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Apple launched their much talked about tablet yesterday, iPad.  As I’m sure most of you know, Nicole and I are big fans of Apple products and had been reading the rumors of the fabled device over the past 6 months, eagerly anticipating the launch of the next hot gadget.  While I’d very much been considering building a hackintosh netbook leading up to yesterday, I kept holding out to see if Apple could deliver a comparable experience in an official Apple product.  Did they deliver?  Read on to find out.

Before I launch into what’s holding me back from running out to grab an iPad in a couple of months at launch, let’s take a look at the raw specs-

iPad is a tablet with a 9.7″ screen, integrated microphone and speaker, weighing in at a mere 1.5 pounds.  The screen features capacitive multitouch powered by a custom-built CPU from Apple, the A4 (1GHz).  Storage capacity is either 16, 32, or 64GB. As for connectivity, the iPad boasts integrated WiFi, Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR and optional 3G connectivity should you want to sign up for a data plan with AT&T. There is also a 30-pin dock connector and Apple projects over a month of standby time with an average of 10 hours of battery life.

All of this starts at $499, though if you got the 64GB, 3G-enabled version you’ll be looking to spend over $800.

So what does this all amount to?  Effectively an over-sized iPod Touch.  Yes, there are some differences.  For example, Apple has overhauled their default applications to take advantage of the extended screen real estate and many of them (the Calendar in particular) look quite good!  Also, the iBooks application which allows you to purchase books online and have them immediately displayed on a very slick looking digital bookshelf the Kindle look decidedly bland.

However, before I can throw my support behind this product, I need to examine who it’s intended for and what market it’s attempting to conquer.  The answer is a difficult one, as Apple appears to be defining this new market as the middle ground between the netbook and the mobile phone.  However, with their emphasis on iBooks now, they’re clearly looking to make headway in the e-reader market as well. Trying to conquer all of these at once with the iPad is an undertaking indeed.

At first glance their all-in-oneder device looks impressive, though there are some glaring caveats that I just can’t shake at present.  Chief among them is again the locked-down nature of the platform. Apple claims nearly all of the apps for the iPhone will work on the iPad, it’s still crippled in terms of serving as a legitimate computing platform.  If Apple says you can put an app on there, great!  If you want software that isn’t approved though, you’re out of luck (unless of course, you’re into jailbreaking).

Perhaps more than just the locked out software base, the internet’s cries for full-blown multitasking on Apple’s family of touch-based devices have again fallen on deaf ears.  Could battery life be impacted by this?  Most certainly, but the option should at least be there should we desire.  The Android platform is already making headway in this area and it’s a shame to see Apple falling behind in such a basic area of modern computing.

I suppose after considering all Apple has to offer with the iPad, I’m just not completely sure if it’s for me.  Sure I’ve been wanting an e-reader for a while and this device clearly outshines the Kindle imho, but I can’t help but think that buyer’s remorse would stalk me down post-purchase, reminding me of all of the tiny missed opportunities for such a sexy device.

What about you all?   Will you be picking up an iPad?