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By Darren on April 03rd, 2010
Super Size It! A Tale of Electronic Devices and Theme Parks
This seems to be the week for larger versions of popular technology.
This past Sunday, Nintendo launched the DSi XL, an oversize version of the DSi. It has exactly the same features as the DSi and exactly the same look, just… bigger.
Today is the launch of the iPhone XL, also known as the iPad (except you can’t make calls with it, so I guess it’s more like an oversize iPod Touch). Is it a giant iPod or is it a netbook-sized tablet PC? I am firmly in the giant iPod camp. It is definitely not a technological feminine hygiene product (though I tried to say those last three words once and it came out as “Feminine Hygiene Project” which I still think would be the coolest band name ever).
Don’t get me wrong, I think the iPad is a great idea and will be extremely popular. It’s just that without some key elements that would increase functionality and make it more like an actual tablet netbook (no Flash compatibility, for one), I can’t bring myself to call it a personal computer.
I’m sure that, if you read anything at all about the iPad today, most of what you read will be distinctly polarized in it’s view of the iPad. People are either going to love it or hate it. Hey, people have opinions and the net is the place for them, right? Especially if they’re either rabid detractors or super-hyped fanboys of the product/game/team/whatever in question.
My reaction is a giant “Meh” (which Wikipedia defines as: an expression of apathy, indifference, or boredom). So, while everyone else is out standing in line, crowding stores to be one of the first to own the iPad (or slamming it as the most useless thing since the spork), I’ll be waiting. I waited until 3GS to buy my iPhone. And I’ll wait a few generations for an iPad too. Yes, I’ll eventually jump on the bandwagon, because by the time I do, the thing will be so damn useful, indispensable even, that I’ll feel that I need one.
See… Apple is a lot like Disney. Everybody thinks that as soon as their kids are old enough to walk and talk, they need to be dragged out into the 150 degree Florida sun in the middle of summer (okay, so it’s not really 150 degrees… there is really a 5-minute torrential rainstorm every afternoon to cool things down a bit) to stand in line for 12 hours a day and ride about 2 hours worth of rides for an exhausting weekend at Disney.
Does it seem like I don’t like Disney? That’s actually not true. I’ve been there at least a dozen times (probably more). I love it. Why?
It’s an experience. It’s something you just don’t get to do everyday. We can’t all go visit 12 countries in a single weekend, but we can go to Epcot Center. We can’t be in movies, but we can go to Disney/MGM Studios. We can’t go back to our childhood, but we can take our kids to go see the same anthropomorphic mouse we knew growing up.
Disney knows what it’s doing.
So does Apple.
They create products that we think we can’t live without. They create buzz that we can’t ignore (even if we hate it, we still can’t ignore it… it gets a reaction, positive or negative).
My biggest question is: What is the optimal size for our electronic devices. It seems like they’ve been getting smaller and smaller. Until now. Now they’re getting bigger. And bigger means better, right? Actually, it seems that right now, something about the size of a netbook seems to be the optimal size for our personal electronics.
So, if you’re buying an iPad in the near future, or someone you know buys one, let us know what you/they think about it.
