Yup, I joined the iPad club this weekend. I can't say I thought I would ever be "one of those people" who lines up for an Apple product, but consider this a confession. The timing worked out well for me - just after work - and here in Duncan, BC there weren't the kinds of lines that may have been found in bigger cities. Still - it was impressive to have a few units here in our sleepy little town on launch day.
So - what do I think of it?
Actually it really is pretty fantastic. There are lots of things to like about it, but I'll limit myself here to my top 3 things.
1. It feels fast.
It does. You only have to try it for 30 seconds to notice how quickly webpages render, how fast apps switch, how effortless it is to flick content around the screen. (thanks to the whole touch thing and inertial-scrolling) Anyone I have shown it to remarks on this almost as soon as they touch it.
2. It's more sociable.
Something about it lying flat on the kitchen counter, or the table - lets others see what you're looking up, so that everyone has an interest in it. Not having everyone "crowd around your laptop" is SO much better.
3. You can curl up on the couch with it.
This is another reason it's sociable. It feels natural to curl up on the couch with your significant other and look at things on it together. No more jiggering with a laptop & keyboard. It's just a screen, and that's all it needs to be.
4 - Ok one more - Garageband is fantastic. Even I can strum chords on a "guitar," and actually sound pretty passable. If you don't know what I'm talking about - watch the 10 minute demo in the apple keynote starting at the 47 minute mark.
I don't think I can overstate how touch opens up so many new possibilities. After all - Apple ushered in a new paradigm for computing with the mouse & the macintosh back in the 80s, and now I think Steve Jobs has made the next paradigm - touch computing - his magnum opus.