Interesting points raised on the longevity of the Iphone apps ,being an open source champion I believe that the best result for all ,would be for an adoption of a standard that allows all apps to be built for cross platform scalability. Did I just say that …ahh ! as Martin Luther once said …..”I have a dream”

I think netpads will eventually become more mainstream as they are a good balance of a robust device, multi-tasking and connectivity options.

The whole world is building for iPhones but how long will it last? Will developers become sick of continually having to convert PC apps for ever-changing touch devices? Should they just embrace the change and challenge? Apart from developers – can users handle ever changing UX and UI which throws out the KISS approach of PC app development?

My concern on O/S is the architecture, iPhones apps are being churned out by the millions but can users effectively manage all their apps and be able to access them without information overload. Whilst we bag windows, at the end of the day, it provides a familiar and simple platform to access your tools which for time-poor users which is really all an O/S should do.

Whilst I'm ultimately a fence sitter of mobile devices versus. netbooks, I just question the scalability of mobile devices and operating systems and whether relying on firmware over hardware may hinder the futureproofing of these devices being the source of truth for the busy nerd.

OJ said that they will “in some way be embraced”, while you're saying that they will be embraced full stop. Many people bought the Nokia N-Gage, but they're pretty much extinct now. Many people bought the Sega Saturn, I think you're getting the picture.

If I were to put my money on a netpad that will be successful to a decent level, i'd back Microsoft instead of Apple. But i'm not a fanboy of any technology, I just buy what suits my needs, and sorry to say it… but it has to look aesthetic.

I may have a negative approach to netpads, I concede to that point… but it's only because I just don't see where the innovation lies in netpads. Functionally, new netbooks with touchscreen functionality do the same thing + keyboard. So Tony, may I ask why you bag Microsoft negatively all the time, continually campaign how linux is the best OS out there and how MS OS's are terrible, but praise their netbook? A foot in both camps? LOL

I remember back to when the iphone came out, and I don't remember geeks only being the cry. I remember “mac fans only” to start with, then it became a fashion symbol, albeit an expensive one… and now it's widely dominating the phone industry. Why? Innovation + design + cool features + ease of use = success.

I still like having a real book in my hands vs an ebook, but for ebooks… you need a good screen and ease of reading/use.

I just really don't see netpads as the way forward, it may be a phase, it may lead to better innovation of devices most people will continue to use… like laptops and netbooks.

I am happy to be proven wrong later, and hopefully that will be me proven wrong because computers have been taken to such a new level that i'm glad to be alive to see that kind of evolution of technology.

I take your point OJ that you don't like devices that try to cover devices that try to cover functionality that they form-factor isn't really designed to accommodate. However is your view that of the general populace only time will tell?

Pete I have to say that I am disappointed by your negative approach given that you are involved in the development life cycle. Also in one breath you say that it's great they are developing them and then in the other they won't be embraced and not cool. A foot in both camps ? Which is it?

I think you need to step back and think about when the iphone came out , geeks only was the cry , now every second person owns one. Don't under estimate the marketing power of the big boys. They have invested far to much for them to fail.

I do agree the ebook capability will be good and in this case size does matter, the size of the application will make the difference. Have you ever tried reading book on a smartphone , very tedious experience.

Trendiness isn't the kicker here in my view. The kicker is how easy it is to move around with one of these devices given that so many other devices already exist which are smaller, cheaper and almost as functional. We have lightweight eBook readers with insane battery life. We have phones that can do craploads of functions (eg. the iPhone, Android). The Netpad is sitting between them, attempting to be new when it's not.

I personally don't use the iPhone for reading books of any kind though lots of other people do. It's a tedious and painful experience in my view. I'd much rather have the physical media, or something like a Nook or a Kindle DX.

This reaffirms my point: I don't like devices that try to cover functionality that they form-factor isn't really designed to accommodate.

I don't know why… but every time I hear netpad, i feel like i'm listening to an ad on TV like… “Now available, the netpad with wings! for extra support when you really need it” LOL

Seriously, it's great they're developing them… but will the end users embrace? My vote is on NOT, aside from geeks who just want it because they can. There's nothing “cool” about netpads, trendy, let alone a fashion statement.

Of course, any device that can read ebooks is great as a delivery system for books, magazines, etc… but you can do that on iphone and most new devices already.

In my view, Apple could learn a lot from Microsoft's effort and vice versa.

I am fairly certain that over time the issues that I have with the usability and clunkiness of the device will slowly disappear. They'll no doubt try to make this as frictionless as possible otherwise the market will balk at it. It doesn't matter how cool it is if you can't walk around with something clanging on your belt.

Rather than have to wear rings on the fingers, or anything for that matter, I'd like to see something similar to what they're doing with the cameras when it comes to recognising what it is you're looking at. If they can detect that stuff, why can't they detect hand/finger movements as well? Having nothing on the hands out of the ordinary would be best imho. I realise that this would be a very difficult technical problem to solve, and detecting motion via something attached to the fingers is way easier, but I'm thinking “best case”. As far as the rest of hte device is concerned, I could easiliy deal with something in the sunnies. The worry I have there is the transmission medium affecting your head!

I'm looking forward to seeing the next version that these guys produce!

As I said before I believe he IPad falls short of the mark ( it will sell big though) however it's disruptive affect on the market will mean serious development and marketing will be applied by the other players.

The net affect (scuse the pun ) will be the beginning of convergence . Also authors like yourself will embrace the platform as a serious avenue for ebook sales.

On the gaming platform side I am not so sure and will investigate further as I am aware of some cutting edge work being done in the QUT and RMIT universities .

I agree with OJ, the iPad looks like a well designed device but it's HUGE and impractical. And if they keep developing it to make it smaller and add a phone, what do you end up with? the iPhone! Reverse development in action.

Would I buy a pad/tablet/sleet/thingy? nope… no idea why I need one. If I want to use one to write my next book, no way i'm touching glass screens to punch keys for up to 200,000 words, I want a keyboard!

And i'm not wanting to use a pretend pen ALA Nintendo DSi, as i'll feel like i'm 12 years of age, or 60 years of age using it.

My iphone really does everything I would use the iPad or tablet devices for… so in my mind, those devices are still a fail.

But when the 6th sense devices come out, THAT will excite me.

But that's just my 2c

OJ, good point about games machines. I use my xbox360 for almost everything, from streaming video, viewing pictures, watching dvds, kareoke, and games!