Apple gadgets becoming lame

TECHNOLOGY - I am sorry, but I just can't hop up and down over the new Apple iPad. If we want to get technical Hewlett-Packard came out with roughly the same product 3 years ago but discontinued it due to low sales figures (it was a tad expensive but did have more options).

The HP Touch Pad came with a removable keyboard and a pen and except for the software is basically the exact same product as the new Apple iPad. If you can call it new. The HP product was essentially a touch pad laptop...

And now with the popularity of the iPad they're releasing a new version of the product: The HP Slate.

But here's the thing. They're all rubbish. Its just another tech gadget for people who have money to burn and love to show off their gadgets to their friends. (I know quite a few gadget geeks and they're all braggarts at heart. Their primary goal is kewlness by being the first kid (or adult) on the block with the new toy: "Nyah nyah! I got one and you don't!")

But really its just a gimmick. Its just like 3D TVs, SmartPhones and SatNav in your car. Its just another gimmicky gadget which in theory is supposed to make your life easier, but in reality it just proves how many people can't use a map, follow directions, are addicted to their email, and are obsessed with having a big 3D TV because that's what they think is important.

However these gadgets don't necessarily make your life easier. If anything they complicate your life by making you chained to your Facebook account, your email inbox, your Twitter account... and you ultimately end up stressed out because of some miscommunication, an email feud with a soon-to-be-ex-friend, frustration from the inadequacies of the technology and eventually burnout...

There's also another two factors which should not be overlooked:

#1. Obsoletism: The gadgets you buy very quickly become obsolete from a technical standpoint because every 6 months roughly there will be a new better product out there and you will be questioning why you wasted your money on a product which so quickly became lame.

#2. Compatibility: In the future (according to Windows, Apple, etc) the goal will be to make computing devices all compatible with each so that you can easily network and switch from one device to the next easily... like the video below:



A lot of these gadgets aren't very compatible however. The iPad isn't even fully compatible with regular Apple products, let alone non-Apple products.

Apple CEO Steve Jobs is very insistent that his company control both the hardware and software used on their products. This makes it very difficult to create compatibility and results in a micro-monopoly wherein only Apple users buy Apple products. The rest of the population is looking for more practical, affordable and compatible products.

But none of this matters to the losers in the lineups waiting to buy the newest gadget. To them its the constant effort of trying to be kewl. Its like bling, crack cocaine and a new toy all rolled into one.

It starts out "Mommy mommy, I want one!", but after awhile its just another toy tossed in the corner with all the other toys. Worse than a 4-year-old with a Hot Wheels addiction.

The silly thing is how often people don't NEED these gadgets. They're just buying them for the sake of greed: I see therefore I want.



See Also: The Future of Phones