As far as expectations versus reality for many people, reading discussions and the few reviews of those who got a hands on there are definitely cheerleaders for the device out there. We ourselves definitely applaud Apple for being first to market with the latest push in the computing market to get consumers hooked on tablet computing. The price is about on par with what you would expect from an Apple product running between $499 for a crippled 16Gb WiFi only version all the way up to $829 for a 64GB WiFi + 3G version. Operating System wise, it’s running the iPhone 3.2 Operating system. Sprinkle in Apples stated battery life of 10 hours, proprietary processor running at 1Ghz and a mid-range 720p HD  touchscreen display and it all sounds kind of cool.

The question now is will this device actually live up to the hype that’s been building on it for the last year? Given some of the feed back on everything from Twitter to Facebook and even just fellow geeks and nerds we’re finding that for now the device has what we’d call a lukewarm welcome. Apple has designed this product around their iPhone OS, this makes the iPad able to run anything you’re going to find on iTunes including all the apps for iPhone. The problem is that means it’s also lacking where the iPhones themselves are lacking and even worse gives the tablet no more use than an iPhone except a bigger screen and lack of actually being able to put the thing to your ear and make a phone call. Now we’re not calling the iPad a failure in that it’s completely useless but since it’s lacking a laundry list of features that were expected and in many ways are becoming kind of standard on computing devices Apple took their next iPod and turned it into what can best be described as an Apple TV.

So why bash the iPad?

There’s a reason for this big let down too, and one we find valid. When you think Apple Computers, you think of a case design everyone loves and innovation. We expect both of these from Apple because their design and innovation is the reason why we buy their products. Without the iPod music would have remained difficult to purchase digitally (via iTunes) and the iPhone created a revolution in cell phones and even caused companies like Motorola to step back (for years) and look at the Apple design in an attempt to create phones that could rival it. Because of the iPhone the cost of touchscreen phones and data plans for cellphones dropped like a rock in a few short years. Sure there’s other market factors for this happening and there’s a chance if Apple didn’t someone else could have but it’s undeniable that when you purchase an Apple product it’s because it’s a hyped device and you expect it to do what it’s hyped to do.

Because it simply lacks innovation, it has a screen that only has 720p HD rather than a full 1080p HD. It has a proprietary processor that if properly “spec’ed” by Apple is for all intents and purposes under powered compared to even $249 PC netbook rivals. Toss in the issue that you cannot multi-task on this “netbook” and you have a real problem, because many people like to listen to music while they compute or check their email while writing a paper. To make matters more complicated Apple still has not partnered with Adobe Flash to bring a Flash player to the iPad, that’s all well and good unless your website is in Flash or you want to watch YouTube, Hulu, or just about 80% of any of the interactive content on the internet. Many people even found the lack of a simple camera for either quick snaps while reading an ebook in the park while the kids play or the ability to web conference just disappointing.

So it’s not innovative and its base price is hovering dangerously close to what most high-end Windows based netbooks cost… so what is the average photographer supposed to do? Well the answer to us is simple, based on Apple’s past history with new devices one of two things will happen with the iPad. This first generation tablet was designed to appeal specifically to the mac addicted die hards that wanted a Mac Netbook without having to create a Hackintosh out of a Windows based netbook. Though possible we think the second most likely scenario is that this is a first generation device and right about at the spot where Apple knows they’ll sell enough to get the market a little saturated. They’ll release the device now and next year they will announce a second generation iPad with a new and improved flavor and people will again jump for joy that a few of their expectations for first generation were finally answered in the second generation. They got away with this tactic when it came to the iPod and iPhone so it wouldn’t be shocking to see it repeat again.

So, to buy or not to buy?… If you’re a die hard fan you’re already camped out in front of the nearest Apple store. If you’re not and you think it’s cool but can wait, definitely wait. There’s PC versions being released in the 3rd and 4th Quarter of this year and you can be sure that it won’t take Apple long to release an updated version of their hardware soon enough.