James A. Tulli

Woke today to the sinking feeling of computer issues.  Laptop powers on, no display, just 17 inches of quiet blackness, trip to the Apple store required.  Luckily, a quick bit of research tips me to the fact that NVidia had a large issue with graphics processors in this model of Macbook Pro.

My warranty long expired, I arrive at the Apple Store fully ready to accept the fact that my motherboard is shot and needs to be replaced.  In a machine like this, probably a $500+ endeavor.

Mac Genius greets me right on time for my appointment which I made last night from my iPhone sitting on the couch.  He’s quick to dive in, a few key strokes with a modified iPod nano attached to my laptop and he has the verdict.

Indeed, my motherboard needs to be replaced, and Apple will do so in 2-3 days, board isn’t stocked at the store, and it will cost me nothing.  Yes, nothing at all.  You see, Apple, regardless of warranty expiration stands behind their product and yet again delivers the kind of Customer Service other computer makers should strive to match.  Kudos Apple and thanks yet again!

Without a doubt, Apple’s iPad will be a game changer as a mobile device.  Will it eliminate Kindle?  No.  Will it replace all Netbooks?  No.  Will it replace laptops and smart phones?  No.  What it will do is create a new platform for applications that has not existed until now.  Plain and simple the success of the iPad will come from the tsunami of Apps that will be written for the device and take Apple’s App Store from outstanding to awe-inspiring.  Where the iPhone OS unlocked the potential for incredible mobile applications, iPad will take that software development to new heights.  Here’s how:

Imagine waking in the morning, showered, dressed, coffee brewed, breakfast ready.  The typical person’s morning might include a newspaper, TV on a favorite financial or news channel and laptop open to check email, Facebook, Twitter, from overnight.  Enter the iPad.  Instead of 3 devices (TV remote, laptop, smartphone) and a paper you have a single device with all those things in one.  Imagine a news site which not only displays the news but also streams a live feed from the TV station you normally watch.  A CNBC, Bloomberg, or Fox News app that does this is not out of the question on this platform.  Now imagine you’d rather just watch your HDTV and read The New York Times on your iPad.  Using one of the many Universal Remote apps developed in the App Store you turn on your TV from your iPad, change the channel, set a Tivo recording for tonight, and then return to the Times app for the days headlines.  All possible because of this platform.

The work day begins and today you find yourself on the road instead of in the office.  It just so happens you needed a presentation for your trip but accidentally forgot that you saved it to your work PC desktop and not on your Sharepoint site where you could have downloaded it.  Using another great find in the App Store, and the beautiful 9.7″ IPS screen, you’re connected to and controlling your office PC in seconds and posting your presentation to Sharepoint or emailing it to your iPad.  Yes, Windows users will love iPad too.  With your presentation now downloaded and available you give your presentation using the iPad and the Pages/iPad compatible bluetooth remote you bought while attached to the customer’s projector over WiFi.  No laptop necessary, no cords, no hassles.  On the ride back to the office a call comes in, not to your mobile phone, but through 3G enabled Skype on your iPad, and with bluetooth enabled your car’s handsfree system takes over and you make plans for the evening.  All while your iPad never leaves your briefcase.

I’ve illustrated only a few concepts that I think will become a quick reality with this amazing new device and as you can see when you really start think about the possibilities it becomes clear the iPad will fit into everyone’s life.  While the Kindle is great for eBook junkies, and the netbook is the great cheap alternative to a laptop, the iPad will not only offer comparable experiences to each of those devices but the iPhone OS platform will only limit what’s possible to the designer’s imagination.