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Tag: ipad

  • Apple Unveils New iPad Commercial

    Apple begun airing a new iPad commercial last night entitled "What is iPad?" The new ad is a slight departure from their "normal" advertising. As the name of the ad suggest, Apple asks the very simple question and proceeds to answer it in a very whimsical way…

    "iPad is thin. iPad is beautiful. iPad goes anywhere and lasts all day. There’s not right way or wrong way. It’s crazy powerful. It’s magical. You already know how to use it. It’s 200,000 apps and counting. All the worlds” websites in your hands. It’s video, photos. More books than you could read in a lifetime. It’s already a revolution and it’s only just begun."

    Do you have a problem with the way Apple is advertising the iPad in the new commercial? Let us know.

    One of the reoccurring complaints I’ve seen is that people really hate the iPad being referred to as "magical". Personally, I thought it was a bit much… but you can watch the ad below and make up your own mind.


    MacRumors points out that the new iPad ad pays homage to "What is Newton?", an Apple commercial from nearly 20 years ago. For those of you who don’t remember the Newton, it was the first PDA, which was released in 1993. They also state that "If Apple keeps up with the theme, we should be seeing a "Who is iPad" ad and "Where is iPad" to mirror Who is Newton and Where is Newton."


    Do you have any complaints about the new iPad commercial? Tell us.

  • HTC Sues Apple, Calls for Halt of iPhone, iPad Sales

    HTC announced today that it is suing Apple. The company says it took legal action against Apple, filing a complaint with the United States International Trade Commission (ITC) to halt the importation and sale of the iPhone, iPad and iPod in the United States. HTC’s complaint outlines five patents it claims are infringed upon by Apple products.

    "As the innovator of the original Windows Mobile PocketPC Phone Edition in 2002 and the first Android smartphone in 2008, HTC believes the industry should be driven by healthy competition and innovation that offer consumers the best, most accessible mobile experiences possible," says Jason Mackenzie, vice president of North America, HTC Corporation. "We are taking this action against Apple to protect our intellectual property, our industry partners, and most importantly our customers that use HTC phones."

    The company’s statement goes on to say:

    HTC’s commitment to innovation has continued for more than a decade as it has focused on building a portfolio of the world’s most advanced smartphones that are inspired by consumers and provide them with a variety of choices in software, design, form-factor, price and wireless carrier.  Today, consumers in the United States can choose between 12 HTC smartphones with the national wireless carriers. HTC has continuously strived to bring innovative smartphone choices to consumers, like the recently unveiled HTC EVO 4G with Sprint, DROID Incredible by HTC with Verizon Wireless and the HTC HD2 with T-Mobile.

    Yesterday HTC uploaded the following video showcasing its timeline of smarthphone manufacturing dating back to 1997:

    Apple was already suing HTC over 20 patents related to the iPhone, so it will be very interesting to see how this all unfolds.

    HTC of course makes a number of devices that run Google’s Android operating system, and Jason Kincaid notes that Google has vowed to "stand behind" its partners.

    While Google isn’t directly involved in the legal battles between HTC and Apple, it is obviously very invested in the outcomes. Yet another layer to the Apple/Google competition story is added.

  • Amazon iPad App Now Available

    Amazon announced the launch of its official iPad app today. It’s now available in Apple’s App Store.

    "Following the launch of the Amazon App for iPhone and iPod touch, we’ve used our customers’ feedback to help us build a fun and intuitive shopping destination on the iPad," says Director of Amazon Mobile Sam Hall. "This application offers customers a unique, interactive experience that takes full advantage of the visual and tactile nature of the iPad."

    Amazon iPad App launched

    Features

    – Purchase using Amazon’s 1-Click ordering and Amazon Prime
    – Track packages or modify orders using the Your Account feature
    – Receive personalized recommendations
    – View editorial and customer reviews
    – Browse Amazon’s Bestsellers, Gold Box Deal of the Day and Lightning Deals
    – Access Wish List and Universal Wish List
    – Watch movie trailers and listen to song samples

    There is no doubt that this will be one of the most popular apps on the iPad. Most people who purchase items online and own iPads are most likely going to download this one.

    Amazon also has apps for its Kindle and IMDB properties available for the iPad.

  • Will Verizon Android Price Strategy Help Google Tablet Compete with iPad?

    Google has been very clear about how big of a part mobile plays in the company’s strategy moving forward, and a number of recent acquisitions and strategic moves have made it equally clear that Google is gunning for Apple. These are a couple reasons why it has come as no surprise to find out that Google is working with Verizon on a Tablet computer that would compete with the iPad.

    Verizon’s CEO let the cat out of the bag to the Wall Street Journal, and while the manufacturer was not revealed, there is speculation that it could be HTC, which already makes some popular Android devices sold through Verizon.

    Will the Google tablet run Android? Matthew Miller at ZDNet says, "There were rumors of an HTC Android tablet at CES 2010, but we never saw a device actually appear. HTC also made the HTC Shift Windows Vista/Windows Mobile device a couple of years ago so they do have experience creating devices with various form factors."

    Though Apple has downplayed the findings, a recent report from the NPD Group found that Android devices outsold the iPhone in the first quarter of 2010. Buy one, get one free deals on devices from Verizon were credited for helping this along.

    Regardless of the report’s precision and what is helping Android devices sell, there’s no question that they are in fact selling in greater amounts, and pricing could play a huge role in how well a Google tablet would do in the iPad battle. Another thing that could help it would be an ability to play Flash, which Apple has now famously disowned (this could help Adobe even more).

    It’s unclear at this point if the device would indeed run Android or Google’s Chrome OS, but at this point Android seems like the logical decision, given the operating system’s growing popularity and familiarity, not to mention similarities to the the iPhone/iPad.

    Google I/O (which WebProNews will be covering) is coming up next week, perhaps we’ll find out more there.

    On an interesting side note, it has been discovered that Google is looking to hire a product management leader for games. It will be interesting to see if Verizon offers deals to help it gain momentum over the iPad and its early lead.

  • iPad Wi-Fi Issue? Apple says: “Adjust your screen brightness”

    Apple has updated a support document, which details some of the much-publicized Wi-Fi connectivity issues surrounding the iPad. In the document, Apple states “a very small number of iPad users have experienced issues with Wi-Fi connectivity” they even give out a few possible workarounds for anyone having Wi-Fi issues.

    iPad Wi-Fi connectivity problems

    Have you noticed any Wi-Fi connectivity with your iPad? Let us know.

    The workarounds include:

    • Update Wi-Fi router Firmware
    • Use WPA or WPA2 wireless security
    • Adjust your screen brightness
    • Renew your IP address

    Yes, you read that correctly… a possible workaround is “adjust your screen brightness”. Why didn’t I think of that? In all seriousness, how does screen brightness affect anything remotely dealing with the iPad’s Wi-Fi? MacRumors forum user, NakedPaulToast, gives the following comical answer…

    ”If you turn the screen to the absolute darkest you won’t be able to see the bars showing poor WiFi reception.”

    Some of the issues that Apple is trying to fix with these workarounds include weak signal, general networking issues, SynBay, and forgotten passwords. Apple goes on to say in the document that they will “address remaining Wi-Fi connectivity issues with a future iPad software update”.

    Have you tried any of Apple’s suggested Wi-Fi workarounds… if so, how did they work? Tell us.

  • Will Square Power a Revolution in Credit Card Payments?

    We may be looking at a revolution in payments. Square, which launched late last year from Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey, is now offering a way for anybody with the right mobile device to accept credit card payments for less hassle and fees than before possible.

    Square has released clients for the iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad, and Android devices. In essence, what this means is that if you have any of these devices, you can accept credit card payments. Not only is Square now available for these devices, but the company is shipping millions of free card readers. This may be huge for small businesses (not to mention garage sales).

    The following clip gives you an idea of just what Square is doing:

    Some have noted drawbacks to Square, such as its lack of the ability to handle refunds or delete transactions, but you can probably expect such issues to be resolved.

    "When we announced Square December 1st of last year, we estimated that it would be available in the U.S. sometime in early 2010," says Square CEO Jack Dorsey (who also happens to be a co-founder of Twitter.  "Since then it has become clear that this product does not have a singular grand launch, but many iterations and refinements."

    Square lets anybody accept credit cards

    Noah Robischon at Fast Company does a good job of  explaining the pre-Square hassle for small businesses of trying to accept credit cards:

    Most merchants accept credit cards after being approached by an independent sales organization that offers to set up the process in exchange for a monthly fee, plus a gateway fee, and the cost of a card reader. After that, the card company takes a percentage of every transaction. The lowest rate offered is around 1.79%, but the rate is variable and for reward cards it can run as high as 4% of every sale (it’s not the credit card companies that are paying for your free flights, it’s the merchants who foot that bill in the end). These fees are deducted from the merchant’s account at the end of the month along with any charge backs when someone refutes a sale. This makes it difficult for small and medium businesses to accurately gauge their cash flow from month to month. Maybe that’s why, according to a report by the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia, of the 30 million businesses in the U.S. with under $100k in revenue, only 6 million accept credit cards.

    With Square there is no merchant account or contract required, there are no monthly fees or premiums and users get free card readers and setup. The rate for when the card is present and is swiped is 2.75% + 15¢. The rate when no card is present and the info has to be keyed in is 3.5% + 15¢.

    Do you think Square is going to be a game changer? Share your thoughts.

  • Apple Readies iPad Release for at Least 18 More Countries

    Apple announced today that the iPad will be available in 9 more countries starting May 28. The company had delayed international release to keep up with domestic demand.

      These countries include:

    – Australia
    – Canada
    – France
    – Germany
    – Italy
    – Japan
    – Spain
    – Switzerland
    – UK

    Customers from these countries will be able to begin pre-ordering their iPads as early as Monday, May 10.

    iPad coming to more countries

    In July, Apple plans to release the iPad in nine more countries:

    – Austria
    – Belgium
    – Hong Kong
    – Ireland
    – Luxembourg
    – Mexico
    – Netherlands
    – New Zealand
    – Singapore

    The company says local pricing will be revealed at a later date.

    As recently reported, Apple sold over a million iPads in its first month, and customers downloaded over 12 million apps from the App Store, and 1.5 million ebooks from the new iBookstore. Developers have created over 5,000 apps specifically designed for the iPad.

  • Yahoo Examines iPad Ownership Trends

    Even before the iPad was released, Yahoo started catering to potential users, releasing a Yahoo Entertainment app.  It later partnered with Appolicious, too.  Now, Yahoo’s taken a look at what sort of iPad owner audience it’s attracted, and it seems that Yahoo’s done best with wealthy-ish, middle-aged men who take lots of pictures.

    Let’s start with the simplest subject: gender distribution.  About 66 percent of iPad users on the Yahoo network are male, compared to 51 percent of regular Yahoo users in the U.S.

    Moving on, well, we won’t try to talk you through all the age-related numbers you can see below, but the trend is clear.

    Next, Yahoo considered which specific Yahoo properties iPad owners are visiting, and then measured that against the average.  It found that Flickr is the biggest hit with iPad owners; they’re 2.4 times more likely to visit it.  Yahoo Finance is the next most popular property (with a penetration rate 2.1 times higher), and Yahoo News and Yahoo Sports are third and fourth in line.

    Finally, although it’s too early to tell, it looks like the iPad might help Yahoo with people outside the U.S.  The post on the Yahoo Mobile Blog that shared all these other stats also stated, "One surprising data point is the non-U.S. IP traffic on the iPad that’s coming to Yahoo!  During the measurement period, the iPad has only been available for purchase in the U.S. market; however, we observe approximately 10% of IP traffic coming from Europe and Asia Pacific."

  • Popular News App Maker Newsy Gets New Funding

    Newsy is a video news service that analyzes the world’s news coverage, highlighting the key differences in reporting. The company has now closed a $2 million round of funding.

    Newsy is already popular with iPad users. "Newsy released its iPad app last week – the app rose to #6 for news in the iTunes’ App Store (currently is #11) and has excellent reviews," Newsy VP Marketing and Community Alexandra Wharton tells WebProNews.

    "Newsy’s goal is simple – deliver exceptional multisource, multiplatform video news in innovative ways – we have done that with the recent release of our highly rated and ranked iPad app built specifically for the mobile news customer," says Newsy President Jim Spencer.

    News iPad App

    Newsy says the funding, raised from angel investors, will allow it to build revenue, distribution and marketing partnerships, as well as grow its news operations.

    Aside from its iPad app, it has an iPhone app and apps for Android devices and Intel Atom-powered netbooks.

  • Watch an iPad 3G Get Microwaved

    If you’ve ever wanted to see an iPad microwaved, you can thank Dovetastic Microwave Theater for making your dreams come true. Dovetastic runs a YouTube channel, which provides videos of various items being microwaved, and the latest is an iPad – and not just an iPad, but the new 3G 64GB iPad.

    This is not the first time we’ve seen the destruction of an iPad in a YouTube video, but I haven’t seen one microwaved until this point. Some will call these people names like "imbeciles", but it is clear that Dovetastic takes its work seriously. It calls itself a "performance art website subsidiary of Perfectlymadebirds Co.

    In case you’re wondering what Perfectlymadebirds Co. is, it’s an eBay shop that claims to have "the largest selection of doll eyes on Ebay at low prices." They also have various Quizno’s kitchen equipment listed, and of course, the Microwaved iPad itself, which currently has 14 bids, and is up to $132.49.

    eBay listing for microwaved ipad

    Interesting.

    I think my favorite comment involving iPad and microwaving is totally unrelated to the microwaving of this iPad. @Daking75 on Twitter says, "The ipad needs to microwave burritos then I will buy one!!"

    On a related note, Apple has sold over a million iPads in a month. I’d be curious to know how many of them have been destroyed.

  • Apple Sells a Million iPads in a Month

    Apple announced that it has already sold over a million iPads. The millionth device was sold on Friday, which was the day the 3G version was launched, and only 28 days after the first ones were introduced on April 3.

    In addition to the million plus devices sold, users have also downloaded over 12 million apps from the App Store and over 1.5 million eBooks.

    Apple CEO Steve Jobs said in a statement: "One million iPads in 28 days–that’s less than half of the 74 days it took to achieve this milestone with the iPhone. Demand continues to exceed supply and we’re working hard to get this magical product into the hands of even more customers."

    Apple Sells a million iPadsClearly the success of the iPhone played a huge role in the demand for the iPad. Competition for the device is just around the corner though, and it will be interesting to see how the demand keeps up as devices from others penetrate the market.

    Google, which is widely being considered among Apples’ chief competitors at this point, is making move after move to position itself as a prime rival. Some of the acquisitions from the company that are likely to contribute to this include: Agnilux, LabPixies, Plink, and most recently 3D desktop maker BumpTop. Apple is making its own acquisitions as well. A couple recent ones include: Siri and Intrinsity.

    Apple of course launched its iAds product recently, based on its acquisition of Quattro Wireless, after losing out to Google on AdMob. Google’s AdMob acquisition is not looking good however, as reports suggest the FTC may reject it.

    Apple’s announcement says that developers have created over 5,000 new apps for the iPad, which take advantage of the device’s multi-touch user interface, large screen, and graphics, though the device will of course run other App Store apps.

  • iPad Apps Near 5,000 Mark

    iPad Apps Near 5,000 Mark

    The number of applications in the Apple App Store for iPad has climbed to 4,870 since the launch of the device on April 3, according to the latest report from app store analytics firm Distimo.

    Nine days after the release of the iPad, the Apple App Store for the device had 3,670 applications, with 2,654 applications that were only compatible with the iPad and 1,016 universal applications.

    In the last two weeks the total number of applications for the iPad has grown by 32.7 percent to 4,870 on April 26. The total number of applications now available in the Apple App Store is 189,851.

    The largest category of apps for the iPad is games with 1,577 titles (32%), followed by entertainment and books with 455 and 396 titles, respectively.

    iPad-Apps-Distimo

    The majority (82%) of the 1,577 games for the iPad are paid, compared with 69 percent of the 34,181 games for the iPhone that are paid.

    Along with differences in the proportion of free versus paid applications between iPad and iPhone, the average prices differ as well. On average, an application in the Apple App Store for iPhone costs $3.82, as opposed to $4.67 in the Apple App Store for iPad.
     

     

  • Apple iPad Wi-Fi+3G Makes its Debut Today

    Apple iPad Wi-Fi+3G Makes its Debut Today

    If you’ve been waiting for it, you probably already had your calendar marked, but today the iPad with Wi-Fi +3G is here. In case anyone forgot, Apple sent emails out today reminding everybody.

    Apple will actually not begin selling the new iPads at its stores until 5pm, and is closing down the stores from 4pm to 5pm in preparation for the device’s launch. You can order it online, however.

    iPad 3G Version Launches Today

    Just like the Wi-Fi-only version of the iPad, this one comes in 16GB, 32GB, and 64GB capacities.

    For those ordering the iPad Wi-Fi+3G online, it ships by May 7th. It does come with free shipping. That may be the safer way to go too. If you do go to an Apple Store, be careful about how you hold the bag.

    Are you getting the iPad with Wi-Fi+3G? Let us know.

  • PayPal Gives iPhone/iPad Developers In-App Payment Option

    Some news from PayPal that slipped fairly under the radar this week is that the company opened its Mobile Payments Library to developers. A representative for PayPal tells WebProNews it will give developers an "easy way to get payments from within their apps."

    PayPal Mobile Payments at BaubletThe library is an element of PayPal’s PayPal X Payments Platform, announced last year. "The Mobile Payments Library enables app developers to accept in-app purchases directly via PayPal; so developers don’t need to store customers’ personal financial information and customers can purchase goods and services without leaving the app," the rep explains.

    A few developers have already started using the library. Examples include ShopSavvy, and Shutterfly’s Wink. Baublet is the first one in the app store to utilize it.

    "Being a first time developer, PayPal’s quick and responsive help has been fantastic and made this task pretty darn easy," says Baublet developer Michael Robinson. "Our goal was to have the ability to create, purchase and mail a charm within a few minutes on our app. The PayPal’s Mobile Payments was critical to that success."

    The library currently supports iPhone and iPad apps, but will become available for other platforms soon.

  • The iPad Debut Of UrbanSpoon

    The iPad Debut Of UrbanSpoon

    According to Techcrunch, app store veteran, UrbanSpoon, has officially launched their iPad app. I agree with them in that the iPad app will not be useful for quick dinner solutions (like it is when firing up the app on an iPhone), however the iPad app will be useful for longer, more thoughtful decisions. Details of the UrbanSpoon iPad app below:

    Comments

  • Dictionary.com Illustrates How Search is Becoming More Diversified

    Ask’s Dictionary.com has reached the 10 million download milestone for its mobile apps in just over a year. Dictionary.com gets about 50 million unique visitors a month between its site and its mobile apps.

    The company’s new iPad app already has over 100,000 downloads to date. I spoke with Dictionary.com President Shravan Goli who expressed a great deal of excitement about the iPad and tablet-style devices in general.

    Shravan Goli - President of Dictionary.com Talks about mobile and ipad appsHe says their iPad app already gets a higher level of engagement from users in terms of time spent with the app. Over 40% of users, he says, are coming back 2-5 times a day. User engagement is 2x-to-3x more than the online site, and time spent and usage frequency is also 2x-to-3x more than the online site. It’s worth noting as well, that the site has games that are not even available through Dictionary.com’s regular apps (though a couple of them have their own apps in Apple’s App Store).

    While Goli is clearly ecstatic about the popularity Dictionary.com’s iPad app is already receiving, he’s more excited about the future. "What we’re excited about is working on the 2nd generation of the app." Don’t rule out games in future versions either.

    Like other smartphone makers have come into play following the iPhone, we’re going to be seeing this big time with tablet devices like Dictionary.com app on the iPadthe iPad. This is at the beginning of its lifecycle, Goli says. "We look at it as something that’s going to explode." And Dictionary.com will continue to look for ways to take advantage.

    "At the end of the day we’re definitely seeing some of our fastest growth." This a good example of what we’re talking about when we discuss mobile making search more diversified – people are finding different kinds of information in different ways than they might have in the past. Of course Dictionary.com has been around for over a decade, but mobile simply changes the game – someone who may have used Google to look up a word on their computer, may have also downloaded the Dictionary.com app specifically for definitions – or maybe for some of its other features.

    People aren’t just going to look up words, he says. They’re going for pronunciations, how to use a word in a sentence, word of the day, etc. – things that aren’t incredibly easy to find through "generic search".

    Goli says Dictionary.com’s well-recognized brand has played a great role in the success of its apps. "We haven’t done any marketing on the mobile side," he says. They’ve essentially just marketed the apps on Dictionary.com itself, and they still reached the ten million downloads.

    Look for an even bigger expansion of Dictionary.com’s presence as they have also opened up their API, giving developers access to words and definitions for use in games and other types of apps.

  • Thieves Rip Finger Flesh Off iPad Buyer

    In Denver, a man bought an iPad for a friend at the Apple Store in Cherry Creek Mall, but soon after had it stolen by thieves, who ripped the flesh off his finger while taking it.

    The victim, Bill Jordan, told local media he had the cords of the bag tied around his hand, and when one of the thieves yanked it, he couldn’t let go, and it literally tore the flesh off his finger, leaving nothing but bone.

    "I never hear it coming, I never see it coming," he told Denver’s FOX31. "I just remember this kid pulling and pulling and pulling and it got caught?took the flesh right off, the tendons and everything. There was nothing but bone." A doctor told him they’d have to amputate the finger.

     

    At this point the two thieves are still out there as police continue the search. Denver’s’ CBS4 has a quote from Jordan, telling the thieves, "I hope you understand what you’ve done to my life and my family’s life for a simple piece of apparatus that’ll be junk in a couple of years."

    We know there is a great amount of iPad demand in the U.S. (they’ve postponed releasing it overseas for this reason), but this is ridiculous. Looking past the sick outcome of this crime, Jordan is absolutely right as well. The first generation iPad won’t be so in demand two years from now.

  • Apple Posts Best Non-Holiday Quarter Ever

    Apple Posts Best Non-Holiday Quarter Ever

    Apple has posted its financial results for Q2 (ending March 27). These include revenue of $13.50 billion and net quarterly profit of $3.07 billion (or $3.33 per diluted share). As a comparison, for the same quarter last year, the company posted $9.08 billion and net quarterly profit of $1.62 billion, (or $1.79 per diluted share).

    "We’re thrilled to report our best non-holiday quarter ever, with revenues up 49 percent and profits up 90 percent," said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO. "We’ve launched our revolutionary new iPad and users are loving it, and we have several more extraordinary products in the pipeline for this year."

    The company sold 2.94 million Macs during the quarter, representing a 33% increase from the same quarter last year. In addition, it sold 131% more iPhones (8.75 million) and 10.89 million iPods. iPod sales actually declined from last year by 1%.

    Apple Product Summary for Q2

    "Looking ahead to the third fiscal quarter of 2010, we expect revenue in the range of about $13.0 billion to $13.4 billion and we expect diluted earnings per share in the range of about $2.28 to $2.39," said Peter Oppenheimer, Apple’s CFO.

    In other Apple-related news, the company misplaced a future version of the iPhone, which ended up in the hands of popular gadget blog Gizmodo. The company wrote a letter asking for its property back. Also a man in Denver had the flesh ripped from his finger, as thieves stole his iPad after he purchased it from an Apple Store. Somehow the injury reportedly occurred as he had the cords from his Apple bag wrapped around his fingers.

  • Google Introduces iPad Targeting

    AdWords users who feel an urge to target iPad owners can now do so without reaching out to people carrying Android devices and iPhones, as well.  Google’s added an option to its "networks and devices" screen that’ll allow advertisers to adopt a narrow focus.

    A post on the Inside AdWords blog announced late yesterday, "[W]e feel confident adding the iPad to the list of mobile devices that you can target specifically.  To do this, simply edit the ‘Devices’ section in your Campaign Settings, and select the iPad under ‘Advanced device and carrier options.’"

    The post later continued, "Also, remember that you can promote your iPhone/iPad or Android apps directly by linking to the download URL in your ads.  This way people can download your app straight from your ads.  To make things easier, we’ll handle the device targeting automatically when these ads show on mobile devices."

    These developments show that Google is continuing to view the iPad as a very significant device, and considers the mobile market one of its top priorities.

    Perhaps the more interesting matter will be whether AdWords users share the same outlook (iPad owners will tend to be early adopters with a fair amount of disposable income, after all), or if Google’s efforts in this area will go unappreciated.

  • Google Takes Second Crack At Mobile App For iPad

    The day before the iPad went on sale, Google showed its support for the device by announcing five different ways in which it would accommodate iPad users.  Now, the search giant’s sort of unveiled a sixth: what it’s calling an iPad-friendly version of the Google Mobile App.

    GoogleAs you might expect, this doesn’t represent a significant departure from the traditional Google Mobile App.  Indeed, Google even counted a different version of the app among its original five iPad-specific offerings, with an official blog post stating, "[W]e’ve adapted it to work on the iPad . . ."

    Still, a fresh Google+Mobile+Blog%29″>post promised this afternoon, "[T]his new version has been designed to show neatly on the iPad’s screen, and . . . the usual features of Google Mobile App for iPhone, like search by voice and My Location, work well.  From the Apps tab, you can also easily navigate to Google’s web-based apps, such as Gmail, which was recently optimized for iPad."

    More improvements are supposed to be in the works, too.

    Perhaps Google will attract a few new users thanks to this update.  At the least, the company’s demonstrated that it remains dedicated to all aspects of the mobile market (and not just Android).

    The iPad-friendly version of the Google Mobile App is available for download now in the App Store.

  • iPad Impresses More as a Symbol Than a Device

    Right now, it’s looking like the iPad’s strength is more about what it represents to the industry, more than the device itself. It’s about what mainstream computing may be turning into.

    Is the iPad the future of computing? Share your thoughts.

    This generation iPad isn’t the be-all, end-all computing device. It’s full of shortcomings, which have been widely acknowledged. While plenty of early adopters are sure to continue buying the iPads up, there will no doubt be vast improvements made in future versions of the device. Apple will give users reasons to buy the next-generation iPads.

    Then you have the competitors. You know how the iPhone came out and everybody went crazy over it? Then Android came along with a similar touchscreen operating system and marketplace, and now Android use is growing rapidly. Microsoft will be launching its Windows Phone 7 Series this year, which will compete in that market. Consumers will have plenty of options when it comes to iPad-like devices. There is already plenty of competition on the way.

    iEntry CEO and WebProNews Publisher Rich Ord shares a first-hand look at his new iPad, as well as his take on what the device means in the following clip:

    He talks about how the iPad sets the stage for a change in how people interact with the web, specifically. "It’s really a convenience revolution for the Internet," he says, adding that people will bring the Internet to business more – it’s easier to carry than a laptop, and people will feel more comfortable taking an iPad (or iPad-like device) to a meeting, a restaurant, a construction site, etc.

    Still, there are cons to the convenience factor as well. The screen gets dirty easily, and one may not find it all that convenient to carry wipes around all the time. In addition, it could be lighter in weight, but then again, future-generations are sure to improve upon this first edition product.

    Gartner actually just released a forecast indicating that half of PCs purchased for kids will have touchscreens in the next five years. 

    "What we’re going to see is the younger generation beginning to use touchscreen computers ahead of enterprises," said Leslie Fiering, research vice president at Gartner. "By 2015, we expect more than 50 percent of PCs purchased for users under the age of 15 will have touchscreens, up from fewer than percent in 2009. On the other hand, we are predicting that fewer than 10 percent of PCs sold to enterprises in 2015 for mainstream knowledge workers will have touchscreens."

    So is the iPad really a symbol for the future of computers, despite all of its flaws? Tell us what you think.