The Official Tablet Bitter Disappointment Thread
Just getting a head start. 
No matter what Apple releases tomorrow morning, there will be a sizable contingent that consider it a complete and utter failure. Most bitter of these will be the folks that perceive it as being "oh so close" to exactly what they wanted, but for some number of baffling Apple decisions to "cripple" it.
So I reckon I'd get a thread started now, just to save time.
By my figuring, the possible points of dismay will be:
-- Doesn't run "full OS X" and is therefore "just a big iPod Touch"
-- No OLED screen (we'll just call those first two "The Troubles" in honor of Ireland)
-- Lack of this or that port, or any at all outside of a headphone jack and a dock connector
-- Fails to deliver on various rumored subscription services
-- Can't run Final Cut Pro, Aperture, Pro Tools, or various processor intensive Big Apps
-- Exclusive cell service via AT&T, aka "Oh God I hate them so much my head just exploded"
-- Doesn't do "video chat" out of the box
-- And, of course, the perennial: the pricing is insane and relegates the thing to niche status
I'd put money on the first two, wouldn't be at all surprised to see the next three, have no idea about the rest.
However, none of that distresses me, particularly, because I expect the all-over experience of the thing to be pretty compelling, and for it to be really, really good at what it's designed to do. I'll be pleasantly surprised if its priced aggressively with an eye towards really shaking up the industry.
No matter what Apple releases tomorrow morning, there will be a sizable contingent that consider it a complete and utter failure. Most bitter of these will be the folks that perceive it as being "oh so close" to exactly what they wanted, but for some number of baffling Apple decisions to "cripple" it.
So I reckon I'd get a thread started now, just to save time.
By my figuring, the possible points of dismay will be:
-- Doesn't run "full OS X" and is therefore "just a big iPod Touch"
-- No OLED screen (we'll just call those first two "The Troubles" in honor of Ireland)
-- Lack of this or that port, or any at all outside of a headphone jack and a dock connector
-- Fails to deliver on various rumored subscription services
-- Can't run Final Cut Pro, Aperture, Pro Tools, or various processor intensive Big Apps
-- Exclusive cell service via AT&T, aka "Oh God I hate them so much my head just exploded"
-- Doesn't do "video chat" out of the box
-- And, of course, the perennial: the pricing is insane and relegates the thing to niche status
I'd put money on the first two, wouldn't be at all surprised to see the next three, have no idea about the rest.
However, none of that distresses me, particularly, because I expect the all-over experience of the thing to be pretty compelling, and for it to be really, really good at what it's designed to do. I'll be pleasantly surprised if its priced aggressively with an eye towards really shaking up the industry.
Comments
- Anger
- Disillusionment
- Depression
- Frustration
- Distain
- Ennui
- Gloom
- Dejection
And of course, the big one:What do you mean I can surf the net and text and drive at the same time? No multitasking? FAIL!
It is sooooooooooo underpowered, and 53 hours of battery life, good grief! Who can use that? Why didn't they put a reactor in it?
It's sooooooo fugly!
It doesn't have FireWire 800. I'll sit this toy out.
No full-sized keyboard! How do they expect you to write anything on that!
Only 120 GB? I want my entire collection of 50 gazillion videos that I never watch on it at all times. And my entire 50 billion songs. Useless.
My desk can process stuff faster than that!
My Kindle is still alive and kicking... so much for the so-called Kindle-Killer!
Apple's lame attempt to catch up to the Windozerblower mobile virus incubators.
Who did they design that thing for? It doesn't satisfy MY very narrow set of needs. Fail!
The Keynote delayed the first episode of Lost; really bad timing on Apple's part. Oh, wait... no it didn't. Well, anyway, it took up a lot of bandwidth that could have been dedicated to Lost.
How do they expect you to carry it? In a man bag? Fail!
For 200 bucks more you can get a full computer with 23 USB ports, and more bulk and weight to boot.
Nobody writes standing up!
You can't do any real work with that. I don't do ay work anyway, but because it can't run 325 apps at the same time... FAIL!
It doesn't run Windozerblows 72? Deal-breaker.
It's not a REAL notebook.
I could buy 2 Windozerblowser ultra-portables for that much, and spend the next two years keeping them virus free!
I already have an iPhone and a MacBook Pro... why in the heck would I want something that is better than an iPhone and easier to carry around than my MBP when I need horsepower to type brainless Twitter chirps? I! I!! I!!! I!!!! There aren't any other consumers in the world. Fail!
Failnote!
No matter what Apple releases tomorrow morning, there will be a sizable contingent that consider it a complete and utter failure. Most bitter of these will be the folks that perceive it as being "oh so close" to exactly what they wanted, but for some number of baffling Apple decisions to "cripple" it.
People can only judge failure on their own personal level. If an individual decides a product doesn't do what they want then it has failed in its ability to make the sale to that individual. I'm going to go with i) all of the above regarding your list
a) Doesn't run "full OS X" and is therefore "just a big iPod Touch"
Assume ARM processors, which likely means no OS X apps other than the ones Apple bundles. I have a Mac and an iphone but don't use Apple's iapps so why would I buy it? Assuming the same price as a portable ipod, why buy a slate instead?
b) No OLED screen (we'll just call those first two "The Troubles" in honor of Ireland)
Too expensive but nice. As long as the screen is good quality like the newest laptops, it should be ok. iphone quality and it's poor.
c) Lack of this or that port, or any at all outside of a headphone jack and a dock connector
I want USB for syncing mobiles assuming the slate is the controlling device also for mouse/keyboard use when desired.
d) Fails to deliver on various rumored subscription services
Content will come regardless - Stanza for iphone is an example. This shouldn't be a problem but Apple would do well to take over control. Stanza purchases are a pain.
e) Can't run Final Cut Pro, Aperture, Pro Tools, or various processor intensive Big Apps
That misses the point about OS X x86 compatibility, plus they aren't all heavily processor intensive all the time. Final Cut is very much non-processor intensive when editing in intra-frame codecs. Think of a film director on location previewing some footage. It can be a hardware accelerated decoding. Photographers would love a slate to drop photos onto on location and slide through them and apply basic corrections to know if they need to reshoot.
f) Exclusive cell service via AT&T, aka "Oh God I hate them so much my head just exploded"
As long as they are optional, it's ok. Bluetooth iphone tethering is another route they go down.
g) Doesn't do "video chat" out of the box
It must... and it will because it must.
h) And, of course, the perennial: the pricing is insane and relegates the thing to niche status
It's always higher priced. At least if it's like a netbook, it's worth it because it's like getting a cheaper Macbook. It is to the Macbook what the Mini is to the iMac. Slower, cheaper and more versatile.
There was a gap in the laptop lineup between the Macbook and MBP for the MBA. There was a gap below the iMac for the Mini.
Right now, there's a big gap between the ipod touch ($399) and Macbook ($999). People have been trying to fill it with OS X netbooks ($299-399). What's really needed though is for Apple to do it right. $699 is right in the middle and is no way a good price for a cut down model but still acceptable for a netbook device. I'm hoping more $599 tops.
However, none of that distresses me, particularly, because I expect the all-over experience of the thing to be pretty compelling, and for it to be really, really good at what it's designed to do. I'll be pleasantly surprised if its priced aggressively with an eye towards really shaking up the industry.
So is the iphone and it's an amazing device but I don't use it as much as I feel I should due to the price simply because there's nothing to use it for with the apps on offer. Occasionally something comes along that I use it for an hour or so a day but it loses appeal quickly. The one use that I've found that I want to use it for is reading ebooks with Stanza. I've even purchased books from the online store (over 3G). Switch to night-time mode and it's easy on the eyes and lasts a while.
That's one less use I don't need a big ipod for. What I do need is a device I can sit on the sofa with a sort out my photos and music and it can't be a slave device to my main computer. It doesn't need to be a Mac to do that but it's easier on Apple if it is.
Apple is artificially tying the battery to the proprietary iTablet hardware. This is monopolistic, anti-competitive behaviour and is probably illegal under the Sherman Tank Act. It is definitely illegal in my country!
IANAL but I bloody know what I'm talking about.
Points for creativity!
...we'll just call those first two "The Troubles" in honor of Ireland...
oh so clever!
I'm not saying I won't buy it with iPhone OS, but I so HOPE for a "real" OSX
I could care less about the type of screen (well... it's gotta be color, and I don't want a CRT
Ports also don't matter... I get the impression it's going to be meant to sync with another "real" computer so 802.11n would work fine for that. The whole idea of a tablet is to be portable... why would I want to plug crap into it? (ok... maybe a single USB for downloading from a camera? (of course an integrated SD slot would work fine for that too.)
Why can't I replace the battery?
Apple is artificially tying the battery to the proprietary iTablet hardware. This is monopolistic, anti-competitive behaviour and is probably illegal under the Sherman Tank Act. It is definitely illegal in my country!
IANAL but I bloody know what I'm talking about.
Oh yeah, totally forgot about the non-usable replaceable battery, that's got to go on the list. Although I wonder if anyone really it expects anything different.
While I'm thinking about it, we should add "Doesn't do Flash."
*Watch CNBC video if you haven't
HA! Great thread. Let's keep the whining strong and focused people.
Thought you'd like it!
If I sit on it by accident and it breaks, EPIC FAIL! Let me see if I find a pic for that.
I forgot to take it out of my shorts before diving into the pool... It's not waterproof? It's not idiot proof? FAIL!
I forgot to take it out of my shorts before diving into the pool... It's not waterproof? It's not idiot proof? FAIL!
If you can fit it into your shorts you're too fat to fit the pool.
Only 120 GB? I want my entire collection of 50 gazillion videos that I never watch on it at all times. And my entire 50 billion songs. Useless.
120GB is might big enough...but 128GB SSD for a $700 device? I'm thinking that's not likely as flash. If it is a HDD I would expect 160GB like the classic. Still a tad small but good enough for photo and movie storage for a trip.
Hmmm...maybe they'll include a SDHC slot. Kinda make sense for camera stuff.
Yah yah...this is a sarcastic thread not intended for actual discussion. But seriously, pick your sarcasm targets a little better too.
Just getting a head start.
-- Doesn't run "full OS X" and is therefore "just a big iPod Touch"
.
If it's reasonably affordable and decently powerful, I'll look forward to the day when I can hack it and drop linux on it :-), solving most of the issues in one swing!
No mention of a camera during the hardware rundown! That's actually a bummer!
It would be a little unwieldy to take photos with unless the camera twisted like the one on the Sony Clie, but that isn't Apple's style.
You can import directly from your digital camera, though, with an adapter.
I like the case they have for it that turns into a stand.
http://www.apple.com/ipad/design/