Yeah, About That Whole iPad Being a Post-PC Device Thing...
The main and most obvious reason for this is as soon as you turn it on it has to be synced to iTunes (which for the record, is on your PC). How is any device a post-PC device if it cannot survive without a PC? Automatically it feels like it is not a separate computer, but a companion to your current computer. All of your content -- photos, videos, music, movies, etc. -- needs to be synced to your iPad from your computer. Yes, you can buy this content directly from your iPad afterward, but you can just forget about getting any music off of your CDs because that's going to require a import into iTunes and then a sync to your iPad. Software updates? Forget about it. That's through iTunes too.
The other main reason is the lack of ports. There's still no USB, SD cart slot, or HDMI port. There are separate accessories for SD and HDMI, but the fact that Apple has to sell those accessories separately rather than just building the ports into the iPad shows that Apple thinks only a certain number of people really need it, and need it enough to buy it. Everyone needs USB at one point or another. Plus, it's really inefficient to have a bunch of those accessories lying around and deciding which one you may need to plug in today.
Apple really has begun an entirely new product category with the iPad. There's no doubt in my mind that the tablet is revolutionary. But if Apple (and perhaps others in the future) is going to push this whole post-PC marketing strategy, the iPad has to actually be a post-PC device. While the iPad can replace your laptop in many ways, it is currently in no way a full-time replacement. I look forward to a future of competition and innovation in the tablet market to eventually bring tablets up to Apple's claim.
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