Now that I've had some time to digest this whole iPad announcement, I've got a handful of thoughts. In no particular order:

- I absolutely knew that I wanted an iPhone. I held off until they released the 3G model, I was in the queue (twice... arrgh) to get one, and no other gadget I've ever owned has had such a singular effect in changing the way I do what I do. I can say the same thing about the original empeg. It was a huge step up from the AM/FM/cassette radio that came in my BMW at the time. (Yes, a 2000 Z3 didn't even come standard with a CD player.) I feel no deep compelling need to get an iPad.

- I recently got the cheaper Kindle 2 as a holiday gift. I've so far read one book on it, with several more loaded up. I can see how it's far more convenient than hauling around hard-cover books, and I plan to use it mostly when I'm traveling. It's all about the weight savings. My only complaint about the Kindle is that readability isn't so good in typical indoor evening light -- the sort of light where it's still perfectly comfortable to read a printed book. Yes, I could buy a booklight, but this is one of the areas where some readers, particular older ones, may prefer an iPad.

- I've at various times considered buying a $300 netbook for the sole purpose of leaving it at home for casual web surfing at night. I now have one (an HP mini 110), which I got for work purposes (a cheap way to set up a demo). I haven't taken it home because we never managed to get the Ubuntu WiFi drivers working (ugly details). Even if it did actually work, I generally do casual surfing just fine on my iPhone, so I haven't been motivated to push harder on this. (I'll head upstairs and use my "real" desktop computer to do real work, if I need to work from home.)

My conclusion agrees with an argument I first saw expressed by Matt Welsh on his Facebook page (see his public rantings as well). In essence, Welsh argues that the iPad is the perfect machine for older users who've previously been disengaged from the Internet. Here's a device, that for $629 (with 3G) and $15/month, can offer a serious value proposition to somebody with zero prior training or experience. See the Web. Read books (in nice big text, which is good when your eyesight isn't so good any more). Email your grandkids and see their pictures. And do it all with radically better usability than anything else on the market. Most important, if you give this to one of your older relatives, you don't have to worry about them shooting themselves in the foot. They're not going to accidentally download viruses or other assorted malware. You can set it up, hand it to your grandparents, and you're done. What's that worth?

(The only drawback, in a scenario like this with no PC to tether to the iPad, is that all the data on it can be lost if the device is stolen or broken. Amazon got this right with the Kindle. It will be interesting to see if Apple truly lets you do everything, including over-the-air system software dates, without owning a PC.)