Retrevo editor, Andrew, thinks you should jailbreak an iPad. I disagree. Here’s why

- Binary day
- Tony Curtis and his iPhone
- WiFi frequency expansion
- Jason Calacanis’ new journalism venture

Apple announced the official release of the iPad this morning. March 12th is the big day. That’s for pre-orders and for WiFi only. April 3rd is when they will be available and in your hands. If you’re waiting for the added 3G capability, then you’ll have to hang on until the end of April for that. You can still order on March 12th, but there’s no telling when at the end of April you’ll receive it.

This staggered release could hurt the sales of the iPad. People want 3G but they want to get it first. Some will jump on the WiFi-only bandwagon just to get a device and realize that 3G made more sense. Having 6 models available just confuses things as well.

Here is the breakdown

WiFi
$499 16GB
$599 32GB
$699 64GB

WiFi + 3G
$629 16GB
$729 32GB
$829 64GB

So do you get the 64GB WiFi or wait a little longer, spend an extra $30 and get the 32GB 3G? Half the room, twice the wait, but you get 3G. This is a dilemma that’s being talked about everywhere.

I ignore my initial impulse to spend the most and get the biggest and best one possible. I was going to get the 32GB WiFi and I realized that was just nonsensical. I need 3G. I have to be able to use it outside my home or it’s a waste. So, 32GB WiFi + 3G was the way to go. $829 was just not defensible.

January 27th was the keynote and by January 28th I had a decision in mind. February 28th came and went. Today, March 5th we are told that in one week, we can start to order them and then in 3 weeks they’ll arrive for pickup at a local Apple store (which is 2 hours from me). So I’ve made a ground-breaking decision. I’m not getting one at all.

I want to be an early adopter and review one immediately. That’s what I do. But WiFi only doesn’t do me any good. By the time I get a 3G to review, the iPad itself will have been talked about a million times. And at $729… it’s not a drop in the bucket. I have a macbook, netbook and 2 iPhones in this house. I was almost windswept by Apple’s magic. At the end of the day… this device, in its current incarnation, is not a game changer. I will let this play out and see what it does. Don’t get me wrong, I’d love one. If there’s a generous reader out there, send one my way. The point is that it’s too much money and too much wait time. The impulse buyer in me has left the building. Senses set in and it’s not important enough to spend that money.

I tell you all of that because I’m sure there are quite a few people out there in the same boat.

The rumored Apple tablet was all anyone could talk about just a few weeks ago. Articles on this and many other sites were flying off the fingertips of reporters, journalists, reviewers and anyone associated with gadgets and/or tech.

What would it be like? What would it do? Full operating system? Camera? E-books? It was all anyone could do to wait for an answer to these questions and more. Then word came down from Mr. Jobs that January 27th would be the light at the end of the tunnel. There would be a keynote. Jokes were made that the last time there was this much talk about a tablet, it had commandments written on it.

On that day, the tech world stood still to listen to Jobs talk about why this device does everything we’ve every wanted. Our inner infomercial addict fell in love as he presented this gigantic iPhone with a few extra bells and whistles (and minus a few as well). No camera? Who cares? It’s got individual iWork applications for $10 each. It’s another $130 for the 3G model and an extra 30-day wait. But it’s got the A4 Apple silicon in it. It’s an e-book reader without e-ink. But it has the book store, the iPhone app store and its very own app store. We rationalized all the failings and leaned on the cool new features to get us through the day. The 10 hour battery should not be left out either. 10 hours of video? Audio? WiFi? 3G? Or does it not matter since it doesn’t multi-task anyway.

Waiting for FCC approval, Apple set a date of 30 days minimum for ordering and left with the dangling carrot just out of our reach. What have we heard since? Nothing. It has given the naysayers plenty of time to pan the usefulness of this device. That may not even be needed that euphoria surrounding the sleek new, sexy toy that Apple has planned for all of our homes has subsided and everyone is left wondering what the hype was all about.

It doesn’t do all the things a laptop does. It doesn’t do all the things an iPhone does. It’s not really inexpensive. The WiFi only model hits a terrific and unprecedented price point, but it’s WiFi only. Why use this in your house or hotspots only? The draw is 3G but not the $130 or the monthly fee. The lack of a contract is, however, helpful.

Not finding the must-have feature in the list and having to wait an undetermined amount of time to get one has slashed into the purchases of the impulse buyers and early adopters and has left most people slightly disillusioned.

It is key to remember that the iPod took 2-3 years to gain traction and revolutionize the mobile music segment of technology. The iPhone, while being a tremendous seller immediately, didn’t do very much out of the box. What it did; it did well. It would seem that nobody is under any illusions about the iPad. It is not groundbreaking. It is not a game changer. It is not a must have. Not yet. Once it comes into its own that all may change.