Why I won’t be buying an iPad for now

This week the internet is alive with tech journalists and Apple fans breathlessly describing how the iPad is going to change business and the world. All of their predictions may well be true, but it’s best holding off buying an iPad until the hype cycle runs its course.

Right now, iPad users are in classic bleeding edge territory as the early adopters explore the neat features and the disappointing drawbacks of the new device. There will be joy and tears as they make their journey.

It’s great they are making those discoveries as this knowledge will make life easier for the later adopters and Apple will address many of the disappointments in their next version, which is the main reason for holding off buying the first version.

We saw this with the iPhone — the early adopters rushed into buying it even though it wasn’t a particularly well featured device. A year after the original iPhone release, the new 3G model addressed most of the dissatisfaction with the original model. It was a better, cheaper product.

Exactly the same thing will happen with the iPad, and that’s why you should save your pennies. Almost certainly the next version of the iPad will include multitasking, without which you can’t be talking on Skype while editing your LinkedIn profile and will probably prove the biggest headache to iPad users.

Where the iPad may really change things is in the retail, logistics and medical industries. All of these sectors have seen some adoption of tablet computers, but the clunky, overpriced Windows-based tablets have held the market back. The cheaper, lighter and better-designed Apple device will probably accelerate the take up of tablet devices and the business methods that work with them.

The retail angle shouldn’t be understated. We recently looked at how iPhone products like Redlazer are changing the retail industry and SmartCompany blogger Craig Reardon, recently described how Australian retailers are being left behind by the net.

It’s no coincidence one of the first business applications for the iPad is a point of sale application. Should the next iPad version be released with a rear-mounted camera, it will be more than a glorified cash register and deliver some serious power to smaller retailers.

The iPad further illustrates just how pervasive computing and the internet is capable of challenging established business models. If you’re ignoring how tools like the iPad, mobile internet, cloud computing and social media are changing your business then your company probably isn’t going to be around in a few years time.

While it’s best to hold off buying an iPad right now because buying the first release of any computer product is a mugs game, you can’t ignore the changes it presents to business. By waiting you make sure you get the best return on your technology investment.

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Paul Wallbank is a writer, speaker and broadcaster on technology issues. He founded national support organisation PC Rescue in 1995 and has spent over 14 years helping businesses get the most from their IT investment. His PC Rescue and IT Queries websites provide free advice to business computer users and his monthly newsletter has over 3,000 subscribers.