I’m not planning on buying an iPad… yet. I’ve played with one, and it truly isn’t much more than an XL iPod Touch. It’s a worthy first step. A very nice personal email, web browsing, casual gaming and photo/video viewing device. Emphasis on personal—the iPad is not built for sharing.
What’s missing at this point is how the iPad fits into the big picture in terms of the family media center. What’s lacking is the capability to access a network where data can be stored, streamed and shared among an authorized group of users. Apple’s iPad is piece of the puzzle (a puzzle that Apple’s engineers are undoubtedly working toward completing); I’d like to examine how the pieces will come together through ongoing developments in delivering high-bandwidth streaming media via wifi networks and data storage in the cloud.