ByMike Moffit

Dear Friends,

It is iPademonium at Small Dog Electronics!

This issue of Kibbles & Bytes is going out right at midnight so that we can officially announce that Small Dog Electronics will be carrying the new Apple iPad at both of our retail locations, starting today, April 3. This will be a retail-only product. Pending the arrival of the FedEx shipment (our fingers are crossed that it will land later today), we will have stock of all three of the Wi-Fi models and will be getting the Wi-Fi/3G models when they ship later this month.

We have been dying to tell the world this news—we’re excited to be a part of one of the most important product launches in Apple history and are truly proud to be involved in this new product’s first days. I am a huge proponent of this new computing platform and I’ll hopefully have my new 64GB iPad in my hands on Saturday. While there have been some very lofty predictions of the impact of the iPad, I am content to realize that this is likely to be yet another platform for Apple to expand our computer tools. We have some of our employee’s thoughts about iPad in this issue.

I would have loved to have had an iPad on my recent vacation to Belize, which by the way, was completely awesome! I did some scuba diving, drank some rum drinks, read a bunch of books and generally recharged and relaxed. I’ll have the iPad for my next trip which is in only a couple weeks as I go to Hong Kong and China for a couple of trade shows and to visit some suppliers to discuss new products for the iPad.

The iPad is truly a revolutionary product that could very well change the face of laptop computing. While I can easily envision the huge impact in education (think online textbooks and no more huge backpacks for our kids), there are a number of other demographics that could easily utilize iPads—electronic databases and digital imaging for medical offices, restaurant menus, quality control on shop floors and many, many other industrial and business markets.

I think the iPad could be the computing platform of choice for many who do not need the full power of a laptop computer, where the need is simple for web surfing, photo management and email. And, watch closely as the Apple App Store begins to fill up with some very powerful games that very well may turn the iPad into the most powerful gaming machine.

For me, I do see it changing my computing habits significantly. For travel and meetings I think that all I will need is the iPad. I’ll probably switch to a MacBook Pro for my full computer and abandon the lightweight MacBook Air. Reading books is something I usually only have time for on airplanes and vacation, but when I do read books, I read very fast. I took five books to Belize and was still ended up reading books on my iPhone on the way home because I had finished them. While I have trained myself to read fast on the iPhone, it is not what I would call an optimal experience. The iPad will change that, for sure.

As I have said, Small Dog Electronics could not be prouder to be an Apple partner and Specialist reseller. I know our customers will get to know the iPad at our stores as all of our employees have been trained to demonstrate the features of the iPad and will be ready for you when you walk into our stores. Several of our employees reserved iPads for their own use and we will be allowing them to get in line with you for our first allocation of the new devices. Watch for some of their reviews!

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  • FEATURED SPECIAL | 04/02/10 – 04/09/10

    Last week we offered a bundle featuring the most popular Mac we carry, the “white unibody MacBook.”:http://www.smalldog.com/wag19931 While that bundle was popular, a few people wrote in asking if we’d offer something similar on a more professional MacBook Pro. You bet!

    This week we’re offering an Apple-refurbished 2.66GHz MacBook Pro 17-inch with 4GB RAM, 320GB hard drive and glossy HD display. We’re including AppleCare in the bundle, which will extend your service and support coverage to three years from the date you purchased your hardware. It provides global repair coverage through convenient service options and allows direct access to Apple experts for questions on a wide range of Mac topics.

    We’re also including a *free* 320GB portable Buffalo hard drive and a *free* Hammerhead sleeve. The Buffalo drive is fast, compact, fully portable and Time Machine-compatible.

    As always, this MacBook has free shipping plus no sales tax on orders that ship out of Vermont!

  • iPad: News and Reviews

    It’s getting rave reviews… here are some highlights. Feel free to share your thoughts with us as well! “Email us here.”:mailto:kali@smalldog.com

    * “Boing Boing”:http://www.boingboing.net/2010/03/31/a-first-look-at-ipad.html

    * “PC Mag.com”:http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2362042,00.asp

    * “NY Times”:http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/01/technology/personaltech/01pogue.html

    * “Wall Street Journal”:http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304252704575155982711410678.html

    * “USA Today”:http://www.usatoday.com/tech/columnist/edwardbaig/2010-03-31-apple-ipad-review_N.htm

    * “Chicago Sun Times”:http://www.suntimes.com/technology/ihnatko/2134139,ihnatko-ipad-apple-review-033110.article

  • iPad or iDud? Part Two: The Less Friendly Version

    When iPad was announced, I was surprised by the extreme negative options of iPad online. “This is Jobs’ biggest miss.” Why is this? First, I think people are uninformed about iPad’s capabilities and target audience. Second, I think the hype and expectation got away from Apple in the run-up to the launch. The general media was reporting iPad as a miracle product literally months before launch. Unless iPad was free, it could never match the expectations of the type of people who spend all their time in online technology forums.

    Of course, Apple itself is calling this a “revolutionarily” and “magical” device. Imagine if Apple simply said it was releasing a $500 eBook reader that also did everything the iPad can do. That’s only $100 more than Sony’s top eBook reader, and only $10 more than the Kindle with 9.7-inch screen (which is the same size as the iPad’s screen). The iPad has vastly more functionality than either of those devices. Some common criticism of iPad:

    *The name sucks!*

    I certainly don’t love the name, but I guarantee by summer few people will even notice it. Here are some other non-hygienic items with the name “pad” in them: notepad, TextPad, scratch pad, control pad, pad thai, mouse pad, crash pad, pad of the foot, shoulder pad, etc. etc. Remember when Nintendo announced the name for the Wii and everyone was confused and made awkward wee-wee jokes? No one even thinks of that anymore. No one except the guy with the popped collar in the corner who thinks his Richard Nixon imitation is just hee-larious.

    *No multitasking means it won’t EVER work for me!*

    There is a lot of misunderstanding about this. It is possible to run certain apps in the background on the iPad/iPhone, just as it is on the iPhone. I listen to iTunes music while using Facebook, writing emails, etc. all the time. And with Push notification, I also use IM while also doing other tasks on the iPhone.

    Now, background tasks aren’t the same as multitasking. Many people will want multitasking; it’s useful. Cut and paste is useful, as is the App Store, and GPS. Remember when the iPhone didn’t have those? And millions of iPhones were sold anyway? The iPhone has all those features now. I am very confident the iPad will indeed have multitasking in the near future. if multitasking is of supreme importance to you, wait for iPhone OS 4. That should be out by the summer, if not sooner.

    Also, so far literally every hands-on review of the iPad notes that it’s truly blazingly fast. Switching between apps is much, much faster than on an iPod or iPhone.

    *No Flash.*

    Apple says the iPad puts the full internet in your hands. Well–sort of. Like the iPhone and iPod touch, the iPad doesn’t support Flash. But most Netflix and YouTube videos will play on iPad, and Hulu is rumored to be working on an iPad-native app. Flash ads can be ported over into an iPad/iPhone-compatible format.

    Apple and Adobe have been having talks about optimizing Flash for the iPhone, a process that involves making Flash content smaller, more secure and more stable. But they appear to be at an impasse. This despite fact that the latest version of Adobe Flash Professional allows for the creation and export of iPhone/iPad apps.

    *It’s just a big iPod touch.*

    This complaint is off for two reasons: first, many people were clamoring for a large-screen iPhone/iPod touch. We heard our customers asking about this, our team was talking about this, and seminally huge (or at least vocal) numbers of online commentators hoping for a large, tablet-sized iPod touch.

    But when the iPad came out, some of these very same people are now complaining that the iPad is “just a big iPod touch.”

    Second, the iPad isn’t a big iPod touch/iPhone. It’s both more and less than those devices. As Steve Jobs said, it’s a “third way” between a full computer and an iPhone. The iPad isn’t designed for making calls like an iPhone–would anyone really want a 9.7-inch cell phone? Meanwhile, the larger screen makes the iPad more useful in some ways than a 3-inch iPhone/iPod.

    For example, long-form document editing. Sharing a movie or YouTube clip with a friend. Light image editing. Midi control for music. Personally, I use a number of video production apps that will be much better on a larger screen–including a storyboard tool, digital clapper, TelePrompTer, and script reader. Never mind the ability to watch and share footage on the 9.7-inch screen.

    As David Pogue says, “Now, though, it looks like Apple really has created something new. Criticisms of ‘like a laptop” and “a big iPod touch’ don’t really do justice to the possibilities.”

    *No HDMI output!*

    It would be cool if you could connect the iPad to your flat panel television. Oh wait–you can. You can also connect it to a projector, albeit with $30 cables from Apple. Many people want the iPad to have HDMI-out. I would have just preferred a Mini DisplayPort (all current Macs have a Mini DisplayPort), which converts easily to HDMI. Maybe this is one of the features Apple cut to get the price down to $500. In any case, very few people connect their iPhone or iPod to their television. Indeed, most of our customers don’t seem to know it’s possible to do this.

    *It’s not a portable device.*

    Really? Then how is a notebook portable?

    *It won’t fit in my pocket!*

    Get an iPhone or an iPod touch if you want a similar device that will fit in your pocket! Or don’t get anything at all! Or get bigger pockets! Actually, overalls have a nice big pocket on the chest.

    *It’s not a netbook!*

    It’s partly Steve Jobs’ fault that this comparison has come up; about netbooks, he said, “they’re not better at laptops than anything–they’re just cheaper.” The iPad is very different than a netbook because it’s not *meant* to be netbook. Netbooks have their place.

    Different in the same way that a motorcycle isn’t a sub-compact car. Both are small and efficient, but not the same! Likewise, no $500 netbook has a 9.7-inch Multi-Touch screen, can run 140,000 free/inexpensive apps (to date; more always being released), has a ten-hour battery life, built-in accelerometer, etc. This is a different device, and was intended to be so from the early design phase.

    For the people who say, “my netbook is better because it cost $100 less, it multitasks, it plays Flash and it has a webcam,” see above. I do understand those features are useful for many people.

    *I can’t call anyone on this!*

    Yes, you can, with an inexpensive third party app. It has a mic. It supports Skype. You can get full VoIP support for the iPad. But no matter what, you’re still going to look silly with a 9.7-inch cell phone pressed against your face.

  • iPad: Our Thoughts

    Obviously, we all have iPad on the brain, in one way or another. We love this kind of stuff–good or bad, it’s this excitement when Apple announces a new product that reminds us why we work here!

    You’ve read Don and Ed’s thoughts; here’s just another snippet of what we’re all thinking about:

    __”With the iPad launch only hours away, my excitement couldn’t be higher. At the very least, I believe the iPad will be a great secondary device to consume content and perform your computing basics. At the very best, it could be a real glimpse into future of computing. The issues with Flash playback and multitasking are valid complaints, but are ultimately minor speed bumps that will be taken care of in future hardware/software revisions.__

    __iPad will be a success because it will conform itself to each individual’s computing lifestyle without feeling like a computer. You’ll become immersed in the content and be able to read a book or watch a movie without feeling like you’re doing it on a computer. I am extremely excited to get my hands on the iPad and even more excited to see whats to come.”__

    -Dan

    __”I think iPad is going to be successful on many levels:__

    __1. Text Books: I think the iPad will help make text books affordable as well as give the student a piece of mind knowing that their text book is a digital file that can easily be deleted once the class is complete as well as reduce scoliosis among users by not having to cart around 100 lbs of books.__

    __2. Business class traveling: This device is going to reign supreme taking the place of the MacBook Air as the #1 choice for business travelers.__

    __3. Fun for the whole family: Games, movies and music will keep the kids happy, while email, web browsing, photo browsing and eBook reading will keep the parents busy for hours.__

    __The only downside I can see is that Apple is going to have to start a support group for iPad addicts.”__

    -Tim

    __”I can’t wait to get my hands on one. I’ll definitely be picking one up as soon as I can. The sheer potential of the platform is staggering. I think the naysayers just lack imagination. I can’t wait to play Plants vs. Zombies on it.”__

    -Cbass

    __”I would have preferred that my daughter bought an iPad rather than a laptop, but six months ago, that wasn’t an option. She will most likely buy one, but I’ll make her hold off until there are more reviews. I’d like to see what people think of it once the hype dies down and REAL people get the chance to use it.”__

    -Kerry

    __”As a musician and sound artist, I’m looking forward to seeing what sort of new/revised interactive music apps become available (as well as being able to use some of the existing apps on a larger device). There are already a ton of great-sounding and amazingly functional apps for musicians, but the larger interface will undoubtedly be easier to use in a live performance environment.__

    __I can see this becoming an extremely valuable tool to electronic musicians, DJs, and producers, and with some radical innovation and new apps, likely many other musicians as well. Just imagine if Pro Tools or Ableton were to design an app… this device will definitely a game-changer.”__

    -Gary

    __”iPad has great potential at museums as an interactive device. It could be carried to each exhibit where content in the form of a keynote or other format appears on the screen for you to perform comparative research, or quiz, or anything relative to the visit. There may even be custom apps that whiz you back in time or even into outer space after viewing the physical display or presentation at the museum.__

    __As an educational tool, the possibilities with the iPad are endless!”__

    -Art

    __”I’d love to get one right off the bat. Initially, iPad seemed redundant and extravagant to me, but the practical uses have become apparent–I’m not a fan of computers in meetings, but I understand that it’s quicker than taking notes with a pen and paper (and then typing them up later)… iPad is the perfect middle ground to take digital notes without the inevitable distraction of a computer at your fingertips.”__

    -Kali

  • We’ve had a bit of rainy weather but nothing like the rains further south. Our Apple rep lives in Rhode Island and the old Navy man was literally swimming when his car got stuck in the flood.

    Today, though it is clear and sunny and I left work a bit early to ride over to Enfield, NH to get new tires on my motorcycle. We expect temps in the 80s on iPad launch day, setting records here in Vermont for this time of the year. I’ll bet some customers just wait for Monday and enjoy the rare spring warmth, I know I will be outside!

    Thank you for reading this issue of Kibbles & Bytes!

    Your Kibbles & Bytes Team,
    _Don, Kali & Ed_