Quote:
Originally Posted by tompe
Eh, I thought there was kind of concensus about why they did it. Everybody seems at least to think that the reasons was to build a walled garden by keeping full control of how you put data on the device and in that way keep out third party appa and data that they do not control and earn money on.
|
I'm going to be a bit less cynical about that: iOS had its origins in the iPhone and security is a far greater concern for mobile devices. The iPhone and iPod Touch were also devices for mass consumption, so SD cards were probably a minor concern.
On top of that, I get the impression that SD cards have a lot of compatibility issues. There are also data integrity issues if people remove them willy-nilly. Apple likes reliable products. They also put design over function. SD cards may not use much space, but they certainly use some space. Definitely an issue on the iPhone, but my understanding is that the iPad is mostly battery anyway so space is still valuable. Finally, it adds a few cents to manufacturing costs, and Apple loves their margins.
So there are a tonne of reasons not to include it. Just don't expect certain people to buy an iPad without that feature though.