It’s finally here. The ultimate device that we’ve all been waiting for, right?
The iPad is probably the most controversial and polarizing piece of consumer technology to date. Never has anything been hyped this much before its announcement - not the iPod, not even the iPhone. And with such a monumental build up, shattered expectations could only follow.
All this, and so few have even touched this thing.
I have to admit, when I saw Steve Jobs unveil the same over-sized iTouch that all the Photoshop retouchers had predicted with such a lack of imagination, I was disappointed. We expect more from Apple. I mean, don’t I already have the Internet in my had with my iTouch?
It all really clicked for me, however, when Steve played the promo video - seeing the device on the coffee table and on the couch, watching people having a shared experience. I really think Apple has reinvented the computing experience here. Surely they have on the UI, but much much more on the where and how we interact with the computer. Apple has un-glued us from our desks, un-cramped our hands from the laptop, and shown us how the computer can more seamlessly and naturally be integrated into our home.
And man are we pissed. Why do so many people want this thing to fail? We all look to Apple to innovate, and when they do we’re criticizing them for going too far (or not far enough if you ask others) - “it does too much”, “it doesn’t do enough”.
All of us who live in this (tech) world tend to forget that using a computer is not a pleasurable experience for the average person - Macs included. The iPad just might change that. Apple’s talent is in stripping away the features, not adding them. Do fewer things, but do them right. That was the magic of iPhone 1.0.
There’s a lot of debate over how the public will perceive needing a device like this. Many are calling it a luxury device. Need is a relative and ever-changing thing though. At what point did you realize you needed a smartphone, or a netbook, or a Kindle, or an mp3 player? I distinctly remember turning the corner on the Kindle - going from “that’s too expensive” to “that would make my life easier and more enjoyable”. Many said the Kindle would never succeed - it’s too expensive and it only does one thing. I was one of those people. Turns out we were wrong.
But rather than ramble on further ... My thoughts on all this are probably best summarized in a response I posted on a friend’s blog - which I’ve re-posted below. It’s probably best to read his post first. He’s skeptical, I’m optimistic. We’ve bet a bottle on it.
Microsoft researcher Johnny Chung Lee hacks the Wii Remote to create this very cool VR prototype.
There’s speculation that Apple is working on displays to bring this technology to your desktop. I could see this working great for games, but, with the amount of times I shift my position while in front of my computer, I’d find this disorienting in a desktop environment.
You can check out more of Johnny’s Wii hacks at his blog.
For years we’ve been hearing about the promise of smart pen technology, but it has yet to really catch on. My inner-geek loved watching the video above, yet I’m still very skeptical that this technology will reach the masses. The biggest hurdle in my opinion is the need for specially coded paper. The other is the rise of the smartphone.
Beyond the presented applications to academia and the translation functionality, the commercial examples here are weak.
I still haven’t given up on these buggers - just don’t think they’ve nailed it yet.
Silently on the night of March 1st, 2008, AOL officially ended its support of the Netscape web browser. I somehow randomly ended up at the page posted to announce this. While bloated kludgy and buggy in its later days, Netscape still managed to eek out a final innovation - tabbed browsing. While not perfect, we’re still trying to create something that works better.
I have to admit, when I saw that logo of the N stepping over the horizon line it brought back many great memories and feelings of those early days of exploration and discovery. All of the sudden the world had opened up. There was this electricity, a sense of hope and wonder that you’d start your with as you sat behind your computer. Sipping your coffee, you’d type in that first url of the day and watch the shooting stars blaze past the N.
This Ad Age video talks about how advertisers are now setting their sights on using video game engines to create real-time interactive spots.
Zoic Studios recently created one of said spots for the release of Kill Zone 2 that was broadcasted on the Sony Playstation Network. Playstation viewers were able to manipulate camera angles, view uncomposited layers, and hear commentary - all rendered in real-time.
Technologically speaking, this is huge. How effective is the execution though? Visually, it doesn’t quite do it for me. And I’d imagine that for an audience that spends a lot of time “living” in these virtual worlds, their reaction was probably the same.
That said, this is an early breakthrough. I definitely think there’s potential in the medium. Especially when you think of this stuff coupled with Microsoft’s Project Natal technology. And that includes non-game consumer products. For instance, imagine being able to “get inside” a car and zoom into the dashboard on your HD TV.
It was interesting to hear Zoic co-founder Loni Peristere talk about the creation process. He believes, and I agree, that soon the platforms for creating these experiences will be more in the hands of storytellers than technologists. The technology will be far enough along that creatives can pull from vast digital libraries.
There’s also sure to be ground-level democratized innovation on this platform as the tools become commonplace.
Silently on the night of March 1st, 2008, AOL officially ended its support of the Netscape web browser. I somehow randomly ended up at the 