Have You Joined the iPad Bandwagon Yet?

Understanding Our Fascination with the iPad & Looking into Its Future Use in Our Daily Lives

By Andi Kusuri, Managing Editor

“While innovation and technological ingenuity has been important to Apple’s success, so has its ability to design its products from the perspective of the customer, not just from the perspective of the technological experts which it employs. And it seems to be paying off.”

The tablet market came to life in 2010 with the release of the iPad.

A presumptuous statement?  Perhaps, but it is difficult for anyone to dispute the fact that the iPad has become the face of the tablet market. Apple sold approximately 3 million units within 80 days of the release of the first iPad.

The iPad 2 has also been successful, despite limited modifications from its predecessor. Apple’s iOS accounted for 83.9% of worldwide sales of media tablets in 2010, and it is expected to continue to dominate the table market through 2015, owning over 50% of the market for the next three years. The recent launch of the Blackberry Playbook failed to slow down Apple’s momentum. The less-than-stellar reviews have led to a two-percent dip in RIM’s share price upon the release of the Playbook.

Why has the iPad been so successful? Well, it undoubtedly has its limitations. The iPad is relatively heavy when compared to devices such as the Kindle. It lacks a built-in camera, there is no flash support, and it lacks a SD Card slot and USB ports. The latter is particularly troublesome because it requires a user to constantly sync their iPad when editing and updating documents. Apple could also still add significantly more memory to increase system performance.

Released earlier this year, iPad 2, aside from being noticeable lighter, did offer some improvements such as increased system performance and a built-in camera, yet it still failed to address the key problems people have with the iPad in general.

Even so, what was once criticized as being simply an experimentation and side-project for Jobs and Apple has proven to be a resounding success: the iPad is here to stay, at least in the near future.  It’s not hard to see why many people are obsessed with the iPad. It has an easy interface, which is characteristic of many of Apple’s products; uncomplicated operations, relatively light weight; and long battery life. Sure, there are many competitors who offer—if not, in some facets, superior—products. But, at the end of the day, people want a simple experience, and Apple is known for providing just that.

Technological advances have experienced exponential growth, but perhaps what has been lacking is a focus on customer needs. While innovation and technological ingenuity has been important to Apple’s success, so has its ability to design its products from the perspective of the customer, not just from the perspective of the technological experts which it employs. And it seems to be paying off.

Also, the iPad is blurring the line between smart-phones and laptops, as well as directly challenging netbooks. Mikako Kitagawa, a Gartner analyst, points out that hype around media tablets has led consumers to take a wait-and-see approach to computer purchases. The iPad may not yet be at the point of replacing netbooks entirely, but it is arguably closer than most would expect.