Why has the iPad been so successful?

Given the failure of tablet computers to achieve success over many years why has the iPad sold so well?

My thoughts are:-

The Apple brand
The iPod/iPhone heritage
Compactness, even though there are complaints about weight
Instant start, from hibernation at least

On the negative side:-

No SD card slot
No printer access
No access to file system
Many web pages aren't suited to touch navigation
Being forced to use the App Store to buy and instal apps

 

Because its Apple. And just like with the Iphone, they are successful. Mostly because of their great marketing and amazing Ios, that is pretty much flawless.(with the functions it has)

 

That's what I meant by iPod heritage. I think that it is a major factor in the success of the iPad.

Of course this heritage is undoubtedly behind some of the shortcomings. The iPad's larger screen removes some of the constraints the affect the iPhone and IPod.

 

Negative is in the eye of the beholder! Believe it or not, there are people who actually did research the product BEFORE they bought it and knew fully well what the iPad could and could not do and bought it because it suited their needs/wants just as it is.

Personally, I don't see any of those things you mentioned as being a negative attribute of the iPad. For the same reason, I do not feel the need to jailbreak my iPad either.

Maybe I am in the minority, but I bought my iPad because of what it could do right out of the box, not for what I wanted it to do, thought it would be able to do or what I could make it do by doing an end run around the iOS.

Its OK to like the iPad just the way Apple designed it!

 

But there is a USB port

it comes with your camera SD card reader attachment.

 

But if all those things are so important to you, then why didn't you buy a laptop or netbook instead of an iPad?

 

No SD card slot, meh, who cares?
No printing? That's coming in November.
No file system? It's not a computer, doesn't need a file system (but I agree it might be useful to some people)
Websites not good with touch? I haven't found one yet, what sites are you talking about?
I like the app store. Tons of great apps!

 

Most of the negatives you listed can easily be remedied with jailbreaking. Using the camera connection kit you can easily transfer files using ifile. I wouldn't have my iPad any other way!

 

He forgot to mention battery life. No laptop comes close.

The reason that prevous tablets failed is because they were running Windows. Apple built the iPad with ios in mind.

It boggles the mind when people who don't like the device take the time to join this forum and critize the device. You would think they had better things to do?