Do you remember the scene in Jurassic park where the terrified archaeologists hear the T-Rex in the distance? They know it is coming and look to their water glass and see its shaking as confirmation…it’s getting closer!
This is how I feel about the iPad. Apple is great at making Product Disruptors – those products that disrupt an entire category and literally change the development of the niche.
Some examples?
The iMac was a disruptor – the iMac made all-in-one computers cool and helped Apple regain their business in the personal computer market. Many credit Steve Jobs and the iMac with saving Apple!
The iPod was a disruptor – it took Sony’s long-established portable music player domination and changed the space forever leaving itself the dominant player.
The iPhone was a disruptor – tell me anyone who has an iPhone and doesn’t like it. Sure AT&T might be terrible but let’s face it – the iPhone is more than a hit – it is a craze! The iPhone turned an already successful company into a major player in the largest CE category in the world!
The iPad is coming…and it’s going to change things a bit – here’s how I think it will disrupt multiple markets.
The iPad will disrupt traditional print media. Say goodbye to the newspaper and your old magazine subscriptions – the iPad makes reading the New York Times or your favorite website unbelievably easy and you’ll look cool while you’re doing it 🙂
The iPad will disrupt the Netbook market. Steve Jobs said it himself, the problem with Netbooks is that you are buying a slower computer that will not run as well as your full-sized laptop. Netbooks can take some time to boot and will definitely not be as snappy as your heftier laptop. The iPad on the other hand has no boot process and runs lightning fast, it is lighter than a Netbook and has a bigger, nicer screen…oh and it is a touch screen with multi-touch 🙂
The iPad will disrupt the Domaining market. While there will be some disruption in the Domaining market, I don’t think it deserves and much doom and gloom as you might think.
So first let me be clear – I do not think that apps will replace websites – they will replace some, but not all. The iPad will solidify one already growing trend – search. I see a large majority of iPad owners using search just like iPhone users. Devices like the iPad and iPhone are going to continue to put emphasis on search.
Apple is a company that thinks outside of the box. They create single products that disrupt entire markets and their CEO and spokesman Steve Jobs apparently has a big book of ideas with plans for years to come. So get ready folks because once again Apple will be disrupting a few markets and changing the way work, listen to music, and communicate.
