What does the iPad announcement mean to you as a photographer?
Several months ago, my wife and I bought Apple iPhones to help us better manage our studio. We can keep our calendar synchronized, process credit cards, maintain a portable portfolio, manage contacts, emails, Twitter, and Facebook, all from the comfort of wherever we are. Before this, we were device minimalists. We had the free phones with the cheapest service offerings. It’s safe to say we’ll never go back after buying our iPhones. They really are one of our best tools for our studio today.
Which is why I kept a close eye on Apple’s introduction of the new iPad tablet today. At first glance it seems great. Fast, feature rich, and with a much larger screen than the iPhone. Boy oh boy could I show off my photos to prospective clients with one of those babies! And the price actually doesn’t seem too bad, at $499 for the bottom level model. But then there’s that AT&T price tag of $130 $15-$30 per month per device, and it’s not even a phone! In fact, it’s starting to look like it’s just a beefed up iPhone. More accurately, it’s look like a beefed up iPod Touch, but with a 3G connection.
Update: The original CNN article after the iPad was announced stated it would cost $130 per month to add 3G service. It’s actually $15-$30 depending on usage, and the device itself costs an additional $130 for 3G capabilities. So it’s actually $629 for the lowest iPad if you want 3G.
So I’m curious. I want your input. I’d like to use the power of numbers here. There are hundreds of thousands of you out there that are photographers and read this blog. What do you think of the new iPad announcement? Do you think it could help you as a photographer? Or do you think it’s a little too rich for your blood?
Hit me up in the comments and let’s hear what you have to say.
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January 27th, 2010 at 4:49 pm
It means I don’t have to buy a device like the Epson to offload my cards on the road and review images. I can load them into the iPad, look at them on a quality display and clear the card.
January 27th, 2010 at 5:08 pm
I think the real question is not just around photography, but will this device catch on generally?
The screen real-estate is available with other tablet devices – nothing new there.
The Apps? Well … the SW is based on the iphone/touch – good, but not as flexible as a Mac/PC; the device will be great for organisation, communications, casual media and basic use … but without complex apps like GIMP/Photoshop, a jobbing photographer would have trouble putting together a complex/useful presentation in the field with the software currently available on an iPhone …
But there is another problem with the form factor, generally (lengthy answer here …)
As a technologist I have been playing with (similar form factor) e-book devices for the last 4 years, and there is one MAJOR flaw that is echoed with the iPad…
When I put a laptop in a bag, it closes; the clamshell design gives it great protection and it handles knocks well. My ebook type devices? I have/have had several, all with 6in – 9in glass substrate screens. When placed in my bag … I have broken 3 devices over the past 4 years. Now I’m not the most careful person, but I’m also not reckless – I now have to add a substantial cover to these devices, which negates some of the benefits of instant access and adds to size/weight advantages.
I have to admit I haven’t had any hands on time with the iPad yet. I’m not however optimistic that, without a new killer app, it is anything more than a great executive toy or vertical market device – Photography isn’t one of the vertical markets that will make it compeling.
Will kids use this as an ebook at school? Without Apple doing a killer publishing deal; no.
Will Joe Public swap cheap general purpose netbooks for a more expensive, less flexable ipad? No
Will Photographers swap a decent laptop/tablet for the device? Not unless they have money to burn …
Innovation always includes failure as well as success. If I had to put money on the outcome I’d applaud Apple for the effort but sadly bet that this is one of their rare failures. Interms of usefulness for photographers? Great toy if you can afford gadgets but I can’t see it adding enough value to be cost effective.
January 28th, 2010 at 1:32 am
It means nothing to me as a photographer. It lacks the portability of a compact media storage device and probably can’t read raw files. If has no built in card reader, so can’t replace that device. If i wanted something more than a PMSD, i’d go for a netbook. That will let me look at and even do minor work on RAW files, i can load my regular applications. If i truly wanted a tablet like device, i’d get the Archos. If this had been more like an Apple netbook w/o keyboard, it would have had incredible potential, but this really is just an over sized iTouch.
January 28th, 2010 at 8:58 am
Michael,
That’s a very interesting point, one that I hadn’t considered. Does the iPad have a USB port? I haven’t seen all the specs yet so I’m not sure. Boy a SD and CF slot would be great.
Of course to make this useful you’d have to get the larger model with more storage. A device like that would have been great when I went to Europe last spring.
Though I still have to agree with you other two commenters. I still haven’t seen an overly compelling reason to buy one. Then again, I didn’t see a need to get an iPhone for the first couple of years either, and now I can’t live without.
January 28th, 2010 at 9:35 am
I agree with Tim about the iPhone – and I’m sure that the iPad will be worth having at version 2 or 3 when it has better ports/connectivity, better screen protection and beefier apps. Until then …
January 28th, 2010 at 9:53 am
Here’s what i feel would need to be added for this device to be useful for me as a Photographer:
1) more storage w/o it cosing $800
2) an application that can decode and view Raw files on the fly (maybe even a limited edition of Photoshop Lightroom )
3) a USB port and drivers to download pics from the camera on the fly (or a wireless way)
January 28th, 2010 at 9:58 am
The $130 of a price increase is just for the addition of 3G to the iPad, not the monthly charge. The monthly, no-contract data charge from ATT is $15 for 250MB/month and $30 for unlimited data.
From a photographer’s standpoint, this would be a great item if you use it for what its worth. Displaying your portfolio, making appointments, taking notes, keeping up with literature. It will definitely turn heads to potential clients.
But as a means to replace anything, especially a laptop or netbook, its far from it. The lack of simple technology on the device, especially USB ports or even a card reader, does not make it a direct replacement for any laptop/netbook in my eyes. It is far from being a replacement. I think Steve Jobs had it wrong when he stated that Netbooks are useless, because I’m positive my Mini 311 can do much more than the Apple iPad can.
It truly is going to be a niche product, a novelty item for those who do not own either an iPhone/Smartphone or a laptop/netbook. Yes, it’s supposed to be middle ground between an iPhone and a Macbook, but when it comes to my work and how I conduct business, I choose functionality over wow factor.
January 29th, 2010 at 8:45 am
What Paolo says about pricing above is accurate. You really should correct the information in your post…it’s quite misleading.
January 29th, 2010 at 10:36 am
You’re absolutely right Chris. The original CNN article misstated the monthly fee for 3G. I’ve updated the post.
It appears some of you are with me. It seems this would be great for casual use. Social networking, cruising the web, etc. But as a tool for a photographer, I’m not sure it’s there yet. There’s no built in USB or CF reader (though you can get that with a $30 connector apparently).
Of course I wouldn’t be surprised if the device becomes much more capable in the future. I could see this spawning competitors with better features, thus driving Apple to make an even more capable iPad on the next generation, much like the iPhone.
I could see Adobe putting out some kind of Lightroom Lite for the iPad. Additionally, I could see onOne software (makers of the DSLR Camera Remote software for iPhone) putting out a really killer remote shooting app for the iPad. That would be handy for my portrait shoots on location.
March 2nd, 2010 at 5:10 pm
Hey, great post. I just found this blog, but I will definitely come here again. Have a great day.