How My iPad Has Unexpectedly Replaced My Desktop. Sort Of.
I'm fortunate enough to have been given an iPad by my employer for R&D purposes. I certainly wasn't looking to buy one on my own. I have an iPhone, which I think is a fantastic mobile computing device (yes, even though most of my software development work is done using Adobe's tools — we're allowed to live in both camps, if we want, you know). I didn't see the point in the iPad.
I also happen to have a PowerMac G5 that I purchased in June 2004 as my primary desktop computer at home. It's a bit old and underpowered now, but it still does the job. I even play and raid in World of Warcraft using that box. That is, until the weekend before last. That Saturday was the day that my video card decided to completely blitz out, making any display rendering almost totally unusable. I can still perform certain tasks on the computer, but that's mostly through muscle memory and deep recognition of application windows. The display is largely illegible. I've cleaned the card, using pressurized air to blow off every spec of dust off the card, to no avail. Because the machine is so old and because replacing the card will set me back about $350-400 (because the machine and the cards for it are so old), there's no good reason not to replace the machine.
The iMac line (which I'd buy from to replace this desktop) is nearing the end of its current cycle and due for a refresh. I don't want to buy a new iMac only to find the line refreshed in the next 14 or 21 days. I can only go for so long without a desktop at home, so what to do?
My partner has been gracious enough to let me play WoW on his computer (in spite of the fact that he intensely dislikes the game and the years of late nights I've spent as a raid leader). That's one problem down. I don't do a lot of digital photography or video, so there's no urgency there. I can still buy music and apps via iTunes because I can kind of make things out on the screen on my desktop (though I'm sure I'll soon buy something I did not want because of this on-screen guesswork), so that's another problem that's handled. But what about my daily Web browsing activities, and shopping, and email?
Enter the iPad.
I've been remarkably surprised at how well the iPad takes care of my consumption activities on the Internet. Between regular old Web sites and specialized apps (like a news reader for my 150+ RSS feeds or LogMeIn Ignition for remote desktop control), I've not had to give up much in terms of going about my normal Web consumption activity on my iPad. I don't play Farmville (or any Flash games), and most movie trailers I watch are in QuickTime, so I don't miss Flash too terribly. It's easier on the eyes than my iPhone, and the increased physical space and gestural flexibility make it a better choice for my daily Web activities than the iPhone.
But I can't run Eclipse, so no development work for me. If I need to do some management in Adobe Connect (or teach using Connect, for that matter), I have to turn to my partner's desktop. If I ever get around to making a DVD of my family's videos from our 2009 African safari, it's not going to happen on the iPad. And I still need to connect to my desktop in order to sync my iPad (or iPhone). I can download music and apps over WiFi, but I'd like to have everything backed up so when I do move to a new machine it's all seamless and stuff. (That part of the process once again shows that Apple should cut the cord between their mobile devices and the desktop — in spite of the halo effect and the extra sales they get from it — and take a cue from Google's Android 2.2 OS and push cloud sync front and center.)
As many critics have pointed out, the iPad is not a good creation device on a number of fronts (software development being a big one), but it's a pretty damn fine device for consumption. No one complains that you can't develop desktop/mobile/Web apps on your XBox 360 or PlayStation, now do they?
Having used the iPad for a few weeks now, I can easily see how it will replace an extra computer in the house, or two. I can see how it will eventually grow in to a device for creation and consumption (though I think consumption will be its primary focus for a number of product iterations). It lacks the power and flexibility of my desktop, but like all things technological, isn't that just a matter of time?
