|
The answer to this question depends on what you mean by 'alternative' and whether you are referring to the iPad as a reading device or as a tablet form factor multi-purpose device.
If you're talking only about reading, then there are countless alternatives, all of which beat the iPad in terms of having better screens (e-ink) or not being closed systems with arbitrary restrictions on what you can use them for based on Steve Jobs's personal values.
But the question seems to be asking if there are devices that are exactly the same as the iPad that are alternatives to the iPad, which is an odd question. There are a few similar devices, and many more on the horizon.
My cell phone has almost the same amount of power as the iPad, and can run essentially the same software. If I want a bigger screen or need to do some typing I can use my laptop (which is as portable as an iPad) or a netbook with more power and more possibilities than an iPad for a lower price tag.
For reading, a backlit LCD screen is simply a deal breaker for me. For me to get a tablet it would have to replace my Kindle primarily. I would then find other uses for it I suppose, but for now I can't think of a single task I could do on a tablet that I couldn't do better on my phone or laptop or Kindle.
I think most manufacturers are going to wait and see what happens with the iPad. There is yet to be any indication that the iPad serves any useful purpose. It fills a void between laptop/netbook and phone that I don't think many people actually have. But the software developers may come up with some amazing software that makes the tablet form factor important and useful (which is, after all, what led to the iPhone revamping the industry). If the iPad does eventually become a useful device other manufacturers will simply make better tablets that don't adhere to Apple's anti-consumer, anti-technology ways, and then I will get the best of the best.
|