The Apple iPad Factor

The Apple iPad Factor
February 1, 2010
By: Eric Gakstatter

Last month, I wrote about the PDA vs. Tablet war. The tablet computer
has been around for a long time and struggled to gain widespread
acceptance. I also wrote about how 2010 will be a decisive year for the
tablet computer.

I guess my timing was right: with the introduction of the Apple iPad
last week, 2010 sure has started out with a bang! Admittedly, we’ve
known about the iPad for awhile and I even mentioned it in the PDA vs.
Tablet column, but didn’t expect the hype to appear for another month or so.

The iPad might turn out to be a technology that transforms the
geospatial industry. The iPhone has made inroads into geospatial, but
the iPad is another story altogether primarily because it’s not a
mutually exclusive proposition. For example, I’m not an iPhone user and
won’t be in the foreseeable future. This is not because I dislike the
iPhone. On the contrary, I might like to have one. But all my family
phones (parents, kids, spouse) are all under my Sprint account. The pain
to change is too great.

The iPad is a different story. Its primary function is not a phone. I
could see myself purchasing an iPad, especially at $500-600. I’d use it
not only as a digital notebook, but also as a mobile GIS device.

For the rest of the story see:
http://www.gpsworld.com/gis/gss-weekly/the-apple-ipad-factor-9476?print=1

Sam Wormley wrote:



no gps, no usb, what a waste !

I bought the Marco Polo DVD, to play with navit and other navigation
software, but it will work better with netbook than with this tablet ...


"sticky fingers"


--
--
What's on Shortwave guide: choose an hour, go!
http://shortwave.tk
700+ Radio Stations on SW http://swstations.tk
300+ languages on SW http://radiolanguages.tk