Today Apple finally unveiled its new iPad tablet PC (“price starting at $499″).
“What this device does is extraordinary,” Jobs said. “It is the best browsing experience you’ve ever had. … It’s unbelievably great … way better than a laptop. Way better than a smartphone.”
The computer will act as a sort of missing link between the two.
From a functionality perspective the iPad falls somewhere in between being a smartphone and a full blown notebook PC, but appears to mostly be intended as a fancy touchscreen Internet browsing device (a “cool” netbook); a super-sized iPhone.
Because of its lack of a real keyboard, I’m skeptical that it can’t be “way better than a laptop” as Jobs states, although I won’t dispute his other claims outright.
I’m going to compare its pricing to other devices it’s advertised to replace.
Netbooks start at around $199 from wireless providers with an accompanying 3G mobile broadband plan.
An iPhone smartphone starts at $199, and so far the iPad is being advertised to do what the iPhone does, albeit with a larger screen. It even runs apps written for the iPhone and iPod.
Another one of the iPad’s functions is to serve an an ebook reader with iBooks to compete with devices like the Amazon Kindle.
The Kindle recently had a price drop and now sells for $259.
The iPad can also serve as a media player.
Thus the $499 starting price for the iPad seems to be reasonable considering the costs of netbooks, ebook readers like the Kindle and smartphones like the iPhone. At the very least the iPad could replace both a netbook and ebook reader which could justify the higher cost.
But Apple has taken a page from the airline baggage additonal fee pricing scheme, because you actually only get a crippled iPad for $499, because that price doesn’t include 3G hardware.
That means no unfettered mobile broadband with the basic iPad device; you’d have to count on WiFi to use the iPad for a lot of its functionality.
An iPhone, one of the devices the iPad functionality is mimicking, would be crippled without 3G hardware. I can’t imagine who would even consider buying a portable network device like this sans 3G.
But to get 3G on the iPad will cost an extra $130.
So a fully functional iPad with 3G (included on the iPhone) actually starts at $629.
That’s putting it into the price range of a notebook/laptop computer. But without a real keyboard I can’t imagine that it can replace a laptop computer, as it’s not going to appeal to those who do a lot of typing.
Its audience is going to be those can afford an overpriced stylish portable media player, netbook and ebook reader, and most importantly are willing to carry around something too big to fit into a pocket.
That’s one of the principle drawbacks of devices like this with larger displays. If you don’t want to carry around a magazine sized book, you won’t want to lug the iPad around either, no matter how light or thin it is. Would you really carry something this big around everywhere you go?
Part of what makes smartphones like the iPhone popular is because of all the things they can do while still being something you can carry anywhere. The iPad misses that point completely.
Regardless it’s disingenuous for Apple to price the iPad the way they have; I think the price for the iPad (with 3G) is going to have to drop below $500 at the most to be successful, or this thing is going to go the way of the Apple Newton.
I think Apple knows this too, which is part of why they have they misleading pricing structure.
But I also won’t underestimate the power of Apple marketing and its fanbase.
