Now, unless you've been living under a rock this week, you'll have heard that Apple have unveiled their newest gadget.
Designed to bridge the gap between the iPhone and the Mac Book Pro, the iPad is Apple's first tablet computer and has already been dubbed the product of 2010 for mobile workers by many.
Tablet computers are the next big mobile device and the iPad is believed to become a major rival to Amazon's Kindle. Apple are hoping the success of the iPhone will help to encourage mobile workers to embrace the new iPad. The iPad features a touch screen, wireless internet and a virtual keyboard and comes with differing memory sizes.
But is it really good enough to change the game in the mobile working world? Some believe it can. It's small size and impressive looks make it a much more attractive prospect than the traditional mobile device. If the right applications are developed, many believe it could really take off.
Ted Schadler, writing on the Forrester Research blog, said;“It will catch on quickly as an employee-provisioned third device, particularly for Mobile Professionals, 28% of the workforce. IT will support it in many organizations. After all, it’s just a big iPhone to them and already 20% of firms support them.”
On the other hand, there are those that remain unconvinced. Many believe the iPad will become much more popular with consumers, rather than business users. This is down to the fact that it's predominately been designed to allow easy access to digital news content.
The iWork applications are available individually for use on the iPad and not as a bundle, as you would expect if it was designed for business users. Similarly, many have said these applications are of a much lower quality than the desktop versions.
So, it remains to be seen if mobile workers will take to the iPad as much as Apple had hoped but, with about 70% of Fortune 100 companies currently trying iPhones, it seems 2010 will be a bumper year for Apple either way.
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