Sunt o victima clara a gadgetmaniei motiv pentru care atunci cand am vazut iPadul m-am enervat pentru ca nu era un e-reader asa cum mi-l inchipuisem eu, ci mult mai mult decat un simplu e-reader. Intre timp am depasit enervarea initiala in asa masura incat ma gandesc foarte serios sa imi iau iPad. In ciuda faptului ca lucrez in online insa, nu am vrut sa trec prin furcile caudine ale citirii de milioane de review sites care imi spun daca si cum e mai bun iPadul decat alte tablete de pe piata. Nu am luat niciodata o decizie complet obiectiva si rezonabila in ceea ce priveste gadgeturile pe care le folosesc din doua motive: refuz sa inteleg 100% toate detaliile tehnice, si cred ca e ipocrit din partea unui om de advertising sa nu decida macar 50% bazat pe puterea de persuasiune a brandului.

Din aceste motive ma gasesc acum in dilema iPad vs Galaxy Tab. Va marturisesc din prima ca sunt un fan Apple ceea ce da un punct din start Ipadului. Pe de alta parte sustin ideea de libertate si open source in tehnologie ceea ce da un punct GT-ului care ruleaza pe platforma android, mult mai deschisa si mai permisiva decat cea de pe iPad (intre timp un amic imi spune ca a gasit un tutorial de instalare a androidului pe iPhone. mai e doar un pas pana la android pe ipad atunci, nu? :) ). Imi place designul curat si solid al iPadului pe care insa GT-ul l-a copiat aproape in intregime deci puncte pentru ambele deviceuri. GT-ul este insa mult mai usor, ceea ce, in mod ciudat nu este neaparat un atu ptr el in ochii mei pentru ca, daca voiam un smart phone luam un smart phone. Totusi, GT-ul primeste 1/2 punct pentru ca e mai usor si mai compact. Eu am degete lungi insa un iPad nu pot tine intr-o palma. GT-ul in schimb se potriveste. iPadul are insa un punct in plus pentru ca e mai fain cand vrei sa vezi filme.

ceea ce ma duce la unde as folosi un astfel de device. imi petrec mult timp citind, “rasfoind” ziare online, vizionand short films, filme sau prezentari, scriu mult pe blog, folosesc Twitter si Facebook des. In rest nu prea vad ce altceva as putea face cu ele: ma gandesc ca poate ar fi frumos sa merg la prezentari cu iPadul care arata mai bine si e mult mai mobil decat un laptop, fie si el unul mic. ambele deviceuri ma ajuta sa fac cele de mai sus. singura diferenta este ca iPadul este mult mai restrictiv la instalarea de programe care sa ruleze filmele mele – majoritatea luate de pe torente :) , sau muzica pe care nu vreau neaparat sa o trec prin iTunes. Desi stiu ca exista un VLC player in app store si e chiar gratis, as fi preferat sa nu fie atat de complicat sa te bucuri de muzica si filme pe iPad. Aici nu primeste niciun punct. GT-ul te lasa sa faci orice cu androidul sau si primeste doua puncte. Nu stiu ce poti incarca pe iPad insa presupun ca, fiind necesar sa treci tot prin iTunes, nu prea multe. GT-ul are, din cate am vazut un USB port normal. Un alt punct pentru el aici. Nu imi dau seama daca ma intereseaza foarte tare ca GT-ul are front si back facing vs IPad care nu are deloc. Probabil ca nu pentru ca nu prea fac fotografii cu telefonul si nici nu prea folosesc webcamul de la Mac.

Finalmente, insa, iPadul da lovitura de gratie cu pretul. In acest moment, cu putina negociere poti lua un iPad mic fara 3G pentru ca vreau wifi si atat la 2300 -2700 ron. un GT nu scade sub 3500 RON. Pentru o tableta, mult prea scump. Mai degraba imi iau un MacBook Pro cu 1000 RON in plus.

asadar, adunand punctele cumva ajung la un tie break. si aici, in mod normal, ar interveni brandul si ar castiga detasat iPadul. moment in care, nu ma pot impiedica sa nu observ efectul pervers al crizei. desi imi place sa cred ca iPadul castiga pe brand, imi dau seama ca daca ar fi mai ieftin GT-ul ar castiga detasat.
:) . alte argumente???

Imagine de aici

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Due to requests, I am also including the English exec summary of the above :D

I am a sure victim of ‘gadget fever’ and when I first saw the iPad I was enraged because it was not the smart e-reader i had expected it to be but rather something more. Meanwhile, I have gotten over my initial displeasure and am seriously considering getting an iPad. so, despite the fact that I work in the digital business, I hate reading countless reviews about what the iPad does or does not. I have never really relied solely on facts when choosing things for two reasons: I refuse to understand all the minutia of gadgetry and I think that, being a marketing person, I should leave at least 50% of the decision on the power of the brand.

so that’s why I cannot choose between the iPad and the Galaxy Tab. I am an Apple fan so I would go for the iPad any day now. I am also an open source fan which means that I love the GT because it runs on android which is so much more awesome [meantime, a friend tells me that he's found a way to install android on iPhone so that means android on iPad soon, no? :D D]. both devices get some points then. however, the GT is much lighter, which for me is not so much of a plus because it makes it a weird smart phone mongrel. so it gets only 1/2 points for compactness. I have long fingers but i still cannot hold the iPad in one hand which is a minus, but OTOH the iPad is better for watching movies.

which gets me to usage. where would I use them? I hang out a lot reading online, watching movies, listening to music and updating my blog, or using social media. I think that an iPad would be more useful for these and also great to take to presentations because it’s like a laptop only handier. but the GT also does all of these. the only difference is that the iPad is so much more restrictive when it comes to installing stuff , and i have to admit i have a lot of illegal movies and music transiting my devices. although i know there’s a VLC app for iPad I really wish Apple were not such shit-heads about keeping their technology pristine. so no points for the iPad and more points for the GT because the android is just so much more flexible.

I wondered about the front and back facing cameras of the GT and if that was a plus, compared to the iPad’s non existent camera but I really don’t care too much about it.

However, and incredibly, the iPad rocks on price. I won’t get 3G because I am a free wifi chaser, so non 3G it goes for less than 2400 RON which is awesome. The GT OTOH never goes below 3500 RON which is a lot.

so, you see, if you add all the points we have a tie break. and this is where brand should step in and the ipad would be a clear winner. normally. but, it’s a freaking financial crisis and i have to admit, hand on hear, that if the GT were a bit less expensive I would buy one tomorrow.
:) . other points of view?