An arresting sight in the Apple Store at White City this morning: An octet of elderly ladies sitting on stools around a trade-mark table, each with a shiny new iPad Air in front of her. Not one was under 65, by my reckoning, and all were in it for the duration. With their pencils and notebooks at the ready, their glasses cases open like so many expectant clams, these are the baby boomers after the babies have long gone, ready for a new challenge and flush with the cash to buy Apple’s new toy.
In charge of this coterie was a 20-something blueshirt with a neatly trimmed beard, grandson material at best, ready to impart all the wonders of modern technology. This little vignette neatly encapsulates the popularity of tablet computing among all age groups but, particularly, among so-called senior surfers. It also speaks for the genius of the Apple Store concept, part world-beating retail experience and part night school for ladies who iPad.