Is the iPad Just a Big iPod Touch?

Apple recently introduced their latest high-tech gadget, the iPad. Although Apple fans dutifully lined up in droves to get theirs first, many tech reviewers weren’t so impressed with what they considered to be a puffed-up iPod Touch. However, with the recent wave of e-readers yet to crest, many see the iPad as a Kindle-killer. The print industry may very well see the iPad as their knight in shining armor, riding an Apple-white horse.

Granted, the main difference between this first iPad and the iPod touch really comes down to the screen. The specs and available software are pretty much the same. Screen size is obviously different; the strange thing is that people can’t seem to decide if it’s a positive or a negative. On the plus side, everything on the iPad is easier to see. This is especially true when used as an e-reader. The Touch could read too, but the screen was definitely a handicap. The newly-sized screen plus a few new iWork applications make the iPad a serious draw for both readers and business types.

On the minus side, the iPad won’t fit into your pocket (unless of course you’re wearing clown pants). Detractors say this makes the iPad less mobile and therefore less usable. Instead of tucking your device safely away in your clothes, you’ll have to carry it separately.

After size, it’s difficult to find many more differences between the iPad and the iPod Touch. The same applications will run on both devices, thanks to the use of identical operating systems. Surprisingly, the first iPads are unable to multitask, something that the iPod Touch has already achieved. Of course, anyone not born yesterday is already expecting major revisions and new iPad releases.

So the question for now is whether the market can sustain both the iPad and the iPod Touch. Apple seems to be squarely behind its new device. Only time will tell whether or not the consumer will join them.