iPad languishes with old OS until November

Ah….I disagree that the iPad was launched before it was ready. On launch, the OS was a slightly modified version of the successful iPhone system. Since we got the iPhone 4 with iOS4 there is no doubt the iOS3 on the iPad feels a bit ancient. But it is only a temporary thing and will soon be forgotten when the upgrade comes. I don’t think many iPad owners will have noticed. As for USB and other ports, I absolutely do not agree that we will see this. Apple are good at doing away with redundant ports and being somewhat ahead of the game. Any iPad owner will tell you there’s no need for a USB port. The Apple connector port has accessories to enable connection of, for example, an SD card, and I can’t see much demand for anything else given the relentless migration to cloud storage. Multitasking isn’t that much of a big deal (as I’ve found on the iPhone 4 but nested folders is. Can’t wait for November.

I suspect you and I shall never agree on this one, as you know, I feel that the iPad, splendid though it is in concept, and I agree, great to use indoors, was launched before it was really ready to be launched. In its current state it has too many limitations in use (as you yourself discovered), most of which will certainly be dealt with once Apple produce the software they promised. I still don’t understand why they didn’t wait until they had that software ready, and then launched it.Obviously they planned to give it software that would deal with the various shortcomings it has from the word go, so why not get that in place first and then launch it?It is this that I am talking about, not the concept itself, which I do agree is interesting, and has certainly had a tremendous effect on how we view mobile computing.Give it the possibility to multitask properly, a USB port or two and it will become a sensible thing to own.

Tony, my views don’t seem to be widely shared and there is no sign of a slackening in demand for the iPad. When it was launched it had a slightly advanced version of the then standard iOS 3.x system. Since then we’ve had the iPhone 4 and iOS4. I am just surprised that it is taking so long to port the new OS to the iPad. Nevertheless, I don’t think you can argue that the iPad was launched before its time; nor that it is in some way incomplete. The OS will catch up and, I am sure, the iPad is keeping most of its buyers happy. My gripe – size and weight – does not seem to bother some of my good friends who are totally addicted to the device.

I rather get the feeling that after all the energy and noise of the launch of the iPad, Apple have moved on, and rather forgotten about the iPad.

If this is so, it would seem both a pity, and rather stupid of Apple – as you point out, the software has now been available for months, and I can’t really see why Apple haven’t simply told their army of developers to make the needed tweeks to it to make it work on the iPad.The iPad will remain a sort of nice idea that wasn’t carried completely through until this happens. I still don’t understand why they launched the thing when they did, as they must have known that it was an incomplete device – How much better it would have been to wait until they had it as it obviously should be,, and then bunged it on the market. Then it would have been the device that all the hype claimed it was… and which it patently isn’t.