps I'm not the target demographic.

Perhaps the target demographic isn't any of us who already own some or many Apple products. Maybe the best market for the iPad is the uninitiated. Sure they noted in the keynote how many people will be already familiar with how the device works. But I think the true demographic just might be those unfamiliar. Those that perhaps don't have a laptop or kindle. Or even an iPhone. Maybe they have desktop systems and some other phone.

The iPad is not "really" a computer. Nor is it a phone. It's not an e-reader. It's really a large format ipod touch. Which is fine. And I'm sure it's beautiful and works really really well.

I've been on the forum for over awhile now and have read a lot of threads about various devices and the OS. I think the iPad, to some degree, magnifies the OS's shortcomings which were acceptable or at least "tolerable" on the iPhone because - well - it's a phone, not a full blown laptop or computer.

Now this is speaking only of the iPad as demo'd today with the OS demo'd today. Perhaps OS 4.0 will revolutionize the iPad - and perhaps that will even come prior to launch date.

But for now - this device has, to me, limited appeal - and most of that perhaps to bring people over to Apple products.

 

[JonboyDC]

Perhaps the target demographic isn't any of us who already own some or many Apple products. Maybe the best market for the iPad is the uninitiated.

I own a MBP and an iPhone, but I find that most of the time when I'm sitting at home, maybe watching TV, I don't like browsing on my laptop because it's uncomfortable to have to have it in my lap and because it gets hot, and I don't want to browse on my iPhone because, as much as I love it, browsing on the small screen for any extended period of time is a pain. I could really see using this at those times.

 

[samcraig]

I own a MBP and an iPhone, but I find that most of the time when I'm sitting at home, maybe watching TV, I don't like browsing on my laptop because it's uncomfortable to have to have it in my lap and because it gets hot, and I don't want to browse on my iPhone because, as much as I love it, browsing on the small screen for any extended period of time is a pain. I could really see using this at those times.

I think if you are using the iPad a lot - it will get hot too. Esp if you're surfing and using the 3G radio (if you get that model). If you're watching videos - the combination of screen usage and CPU usage is also likely to raise the temp. Just look at what it does in the iphone...

 

[mtehonica]

I own a MBP and an iPhone, but I find that most of the time when I'm sitting at home, maybe watching TV, I don't like browsing on my laptop because it's uncomfortable to have to have it in my lap and because it gets hot, and I don't want to browse on my iPhone because, as much as I love it, browsing on the small screen for any extended period of time is a pain. I could really see using this at those times.

Ditto.

 

[marksman]

I am with jon.

I think this has a perfect place for me between my iphone and macbook pro.

It allows me to do things at home that would be better on a larger screen without having to go get my laptop in the other room or go to the other room period.

Just have it in the living room and use it.

I think it actually is for people who already have macbooks and iphones, as it fits right in the middle and fills the noticeable gap between the two.

I have had times I wished the iphone had a bigger screen. I have two netbooks as well, and having a smaller laptop/netbook has never properly met my need for that. the form factor is just wrong to me.

For this middle ground the increasing form factor of a iphone/touch seems more sensible than reducing the form factor of laptop.

 

[powder90]

looks good to me

to say my MacBook is cumbersome is funny to me since i grew up in the age of the commodore 64 and 5.25" floppy disks. but that is just what it has become. to be able to throw a device in my bag that is the size of a magazine on my way to work or out of town is perfect.

i work 24 hours shifts in my line of work and i think this device would be great to carry back and forth. I really only have the need for reading books, sending emails, web browsing, limited manipulation of spreadsheets and word documents and perhaps even sneaking in some movie watching.

as far as the real demographic? how can it not be students? to be able to have ALL your textbooks on one device, where you can read, make notes, high light, etc. maybe even copy and paste pertinent parts of text for personal notes and what not. (this would be where multitasking could be nice...) i can also remember a time when it seemed like my backpack was heavier than i was. millions of students the world over will be buying this... that seems like a fairly big demographic to me.

 

[Maverick1337]

I own a MBP and an iPhone, but I find that most of the time when I'm sitting at home, maybe watching TV, I don't like browsing on my laptop because it's uncomfortable to have to have it in my lap and because it gets hot, and I don't want to browse on my iPhone because, as much as I love it, browsing on the small screen for any extended period of time is a pain. I could really see using this at those times.

I'm sorry but I would not pay $500 for something that I would use when I am just "lounging" around my house because my legs get a little warm when I use my MBP or my iPhone is a little too small. That just seems stupid in my opinion. If you have the money, sure go blow it on a larger screen iPod. But I have a solution to your Macbook Pro getting hot on your lap problem and it wont even cost you a fraction of that $500. In fact I'm sure you own it in your house already. It's called a pillow or a blanket.

 

[powder90]

It's called a pillow or a blanket.

or maybe a Snuggie?

 

[seepel]

I'm sorry but I would not pay $500 for something that I would use when I am just "lounging" around my house because my legs get a little warm when I use my MBP or my iPhone is a little too small. That just seems stupid in my opinion. If you have the money, sure go blow it on a larger screen iPod. But I have a solution to your Macbook Pro getting hot on your lap problem and it wont even cost you a fraction of that $500. In fact I'm sure you own it in your house already. It's called a pillow or a blanket.

I'm sure quite a few of us have spent quite a bit more on their TV set up for lounging around the house (I know I have)

 

[paduck]

I think it actually is for people who already have macbooks and iphones, as it fits right in the middle and fills the noticeable gap between the two.

I think it is an even better fit for someone who has an iPhone and an iMac, but still wants to have something to sit on the couch with. They don't want to drop $1000 on a MacBook, but $499 for the base model (or even $629 to let them do more on the road) is about half.

 

[NT1440]

I think if you are using the iPad a lot - it will get hot too. Esp if you're surfing and using the 3G radio (if you get that model). If you're watching videos - the combination of screen usage and CPU usage is also likely to raise the temp. Just look at what it does in the iphone...

The iphone is tiny. This has alot more surface area to shed heat.

All speculation aside, you and I both don't have a leg to stand on about heat issues, so why the hell did you even bring it up?

 

[samcraig]

The iphone is tiny. This has alot more surface area to shed heat.

All speculation aside, you and I both don't have a leg to stand on about heat issues, so why the hell did you even bring it up?

Was the why the hell really required?

I didn't bring it up. JonBoyDC brought up heat issues.

 

[jtara]

I own a MBP and an iPhone, but I find that most of the time when I'm sitting at home, maybe watching TV, I don't like browsing on my laptop because it's uncomfortable to have to have it in my lap and because it gets hot

LOL

They really didn't push the "green" aspect, but it's significant.

Based on the power supply spec, 1/6 the power consumption of a 13" Macbook.

A point of comparison: I picked up one of those new 4W MR-16 LED spots at Home Depot the other day ($19.95). Read the warning that it's only for use in open fixtures, puzzled over it, and promptly ignored the warning.

Worked in my track fixture, complete with dimming (which the manufacturer didn't weigh-in on one way or the other, but the flood warns no dimmers).

Gingerly put my hand near the fixture, then touched the front of the bulb, then the back of the fixture. Didn't feel any heat at all. Try THAT with a halogen in the same fixture, then tell me how much the emergency-room visit cost...

10W spread out over the size of the iPad, if properly heatsinked, isn't going to create a significant perception of warmth. And that's peak power.

(More off topic: I love the LED MR16's. The price is a win, since regular MR-16 spots are nearly $10 anyway. The color is a bit cold for general lighting, but they do have a warmer version, just not in stock at Home Depot. I can't wait to try the floods in framing projectors for lighting artwork. The cold color is perfect. Got the spot lighting an orchid, it looks boo-ti-ful!)

 

[G4R2]

The demographic for this device is the large number of laptop owners who don't really need a laptop.

The fact is that laptops, for a large number of consumers, is not really the ideal device to provide them with the functions that they purchased it for. The primary appeal of a laptop, for this group of users, isn't power or the ability to crunch a spreadsheet, write a novel, edit a movie, or the myriad other higher end functions that laptops can perform. Instead, it's simply the portability of the laptop form factor.

The strengths of the tablet form factor are closely aligned to this market segment. Tablets are devices that are not ideal for typing intensive functions. They are, being display centric, well suited for content delivery. That's what a large portion of laptop owners crank open their laptops for, not to enter data but to view it.

And given the choice between a well engineered, instant on tablet with a decent UI and a laptop a lot of people may very choose the former over the latter.

Also, while I'm skeptical of the advantages of having an app such as Pages on this device I do think that spreadsheet data entry should be pretty decent for a number of circumstances.

 

[Dr.Buzz]

The demographic for this device is the large number of laptop owners who don't really need a laptop.

The fact is that laptops, for a large number of consumers, is not really the ideal device to provide them with the functions that they purchased it for. The primary appeal of a laptop, for this group of users, isn't power or the ability to crunch a spreadsheet, write a novel, edit a movie, or the myriad other higher end functions that laptops can perform. Instead, it's simply the portability of the laptop form factor.

Well Said, this has been my opinion from the very start. This is the best netbook ever, instant on and visually beautiful UI. I don't work from home, so my magic three are iphone, iPad, iMac. Thanks, but I don't need a laptop.

I do hope a 3rd party makes a good pen tool though, would be fun to sketchbook pro on this thing anywhere.

 

[ARF900]

I hope the 4.0 is a completely new and refreshed iphone OS, Android 2.0 blows iphone 3 and the 3GS clear out of the water in basically every category except for the app store. And this thing has me seriously concerned that by 2011 I will be a droid owner. Apple would not demo a product with a temporary OS, that is just foolish, yet they wouldnt release a new product then release another, cheaper, smaller product with a more advance OS.

I am gravely concerned at the future of apples mobile department.

 

[JonboyDC]

I'm sorry but I would not pay $500 for something that I would use when I am just "lounging" around my house because my legs get a little warm when I use my MBP or my iPhone is a little too small. That just seems stupid in my opinion. If you have the money, sure go blow it on a larger screen iPod. But I have a solution to your Macbook Pro getting hot on your lap problem and it wont even cost you a fraction of that $500. In fact I'm sure you own it in your house already. It's called a pillow or a blanket.

It would also save me from having to carry three or four books every time I go on a trip. And I'm hoping I'll be able to get some of the legal books I use in my work, giving me an easy (and searchable) way to have that material at my fingertips when I'm not sitting at my desk. And I'm optimistic that I'll be able to get magazines on it. And I'm guessing developers will come up with several other functions that will make my life and work easier.

 

[GeekGirl*]

I have my nexus one I can just about live with only that, I have a new white macbook all i do is surf and email, so I am looking forward to selling my MB and getting a iPad.

 

[mantan]

The demographic for this device is the large number of laptop owners who don't really need a laptop.

The fact is that laptops, for a large number of consumers, is not really the ideal device to provide them with the functions that they purchased it for. The primary appeal of a laptop, for this group of users, isn't power or the ability to crunch a spreadsheet, write a novel, edit a movie, or the myriad other higher end functions that laptops can perform. Instead, it's simply the portability of the laptop form factor.

The strengths of the tablet form factor are closely aligned to this market segment. Tablets are devices that are not ideal for typing intensive functions. They are, being display centric, well suited for content delivery. That's what a large portion of laptop owners crank open their laptops for, not to enter data but to view it.

And given the choice between a well engineered, instant on tablet with a decent UI and a laptop a lot of people may very choose the former over the latter.

Also, while I'm skeptical of the advantages of having an app such as Pages on this device I do think that spreadsheet data entry should be pretty decent for a number of circumstances.

I couldn't agree more.

I think the challenge with a board like this is it is populated by a very tech savvy group that wouldn't see the value in this device.

I think of the target demo as more being people like my mother or my wife. Both of them recently got laptops. Neither of them truly need the processing power and flexibility of a laptop. They want to surf the web, read e-mail, listen to music, etc. But they want to do it from the couch, bedroom ,etc.

IMO, the problem with the iPad is timing. From a market perspective, it seems a bit overpriced. With PC laptops costing $500, the convenience/usability/stability of the iPad doesn't outweigh the fact that it costs more. Yeah, compared to a Mac laptop or computer it's a fantastic deal. But compared to a $500 Toshiba/Dell/HP, the value proposition isn't so great.

If the price was the same as a netbook (~$200-$300), it would be a lot more appealing.

 

[dukebound85]

The iphone is tiny. This has alot more surface area to shed heat.

All speculation aside, you and I both don't have a leg to stand on about heat issues, so why the hell did you even bring it up?

Please no profanity man

 

[Phrasikleia]

I don't see the iPad as a great living room device for me because the living room isn't all that far from my home office, where I have a nice big IPS display, a big mechanical keyboard, my favorite mouse, computer speakers, and most importantly, a great Mac that can multitask. I think the screen on the iPad would start to seem small rather quickly knowing that a much more full experience can be had a few rooms down the hall.