Raft of cheaper tablets cheapening the iPad experience?

[Kaykaykay]

Exaactly. I've been a PC/Windows person since the beginning of Windows--for better or worse LOL. I never wanted anything Apple until i got my Ipod, then Touch and knew I'd like and use the Ipad but had no idea hiw extensively. I still have only PCs BTW but understand the appeal of Macs now.

iPhone was my gateway drug. I found it really easy to use, so I figured iPad would be, too. The funny thing is, I remember a friend coveting an iPhone when they first came out, and I had zero interest in them. My brother eventually pushed me to get one, because I take a lot of trips and would often call him to look up stuff online if I was driving around in an unfamiliar city, looking for a good restaurant or such. Till then, he was my smart phone, lol. He was like a smarter version of Siri.

 

[Seadog]

Apple makes products that assume a person does not want to tinker with their device. How many people want to work on their cars, televisions, and houses? I do a lot of carpentry, plumbing, and electrical work on my house and other places. I do a lot of the work on my vehicles. Why would I want to spend what little time I have left in the day for electronic devices? That is one of the premises that Apple goes by. I was waiting for the iPad before anything was ever said about it in the media. And long before it was a media darling. The iPad was a logical next step from the iPhone and iPod Touch. It succeeded because of iTunes and the App Store. Too many previous attempts at tablets, and many current attempts at tablets are not selling because they do not offer enough reason for user satisfaction. The Nook and Kindle are useful as readers and some minor functions. They fail in those areas which the iPad shine. I have read many reviews about the Kindle Fire, and most of them are of the belief that it is a good Kindle, but keep the iPad.

I enjoy that I have a product that stands out so much and is so popular, but until someone else comes out with something to take our breaths away, the iPad is always going to enjoy a unique niche in consumer electronics. And the longer it takes to compete with it, the more it will dominate.

 

[jsh1120]

Apple makes products that assume a person does not want to tinker with their device. How many people want to work on their cars, televisions, and houses? I do a lot of carpentry, plumbing, and electrical work on my house and other places. I do a lot of the work on my vehicles. Why would I want to spend what little time I have left in the day for electronic devices?...

Valid point but so is the converse. To wit, those who like to tinker with their electronic devices and especially with computers may well find the iPad (and the entire Apple product suite) disappointing in terms of the options available. Such folks might make exactly the same point you've made with reference to their vehicles. They may "little time left in the day for" tinkering with the family car.

Furthermore, the categories may be more finely grained than you noted. I have a couple of motorcycles where I "tinker." I don't "tinker" with the the family cars. Likewise, I spend a lot of time "tinkering" with the six computers and two smartphones in the household. I appreciate the fact that I don't have to "tinker" with my iPad, as well. And it's the simplicity of using the iPad that makes its (sometimes frustrating) limitations bearable.

 

[s2mikey]

Apple makes products that assume a person does not want to tinker with their device. How many people want to work on their cars, televisions, and houses? I do a lot of carpentry, plumbing, and electrical work on my house and other places. I do a lot of the work on my vehicles. Why would I want to spend what little time I have left in the day for electronic devices? That is one of the premises that Apple goes by. I was waiting for the iPad before anything was ever said about it in the media. And long before it was a media darling. The iPad was a logical next step from the iPhone and iPod Touch. It succeeded because of iTunes and the App Store. Too many previous attempts at tablets, and many current attempts at tablets are not selling because they do not offer enough reason for user satisfaction. The Nook and Kindle are useful as readers and some minor functions. They fail in those areas which the iPad shine. I have read many reviews about the Kindle Fire, and most of them are of the belief that it is a good Kindle, but keep the iPad.

I enjoy that I have a product that stands out so much and is so popular, but until someone else comes out with something to take our breaths away, the iPad is always going to enjoy a unique niche in consumer electronics. And the longer it takes to compete with it, the more it will dominate.

Good points here. I tweak other things like my Home Video gear or my sports car. I need the iPad to start up, provide me a platform to enjoy apps, and then turn off when I dont need it. Thats the extent of the tweaking I want to do with it

 

[tlbaker]

Good points here. I tweak other things like my Home Video gear or my sports car. I need the iPad to start up, provide me a platform to enjoy apps, and then turn off when I dont need it. Thats the extent of the tweaking I want to do with it

Me too!!

Sent from my Verizon Black 64GB iPad 2 With IOS 5.01 Update using iPF

 

[Kaykaykay]

Valid point but so is the converse. To wit, those who like to tinker with their electronic devices and especially with computers may well find the iPad (and the entire Apple product suite) disappointing in terms of the options available. Such folks might make exactly the same point you've made with reference to their vehicles. They may "little time left in the day for" tinkering with the family car.

There are other tablets for those who prefer to tinker even beyond jailbreaking iPads.

What's crazy is tinkering types who rant about how Apple doesn't let them. Apple is not obligated to make a device that serves everyone. And some people who like to tinker often rant about choice, but essentially they're demanding that Apple serve them (despite Apple's choice not to, which offers non-tinkerers a good tablet option).

Some of those ranters also rail about Apple customers and their choices, as if the only right choice is to agree with them and not buy Apple products. The hilarious thing is that the ranters are too stupid or blinded to grasp that many of us buy iStuff with our own needs in mind (exercising choice, which they claim to support, but apparently bash unless it matches theirs).

 

[jsh1120]

There are other tablets for those who prefer to tinker even beyond jailbreaking iPads.

What's crazy is tinkering types who rant about how Apple doesn't let them. Apple is not obligated to make a device that serves everyone. And some people who like to tinker often rant about choice, but essentially they're demanding that Apple serve them (despite Apple's choice not to, which offers non-tinkerers a good tablet option).

Some of those ranters also rail about Apple customers and their choices, as if the only right choice is to agree with them and not buy Apple products. The hilarious thing is that the ranters are too stupid or blinded to grasp that many of us buy iStuff with our own needs in mind (exercising choice, which they claim to support, but apparently bash unless it matches theirs).

I'm quite familiar with the phenomenon you cite, Kay. But (as I know you're aware), it's not limited to anti-Apple ranters. Thankfully, they're rather rare here but on other boards they constitute an amusing cult.

I would, however, take some exception to the reference to jailbreaking as an option. I've had an iPad 2 since last April. During that entire time there has never been an option to jailbreak the device. And frankly, I doubt seriously that jailbreaking will be a viable option going forward. Although Apple was blocked by the courts from taking legal action against jailbreakers, they've managed to foreclose the possibility quite successfully via technical means. And I expect Apple to continue to devote major resources to preventing it. In short, for most consumers, even those with the skills and desire to have even a minimally customized experience on the iPad, that option doesn't exist.

The restrictions Apple insists upon aren't a big deal for me. No more than an inability to change the user interface on my TV or microwave. But that's because I expect my iPad to operate much like other "appliances." I do, however, find many of those restrictions to be at best annoying and arbitrary. If anything "cheapens the iPad experience" it's not other tablets. It's the limitations that Apple imposes on the configuration and use of the iPad.

 

[s2mikey]

Does jailbreaking really make the device that much bettre or does it just satisfy the need for the "control freaks" to feel that they can have their way with the iPad? Just curious as to what it really buys you....

 

[SweetPoison]

Does jailbreaking really make the device that much bettre or does it just satisfy the need for the "control freaks" to feel that they can have their way with the iPad? Just curious as to what it really buys you....

I think you may be asking this in the wrong section. Not sure anyone here is JB, in this thread.

 

[Kaykaykay]

I'm quite familiar with the phenomenon you cite, Kay. But (as I know you're aware), it's not limited to anti-Apple ranters. Thankfully, they're rather rare here but on other boards they constitute an amusing cult.

I would, however, take some exception to the reference to jailbreaking as an option. I've had an iPad 2 since last April. During that entire time there has never been an option to jailbreak the device. And frankly, I doubt seriously that jailbreaking will be a viable option going forward. Although Apple was blocked by the courts from taking legal action against jailbreakers, they've managed to foreclose the possibility quite successfully via technical means. And I expect Apple to continue to devote major resources to preventing it. In short, for most consumers, even those with the skills and desire to have even a minimally customized experience on the iPad, that option doesn't exist.

The restrictions Apple insists upon aren't a big deal for me. No more than an inability to change the user interface on my TV or microwave. But that's because I expect my iPad to operate much like other "appliances." I do, however, find many of those restrictions to be at best annoying and arbitrary. If anything "cheapens the iPad experience" it's not other tablets. It's the limitations that Apple imposes on the configuration and use of the iPad.

Agreed that jailbreaking offers only very limited flexibility on iPad, compared with on Android devices, which is why people who want to tinker shouldn't buy iPads, IMO. I acknowledged jailbreaking simply because it exists, and some users take advantage of it. Apple is quite unfriendly to jailbreaking, as shown by its repeated efforts to clamp down on it.

I have my own criticism of Apple in that area. (If I buy a device, I should be able to root it, jailbreak it, whatever, as long as I do it at my own risk and don't inflict costs on the hardware maker or expect support outside terms of service if I choose to violate them.) Apple has gone beyond not supporting jailbreaks, rooting, etc., to trying to legally clamp down on such practices, which I think treads on concumers' rights.

Given Apple's practices, though, it seems ridiculous for people to expect much beyond what Apple intends when they buy one of its products. But there's always the option to buy an Android or another alternative instead, and Apple or any other company isn't obligated to serve everyone's priorities.

By the way, JSH, your comment alluding to some cult-like posters just reminded me: You and I have both been called Apple bashers on other threads, I think by the same person, lol.

 

[guthrien]

It actually sounds like the jailbreak is coming per the dev team members now. I think the added freedom to the filesystem writ large is something I want, if not useful to most owners. It frustrates that Apple makes that choice so hard, because my Android devices that do allow me aren't as pleasant to use, so eventually it gets to where I'm asking, "freedom to what end?" because they don't suit my day to day usage.

But I still enjoy messing with those other devices the way someone enjoys tinkering with a car or motorcycle. It's a valid pleasure in and of itself, and it will lead me to jailbreak too as its the best of both..pleasures.

 

[ipad987]

About the title of the thread: I'd say more tablets do cheapen the iPad experience if you bought your iPad hoping to elevate your status. Maybe you get an ego trip out of owning one. But status objects depend on the eye of the beholder. Just because you see an item as a status object doesn't mean others will, too. If others aren't impressed, it doesn't matter what you hoped for (unless you're delusional maybe, lol).

So if you're hoping to impress with an iPad, you pretty much need to hang out with a crowd that can't afford one or otherwise get hold of one (and they'd actually have to want one). In those type of surroundings, you better make sure yours doesn't get stolen or otherwise taken from you, lol.

I wasn't implying that. What I was basically suggesting is that if these new devices that cost 1/3 or even 1/4 of an iPad and do most things an iPad does, and do it reasonably well, I just feel maybe iPad owners are being a little short changed. Then again, I do love the iPad though. It's a high quality device.

It as nothing to do with status symbol. Let's face it, most tablets of an equal size look very similar from a few feet away so people won't know which is an iPad and which is a £100 tablet unless they have it in their hands.

 

[Kaykaykay]

I wasn't implying that. What I was basically suggesting is that if these new devices that cost 1/3 or even 1/4 of an iPad and do most things an iPad does, and do it reasonably well, I just feel maybe iPad owners are being a little short changed.

Name one that works as well at the prices you suggest. If they were available, why would people who dislike Apple have to resort to buying iPads?

Tech will keep evolving, but there's no real Android alternative for iPad now at the prices you suggest. So how are iPad users being shortchanged? If you're suggesting that cheaper devices will come along that do more for less, I don't doubt it. But those who have bought at current prices are getting to use their devices now, not next year or whenever a better device comes along. That's how tech works.

If you want to avoid getting shortchanged under your terms, best never buy any tech. You could've waited about 40 years to get a cell phone and saved lots, for instance, because they're sometimes free now, compared to when they first started selling.

Basically, you pay for early use of any developing tech. If anyone expects otherwise, that person lacks common sense.

 

[jsh1120]

By the way, JSH, your comment alluding to some cult-like posters just reminded me: You and I have both been called Apple bashers on other threads, I think by the same person, lol.

That's nothing compared to what I've been called on Android sites.

 

[Kaykaykay]

That's nothing compared to what I've been called on Android sites.

Lol. I know what you mean. I visit Android sites from time to time, to read up on new tech and possible problems. I don't even bother trying to reason with the crazies. Some posters are very knowledgeable and helpful with answers, though. And many of the reasonable will grudgingly acknowledge that iOS works well for those who don't want to mess with their devices.