Tech | January 27, 2010 | 7 comments

8 Things that suck about the iPad

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iamfree
Big, Ugly Bezel
Have you seen the bezel on this thing?! It's huge! I know you don't want to accidentally input a command when your thumb is holding it, but come on.

No Multitasking
This is a backbreaker. If this is supposed to be a replacement for netbooks, how can it possibly not have multitasking? Are you saying I can't listen to Pandora while writing a document? I can't have my Twitter app open at the same time as my browser? I can't have AIM open at the same time as my email? Are you kidding me? This alone guarantees that I will not buy this product.

No Cameras
No front facing camera is one thing. But no back facing camera either? Why the hell not? I can't imagine what the downside was for including at least one camera. Could this thing not handle video iChat?

Touch Keyboard
So much for Apple revolutionizing tablet inputs; this is the same big, ugly touchscreen keyboard we've seen on other tablets, and unless you're lying on the couch with your knees propping it up, it'll be awkward to use.

No HDMI Out
Want to watch those nice HD videos you downloaded from iTunes on your TV? Too damned bad! If you were truly loyal, you'd just buy an AppleTV already.

The Name iPad
Get ready for Maxi pad jokes, and lots of 'em!

No Flash
No Flash is annoying but not a dealbreaker on the iPhone and iPod Touch. On something that's supposed to be closer to a netbook or laptop? It will leave huge, gaping holes in websites. I hope you don't care about streaming video! God knows not many casual internet users do. Oh wait, nevermind, they all do.

Adapters, Adapters, Adapters
So much for those smooth lines. If you want to plug anything into this, such as a digital camera, you need all sorts of ugly adapters. You need an adapter for USB for god's sake.

Update: Why stop at 8? Here are more things we are discovering that suck about the iPad.

It's Not Widescreen
Widescreen movies look lousy on this thing thanks to its 4:3 screen, according to Blam, who checked out some of Star Trek on one. It's like owning a 4:3 TV all over again!

Doesn't Support T-Mobile 3G
Sure, it's "unlocked." But it won't work on T-Mobile, and it uses microSIMs that literally no one else uses.

A Closed App Ecosystem
The iPad only runs apps from the App Store. The same App Store that is notorious for banning apps for no real reason, such as Google Voice. Sure, netbooks might not have touchscreens, but you can install whatever software you'd like on them. Want to run a different browser on your iPad? Too bad!
  1. groups:
    Tech,   books
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    Media ipad Independent Tablet 7 more
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7 comments // 8 Things that suck about the iPad

  • nocturnus9
    • 0
      nocturnus9  
    • Image
    • I am looking forward to buying this. It sounds like you have the iPad confused with a non-existent apple netbook. Apple is not interested in cannibalizing their laptops. This is a ePub reader. They developed this to compete with the Kindle. If you are interested in this device failing, keep people from trying it out in the apple store.

      Yes the App store is closed, If you ever downloaded shareware without paying for the registration, you are the reason why so many programmers are coding in Apple's Walled Garden.

      How long before Marvel (a Disney subsidiary) starts releasing ePub graphic novels?

      This is the same company that gave us a workable DTP solution; a means of legally purchasing music; tools for producing media content with little overhead (ever check out the pod-casting tab in iTunes); and now a means of getting published without ever seeing a, "Dummy Contract."

      The momentum has already started and this. The hedges in the walled garden just got taller. I will not drink the hater-aid. I am waiting for the share menu in iWork to add the option to publish to the iBook store in ePub and make some money off this.

      http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Epub

    • 2 years ago
  • covelogibbs
  • paddyhonan
  • paddyhonan
  • laserdog
    • 0
      laserdog  
    • A backlit screen is a strange feature on an e-book reader.

      I'm sure it'll be a big success, and people will by a ton of them, and there will be commercials where the flashy color ipad is next to the boring black and white e-ink kindle.

      However, once someone tries to sit in a chair and actually *read* something on them their eyes are going to hurt in a way that doesn't really happen with the kindle.

      Of course, by then maybe the next gen ipad will be out, with a softer OLED screen or something that mitigates the issue.

      As someone who has been researching e-book readers for awhile, I'm highly skeptical.

    • 2 years ago
  • ZeldaMasterZapp
  • iamfree
    • 0
      iamfree  
    • Well,I won't lie...when i 1st heard about a iphone-tablet like pc,i was stoked.I had just gotten my 1st iphone 3g and everyday it amazed with something new.About a year later this piece of crap comes out and I'm shocked to see how crappy it really is...now lets see if they pushup release of the iphone 4g

    • 2 years ago
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