confusion

[mimesere]

so, I've been watching the tablet...fights? debates? trollbait? with enthusiasm since apple announced the ipad and I understand a lot of the reasons people will not be buying one: lack of flash, though honestly, I don't care except for hulu, and I don't watch hulu enough to make that a dealbreaker; closed ecosystem; whatever. But the one that BOGGLES MY MIND is "there's no camera, so I can't do video calls"

REALLY DUDES? Because you know what I see people doing all the time? VIDEO CALLS. Really? That's the dealbreaker? A lack of front facing camera for video calls?

I have a front facing camera on my macbook pro and I use it like once every 4 months to make sure i've put my makeup on correctly.

Now, the back camera I can understand for augmented reality type things, except again, I've never once seen anyone using that.

The Courier looks interesting, or it would if it was anything other than a render. The NotionInk Adam looks very interesting and hopefully it will be out by the time I want a gadget of this nature so I can properly compare. The HP Slate looks sluggish wrt touch capability. The Joojoo looks awesome but reported battery life is kind of crap and the company looks iffy.

I want this to read books, comic books, let me take notes, watch occasional video, and surf the internet from bed. Also it seems like it would be an AWESOME Comic Con accessory. Especially is someone makes an app for it the way someone made an app for SXSW to be all, "I'm sitting here, where are you sitting?"

Anyway. Haters gotta hate, I guess.

In other news, I now own another copy of Superman Returns because I WORE OUT my first copy (and boy, is the news that the Dark Knight writers are going to write the next Superman movie making me really sad, 'cause seriously, seriously, a Superman story is a very different creature from a Batman story. Also the rumor that Singer and Routh are rumored to be out for the next movie. Oh, also, what kind of moron does not cast Ryan McPartlin as Captain flipping America? Blargh. Comic book movies, sometimes you make me sad)

I also got a copy of Warbirds. Because it's tough to beat the awesomeness of a WWII all girl bomber squadron vs GIANT DINOSAURS. A++++ entertainment.

Comments

[latxcvi.livejournal.com]

I have a front facing camera on my macbook pro and I use it like once every 4 months to make sure i've put my makeup on correctly.

♥ You're so my favorite.

[mimesere.livejournal.com]

:D

[drummertobeat.livejournal.com]

actually, I use the camera on my laptop at least once a week to talk to family. Sisters, parents, nephew. I don't know that everyone would use it like I do, but it's made a big difference in conversation quality in my family when we have the ability to sit down and talk with each other visually without going off and doing other things. ::shrug:: It might not be widespread now, but I wouldn't be at all surprised to find it is eventually, and it's more about not having the possibility of using it when there's apparent room technologically for it, and no explanation why its not there.

[mimesere.livejournal.com]

I can understand it on a computer -- like I said, I have one -- and I can even understand it on a phone. But on a device which isn't a phone (no calls) and which doesn't (as far as I know) support VOIP, and whose form is lying down or hand held (which seems like it would be a crappy way to do video conferencing) or docked (in which case, why not have the dock contain the camera).

The device itself isn't small enough to make it a hybrid camera the way a phone is and I wasn't convinced by the utility that I saw in the Courier demonstration to make it seem worth it. Especially given that I have a perfectly nice camera and can get the camera dongle to immediately import photos. Which tosses out the back facing camera for me as well.

I should have been more clear though. I have not seen video calls/conferencing done on a cellphone or a netbook in a way that made a lack front-facing camera seem like a dealbreaker on a device that isn't a computer.

[drummertobeat.livejournal.com]

No, I take your point; I took from "I have a front facing camera on my macbook pro and I use it like once every 4 months to make sure i've put my makeup on correctly" that you were referring to cameras in general rather than cameras specific to tablet computers. I have used the video capture function on my iphone before, though, and there's better options to stream live video from your iphone now, too; with the tools there it seems more likely that they will get used.

I don't think it's a dealbreaker, at least, not for me, and not insasmuch as I probably wouldn't buy the iPad anyway until it offered a more open backend (if it ever does). But I also can't rule out an innate desire to play like Rodney McKay and haul a tablet around everywhere, on that can record video or that I can run Skype video on. But at least part of that is me wanting my jetpack. :)

[lasergirl.livejournal.com]

You had me at "all girl WWII Bomber Squadron" and then I married you with "vs. DINOSAURS."

What is this, and where can I get it?? PIMP ME IN BABY.

[mon-of-the-dead.livejournal.com]

I want an IPad for the simple, shallow reason that "OMG It totally looks like the Pads everyone carried around in Star Trek! IMUSTHAVE."

[spasticat.livejournal.com]

At first I was like...it won't show Flash, bah. But then learned what a security risk Flash can be. It's not really something to pine for with the iPad or similar devices.

The camera complaint is also silly and like you the only time I've used my macbook's camera was to check my lipstick. Oh, and for *one* video chat within the span of a year. :)

It's going to be interesting and cool to see how the iPad will affect publishing.

Regarding comic book movies...I wish that more of their creators were actual comic book fans. Am still rankled that the director of the third xmen was *proud* that he never read a single comic book. :(