iPad

iPad, tablets expected to dampen Netbook sales

The appeal of the iPad, HP's upcoming Slate, and other tablets will take a bite out of Netbook sales this year, according to a report released Monday by DisplaySearch.

Driven by the iPad, the tablet market will see dramatic gains this year, taking market share away from clamshell-style Netbooks, says DisplaySearch's "Quarterly Notebook PC Shipment and Forecast Report."

Most of the growth, especially for the iPad, will come from North America and Western Europe, where Apple has set up key distribution lines and created agreements with content providers. Overall, consumers are expected to pick up around 5 million tablets this year, forecasts DisplaySearch.

But don't count out the Netbook just yet. Traditional clamshell type Netbooks, or mininotes, are expected to continue to entice customers as their average selling prices have dropped from $400 to slightly less than $300. The Apple iPad, which will account for most tablet shipments this year, starts at a price of $499 and moves up to more than $800. The low prices of Netbooks will remain appealing to people looking for a second or third PC and help lure in first-time PC buyers in emerging markets.

Ironically, though, the low prices of Netbooks will continue to result in thinner margins and lower sales numbers for their manufacturers, component suppliers, and retailers, says DisplaySearch.… Read more

Digital City 76: Which 50 percent of the show are now iPad owners? (podcast)

This week, we find out which of our co-hosts went out and got iPads; believe it or not, it's 50 percent of the team. And it may be a bit early for such talk, but we're already looking at a few potential iPad killers.

And, just to give you a break from all this Apple action, we're hosting a special giveaway this week, a chance to win a very cool video game collectible: a life-size replica prop gun from the Sega action game Bayonetta.

Watch the show to see it up close, and for instructions on how … Read more

iWork on the iPad is a great way to work

Of the many apps available on iPad release day--and the continuing flood of new additions coming in as developers get their apps primed for the new device--a few key apps came straight from Apple. As reported when the iPad was initially announced, Apple has created iPad versions of its popular iWork productivity suite, including Pages, Numbers, and Keynote apps--each of which is available for $9.99 at the iTunes App Store.

We've had a chance to get a close look at each of the iWork apps and have found them to be extremely useful on the new platform. Obviously, … Read more

iBooks crashing? E-mail the developer the logs

A few iPad users who have purchased books using the iBooks application have complained of the program crashing. This may happen when you first download books, but also may happen after two or three successful downloads. Once the crash occurs, the application may become unstable and continue to crash during other functions, such as accessing the bookshelf.… Read more

10 things Netbooks can learn from the iPad

After a weekend of immense enthusiasm and even wide-eyed utopian futurism regarding the debut of Apple's iPad, a bit of dust has settled. Perhaps Apple has hit the nail on the head of a new trend in future computing; perhaps this is just a bump on the road before the next leap.

Either way, from this point going forward, the iPad will be referenced when discussing portable computing, for good or for bad.

Back when the iPad was announced, our first instinct was to reflect on what the cheap, stalwart Netbook could provide that the sleek, homogeneous, iPhone-like iPad … Read more

iPad to support Dvorak, other keyboard layouts?

While most people use the standard QWERTY keyboard layout, one of the most used alternative layouts is Dvorak. Some people believe Dvorak is more efficient for various western languages since it places vowels and the most commonly used letters right under your fingertips. iPad owners who are used to this layout may find it disappointing that the iPad does not yet have support for Dvorak.

While it is not in the current version of the operating system used on the iPad, Dvorak keyboard layouts are popular enough for Apple to implement them sooner rather than later. As noted in this … Read more

iPad: New must-have celeb accessory?

Just like the Prius and the Kardashian sisters before it, the iPad looks like it might be the new must-have celebrity accessory.

Basketball superstar Lebron James was photographed checking out an iPad at a Boston Red Sox game Sunday evening. Actress Alyssa Milano picked up one this weekend and by Monday morning wrote on Twitter, "I love my iPad so much I kind of want to make out with it." British comedian Stephen Fry, his country's best-known technophile, got to geek out with the iPad ahead of almost everyone, and even did an interview with Steve Jobs … Read more

iPad finds a home in the dashboard

I'm not saying that this is a good idea, but I am saying that I saw this coming. The freshly minted Apple iPad has found its way into the dashboard. Installers at Sound Man Car Audio have modified the dashboard of a Toyota Tacoma to accommodate Apple's tablet, which will serve as the brains for a much more extensive installation.

It appears that the iPad will still be removable, which is good for security. Also, because until the Apple iPad 3G goes on sale, there isn't any GPS functionality for nav and Pandora Radio streaming will only … Read more

If you can, buy your iPad books from Amazon

One of the iPad's marquee features is iBooks, Apple's book reading application and bookstore. It's a good app, attractive and capable. The bookstore itself isn't bad either, with a healthy selection of popular books and a large library of free, public domain works. But be careful before you dive into the Apple ecosystem for books.

iBooks competes with Amazon's Kindle. The new Kindle app for the iPad lacks some features iBooks has, but makes up for it with superior flexibility, and a few useful features iBooks does not have. While the iBooks and Kindle apps … Read more