Like it or Loathe it, iPad Is Tech?s Game Changer (Steve Hankins Commentary)

Real change happens in increments, not big bursts. It was once said that the demise of democracy would be so subtle that people wouldn’t realize it was going away until a point where in hindsight it becomes apparent that not only was it gone, there would be confusion as to how it got away.

Such is the way with technology change. No one new thing makes a huge difference. Only when we stop and reflect do we really notice how different things are than they used to be.

And now we have the iPad.

If you pay attention to the critics, they’ll tell you the iPad is much to-do about nothing.

The iPad is not a phone, although it seems like an overgrown iPhone. The icons on the screen seem the same. It runs iPhone apps.

The iPad is “locked-in.” You only get to do what Apple lets you do on the device. You are handcuffed by the fact that everything has to flow through Apple stores.

The iPad is not a laptop replacement. There’s no multi-tasking, no mouse and no real keyboard. It certainly won’t replace your desktop.

There is nothing new about the iPad. Apple failed many years ago with the Newton. Laptop pads have existed forever it seems, but they were called “tablets.” Tablets have never been a big success in the marketplace in spite of the fact that Microsoft has a special version of its operating system that supports tablets.

The horror, or horrors, to the true technology people is that the iPad shouldn’t be taken apart. One critic said his personal manifesto was never to use any device he couldn’t take apart and put back together.

While all of the criticisms of the iPad are technically correct, the point they make is that the technology status quo is again being threatened. This latest threat has finally caused the core technology people to rise up from their trees and get a view of the forest. And they don’t like what they see.

Besides criticism, what’s their response?

Every day it seems there is a new announcement or discussion of the latest “iPad killer” device. These devices will multi-task. They can be taken apart and put back together. Most of them will run some version of Microsoft Windows, because it is the industry standard. You will be able to hack them and write software for them without the handcuffs of some store reviewing your work.

What most technology critics fail to understand is this simple concept: Most people want to use technology, not work on technology.

The convergence of the major trends in computing is changing the world that most technology people love into one that they are not so familiar with. Devices like the iPad do not seem to require the intervention of a technology person to enable the owner of the device to actually use it.

I view the iPad as just another example of the changes taking place. The iPad is another “mobility” device. It doesn’t really replace a true laptop. It won’t replace your desktop. It does replace most of what people do on a netbook.

The iPad – with processor power, a much larger screen and better graphics – is a more robust interface to the cloud computing world than a smartphone. It can serve as a front end to software applications much better than a smartphone and about as well as a laptop.

Simply put, unless you are doing hardcore word processing, spreadsheets, data analysis or CAD on your laptop, you can probably make do with an iPad.

On the business front, Cisco has made their Web meeting technology available for the iPad. LogMeIn has an app available for access to your desktop back home or in the office. Apple has their iWorks suite, which will read/write Microsoft Office files available for word processing, spreadsheets and presentations. Dropbox is available for file sharing across PCs, Macs, smartphones and the iPad. Book providers view the device as a game changer.

On the personal front, the iPad represents many things to people. It can be a game machine, a social networking conduit, a book reader, a newspaper, a magazine, a movie theater via NetFlix streaming movies, a photo collection, a music machine, all of the above and no telling what else in the future.

I can hardly wait to see what happens next. Things are beginning to get interesting.  

(Steve Hankins is CEO and co-founder of Accio.US, a technology company providing advisory and management services for small to medium-sized businesses. He may be reached at [email protected].)