On iPads and Personal Computers: A Post-PC Retrospective
Post-PC empowers people to work and be entertained thanks to new interfaces and easy access to apps. The post-PC device is different from a netbook because netbooks didn’t really revolutionize anything; unlike Apple’s, devices from the competition fail at empowering people because they lack the software ecosystem.
Post-PC is the ecosystem of devices and services. Hardware and software are unified by the ecosystem, and because the values are interchangeable, ultimately the ecosystem becomes the definition of post-PC itself. The competition still fails to understand today’s market requirement for a solid ecosystem.
A post-PC device like the iPad needs to be experienced first-hand to be fully understood. This may fade with time, but some people still don’t completely “get” the device and why they would need one. As users become more accustomed with the iPad awareness will grow; with the iPad (and thus post-PC) becoming a new paradigm I expect this theory to go away.
The new paradigm will foster a new generation of learners and creators. Kids learning software on iPads won’t even know what a mouse is. Their brains will be wired differently.
