iPhoneAlley had an article on Friday discussing the top ten reasons NOT to give a college bound student an iPad.
Here is my take on each of the reasons they give:
The ten reasons include:
1. It’s Expensive
Compared to some other tablets out there the iPad is actually relatively cheap.
2. It’s Not the Best Solution for Note-Taking or Editing Documents
I tend to disagree here. Students these days dont really take long form notes they just print out their professors lecture notes and write quick one word/phrase notes as the professor is presenting.
3. It’s Too Distracting
To an extent I have to disagree with this too. If you have a good disciplin for doing what you need to do, i.e. taking notes in class, the iPad is not a distraction. I have found that I am actually more productive on days where I have my iPad at arms reach through the day because I use the iPad to read all my news and then when I am on my computer I am a lot more productive.
4. It’s Ultra-Portable and Ultra-Droppable
Really? If a 10-inch table is ultra-droppable than a 3.5 to 4.3 inch device, such as your iPhone or Droid, must be Mega-Droppable. I personally have never dropped my iPad. Has it fallen off my bed or desk, yes but thats not the same as dropping it and I have caught it every time, except for one, before it got scratched or dented. The one time I was not able to catch it, it was still working perfectly when I picked it up.
5. What Makes it Desirable to your Kid is What Makes it Desirable to Criminals
Whats this supposed to mean? I think what makes it desirable to college students is the low cost games in the app store and the idea that they can do pretty much anything they want on it while laying in bed.
6. It’s Meant for the Enjoyment of One Person, Which Means Social Seclusion
A couple of things here. First, there is the Apple TV. Buy an Apple TV and send your student off to school with both then they are able to watch their TV shows with their friends and roommates. Second, are computers not anti-social too?
7. Digital Text Books are a Marvel, but There’s No Secondary Market
Seriously? I can get a ton of free ebooks in PDF format online and import them into my iPad using iBooks, Good Reader, or any of the probably 100s of pdf reading apps that are available for the iPad.
8. It’s a Status Symbol, Plain and Simple
I am not so sure the iPad is a status symbol anymore. In 2010, I would have agreed. I see so many people, from all different strains of life, reading or playing games on iPad’s everywhere I go its not even funny.
9. It’ll Already be Old Technology by the Time You Buy It
Only techies care that it is going to be old technology, and even some of them would look past it if they are hoping to start developing for iOS.
10. They’ll Also Want a Laptop, Too
Who needs a laptop when schools have computer labs and libraries where students can go to type papers and do assignments. I mean seriously, unless your student is in a technology related major I see no reason why they would want or need both an iPad or a Laptop. I have a few friends in non-technology majors who have told me they would gladly take an iPad over their laptop because it does everything they use their laptop for when they are not working on a paper. Those same friends have told me that they usually go to the library or computer lab to work on their papers anyways and using the schools computers and emailing their work to themselves would not be outlandish.
That is all I got for now.