'Unimaginative,' 'Underwhelming': Who Knocked The iPad When It First Launched

On January 27, 2010, Steve Jobs unveiled the "magical," the "revolutionary" iPad. Today marks the one-year anniversary of that launch.

Apple's tablet has been a runaway hit, practically flying off shelves since it went on sale in April 2010. According to recent figures, Apple has sold a nearly 15 million iPad units so far .

Few in the tech world predicted such a staggering success, and many doubted whether the tablet could ever live up to its own massive hype. When the device launched last January, some were "underwhelmed" and others were altogether turned-off.

Take a walk down memory lane as we round up some of the iPad's worst reviews, one year later. Read the critiques and vote for the ones you agree or disagree with most. Did you have doubts about the iPad when it launched, or did you expect its success? Let us know in the comments.

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Joshua Topolsky, Engadget

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"Maybe underwhelming isn't the right word," wrote Engadget editor-in-chief Joshua Topolsky. "Unimaginative might be more accurate. [...] I know that I'll find a reason to drop $500 (at least) on this thing -- but for the vast majority of consumers, I think the case for the iPad has yet to be made." Other Engadget editors also tore into the iPad after it launched. One called the slate "A jack of some trades, a master of none." Another called it a "huge letdown."

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"Maybe underwhelming isn't the right word," wrote Engadget editor-in-chief Joshua Topolsky. "Unimaginative might be more accurate. [...] I know that I'll find a reason to drop $500 (at least) on this thing -- but for the vast majority of consumers, I think the case for the iPad has yet to be made."

Other Engadget editors also tore into the iPad after it launched. One called the slate "A jack of some trades, a master of none." Another called it a "huge letdown."

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Comments

[Bj Goode]

03:05 AM on 02/03/2011

i still think the ipad is dumb

[Jim8]

12:52 PM on 01/31/2011

Just got my first iPhone. No matter what the critics say, Apple builds some amazing products.

[Matt Hillier]

11:22 AM on 01/31/2011

I have a MacBook and an iPhone, why would I want a giant iPod Touch? Seems silly to me, but maybe the iPad 2 will change my mind? Yes, iPads are "cool" and fun to play with, but I could spend $500+ on something more useful... I'm leaning towards the Galaxy Tab because I'm sick of the closed-system that Apple is shoving down everyone's throats. And just look at where the Mac OS is going... It's integrating the iPad/iPhone OS into my laptop? No thanks, I'll just stick with snow leopard.

[robmclaughjr]

12:21 AM on 01/31/2011

I bought a 3G iPad on day one. It gets used every day by someone in my family most hours of the day. Netflix, Youtube, RDC, Kindle, email, web browsing, and gaming are the biggest apps for us. There is nothing like handing Netflix to my young daughter during a long car trip. The device has ridiculous battery life and reliability. I've attended many meetings where I've emailed my comments for the meeting before leaving the meeting. Game changer.

[John Kramarz]

07:11 AM on 01/31/2011

What's wrong with you? Don't you know you can get a more capable machine for less money?
You have no functionality! No Flash! you can't burn a DVD or do anything that makes me and the rest of my Anti-Apple cult so cool!

You call it a "game changer" (your words, not mine!)
That PROVES it is a toy! AH-HA!
Don't even bother arguing this point, as anything you say will be deemed to be "tangent". Our cult leaders taught us this tactic very well.

Sarcasm aside, good luck with the iPad!

[Charismatron]

08:03 AM on 01/31/2011

Kramarz, you read like a man truly possessed. Just sayin'. Peace to all the iPadders and non-iPadders.

[overthetopnews]

07:18 PM on 01/30/2011

i never praised this device or even the iphone because of all the hype they got, just like most other cell phones out there. the technology that already exists in the world blows all this crap out of the water. but they're selling us each model like its a worldwide revolutionary invention, then two weeks later they come out with version 2. then you get version 3. then 4. then you get a different named version of the same phone - but this time, this time its really awesome. this one is super cool because it has a full keyboard typepad. wow. where do all the obsolete cell phones go? are there huge mountains of them burning?

[John Kramarz]

07:19 AM on 01/31/2011

" but they're selling us each model like its a worldwide revolution­ary invention, then two weeks later they come out with version 2. then you get version 3. then 4. then you get a different named version of the same phone - but this time, this time its really awesome."

Are you sure you're talking about Apple?
People criticize them because they don't update their models fast enough! We have to wait "a whole year" or more for a new iPhone or iPad. Android will overtake us, we're told, because there are dozens of Android manufacturers releasing dozens models all the time.
Even the Android OS better fits your description. 2.0 was going to change everything, then Froyo, then Gingerbread. Now Honeycomb is the flavor of the month

"this one is super cool because it has a full keyboard typepad. wow. where do all the obsolete cell phones go? are there huge mountains of them burning?"

Old iPhones don't get called 'obsolete' too much.
They get sold on EBay or get put on Airplane mode and function as an iPod Touch.
My old Treo 650?
Now that is some obsolete cr@p! It might make a good door stop.

[John Kramarz]

04:42 PM on 01/30/2011

Steve Wozniak's recent comments about the iPad: "Everyone wants things to be simpler, and along comes this simple thing." No viruses. No compatibity issues. No wondering why your iPad is so slow (Apple vets all software to make sure this doesn't happen). No questionable upgrades. No cryptic errors. All these things were things that took the joy out of computing for a lot of people.

[Michael Johnson 1]

08:38 AM on 01/31/2011

See, I don't like that the iPad isn't an open system. I kind of want one, but I wish they would change THAT aspect of it.

[Matt Hillier]

11:20 AM on 01/31/2011

Don't hold your breath... This is Apple we're talking about.

[simontherm]

02:39 PM on 01/30/2011

I love all the "brainwashing" comments. I'm in the music industry and the iPad has changed the way we're interfacing with our music, almost overnight.
My friend's A/V business has been transformed by the iPad.
The stories go on and on, the usability is unquestioned by those actually using these things.
Yet we're "brainwashed."
Well you're "jealous"....

Love my iPad, what a great business tool.

[John Kramarz]

07:30 AM on 01/31/2011

That can't be true! The iPad is a toy, and insecure.
I don't believe you have a friend! Furthermore, I don't believe your nonexistent friend has an AV business! He can't even burn a DVD from the iPad, or load Norton AntiVirus!
The AntiApple cult is on to you! If you quietly go away now, we'll write this off as a draw.
If you persist in telling your lies, we'll bring out our big guns, like Eris23! She'll make mincemeat out of you!
"Making mincemeat".. hmmmm.. something ELSE your iPad toy cannot do!

[KeysE2S]

10:35 AM on 01/30/2011

http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-iPad-sucks-at-absorbing-menses/149692901750937?ref=ts

[samuel liu]

07:03 PM on 01/29/2011

at least these 10 reviewers were real, Uncle Walt sounds deliberately pumping Apple products.

I do crave the usability of Apple products, but it would be nice to find out about other products grandeur without suspecting bias

[AntonioVTorres]

01:41 PM on 01/29/2011

I knocked it. I still knock it. However, I am also in marketing and I know how powerful of a pull Apple has on the people who use their products. That's the one place I give Apple the most credit. They do an incredible job of brainwashing. I still laugh at the iPhone4 antenna fiasco. Can't figure out how Jobs got away with putting a bandaid over hardware defect and people still calling it the best phone on the market. That's the power of marketing. I have to admit, I don't think I could ever have that many blind faith, cult-like followers in any advertising campaign that I create.

Overall, the iPad is indeed crap. It's a big iPod with the same memory, same cheap sub-MB apps, and a slightly beefed up processor. I wouldn't waste a dime on it. But, that's coming from an intelligent and informed point of view. Ask most people who've purchased an iPad if they bothered to look at the competition. I know I did. But, I'd bet they'd say there was no competition.

The sad part is that with every Apple innovation we go back further. iPad can do so very little and that's acceptable. It's sad that consumers simply don't do the a little bit of research. But, that's why I knew the iPad was going to sell like crazy.

[Ourstorian]

02:43 PM on 01/29/2011

"They do an incredible job of brainwashi­ng."


"Overall, the iPad is indeed crap."


"The sad part is that with every Apple innovation we go back further."


"But, that's why I knew the iPad was going to sell like crazy."

That is an amazing amount of self-important nonsense crammed into three paragraphs. And here's the capper:

"I have to admit, I don't think I could ever have that many blind faith, cult-like followers in any advertisin­g campaign that I create."

You couldn't sell toilet paper at a diarrhea convention.

[AntonioVTorres]

02:51 PM on 01/29/2011

The truly sad part is that I am right. But, instead of having the courage to talk about specs, you choose to attack me. Typical Apple coward move. You don't want to debate, just attack. You want to love Apple because it's Apple. Sorry, the iPad is crap. Get over it.

Did you read all those reviews? Are they wrong? Can you argue any of the many points they've made? Nope. But, you can whine and complain. You're exactly the reason crap technology continues to be prevalent. You don't want to be an informed buyer. When you get called out on your laziness and stupidity, you get mad and lash out like an angry child who's mother put back the cereal.

Grow up. You're one of the many Apple drones who can't think for themselves. You want to prove me wrong. Prove to everyone why the iPad is better than other tablets and don't say, "Ooooh look at sales!" Even Marilyn Manson has fans. Apple can have fans too.

So, what is it - going to grow up and discuss real specs or you want to whine and cry some more?

[HBHB]

05:56 PM on 01/29/2011

I'm with you and I'm a mac guy. Own a macbook and a tower. Nobody wants to admit that it's just another gadget. If you claim the ipad is great because you can't take your laptop around with you then you're lying because there's no difference between lugging a macbook or an ipad around all day. Both require a bag of some sort.

My whole issue with the ipad is that any smartphone on today's market run circles around an ipad. Plus you can make phone calls with a phone and slip it into your pocket. It's really one or the other. If you own a macbook, an ipad and a smart phone - like many people do - you're just a f00l.

[dannyo152]

12:26 PM on 01/30/2011

Owner of iMac, MacBook, and iPhone4. The iPad is another device. I'm not sure that constitutes an admission, but it does suggest "nobody" is hyperbolic. As is fool misspelled l33t-style.

I could bore you with all the personal parameters and construct an argument why an iPad would make sense for me as additional device. Supplanting my MBP is not a reason. What has me on the verge of committing to getting a new device is the ephemeral nature of the computer books I buy. I've been acquiring them in digital format and the iPhone screen is too small and the MBP screen is too horizontal for this old-school, old-guy reader. Maybe a kindle makes sense. And so, here I am, in a wait and see mode about the iPad2.

My use case is clearly marginal and my point is not to say you are wrong about your practical observations about your computing devices. You are totally right in what you say within your context. When you castigate others in different contexts, I think your point goes off the rails. At the very least, in refutation to "foolishness," some of those who have the MacBook and the iPad might have not gotten the MacBook had the iPad been available.

It's another device optimized for other tasks and use cases. It is not really a problem for any one if these are not universal, nor is it a problem when people on a different path wear different shoes.

[Morgantheaxe]

04:08 AM on 01/29/2011

The comments I read on this device taught me a valuable lesson about all of these tech sites and mags....especially Gizmodo. You can even apply it to a lot of what you read here in the comments in the Tech section. There seems to be a perverted idea among techys that the way to seem smart is to find as much wrong with an idea or product as you can especially if you are Gizmodo which has a major problem with Apple after they got busted buying Apple property and were forced to return it without being able to blackmail Apple in to a bs exclusive on the device. It seems like these people think being haters gives them street cred. Well to those of us that went out and actually used the device we immediately recognized the touchscreen os was fantastic and a new computer genra had been born. No more did we have clunky tablets that had a rediculous input device. We had pads that had a very natural touchscreen interface. We knew we had something that was going to be a game changer and as they get more powerful an incredible lifestyle changer. If it was so ez for we non brilliant people to see why not the smart folks? As I said I believing that hating gave them coolness and street cred clouded their vision.

[Onutz]

03:58 AM on 03/06/2011

The ironic thing about iHaterz is that they propagate that it's the "Apple User" who is out to "impress" people by acting all "smug" about their devices. Holy Megalomaniacs Batman! How psychopathological are statements like THAT?!

[GoDogGo]

05:54 PM on 01/28/2011

The sheer volume of people knocking here in the comments last year was deafening. "Will never sell" and "flop" were the general theme. And now? Crickets...

Then, as now, the reality is clear: It's just a different kind of computing device. Just as single cell organisms have evolved, so too has the computer. There are many organisms, most of which overlap rather than replace each other, and yet the eco-system works. Computing is no different. 

In the past, economies of scale allowed us to only have a desktop or a laptop maybe, usually in one of only two systems. But as anyone with a smartphone knows, our computing devices are evolving and our time spent on different devices is fragmenting. Tomorrow, there will be countless variations of tablets and other devices, each serving a different need, market or niche of utility. 

Apparently, that isn't real clear to those knocking the iPad a year ago...

[maslin]

07:21 PM on 01/28/2011

Your ecosystem analogy explains why I do not own one: its ecosystem niche is not a niche I need filled. It's neat. I've played with several now. I still don't need one. I prefer my netbook and I still have no need for an iPad.

Maybe once my netbook dies I'll buy one.

[GoDogGo]

10:37 PM on 01/28/2011

And most people don't "need" one. It's a luxury to have things that overlap in functionality and tablets tend to do that. But ultimately, a LOT of people want them, regardless. Why? For some, it's handy. It's a great coffee table computer. It gives you the option of a *separate* device from your computer (frequently a work tool) for social and entertainment computing.

I have ten or so pairs of shoes. Do I really need those? No. Computers are the same. And just as I can't stand netbooks, you'd probably hate my shoes!

[John Kramarz]

12:25 PM on 01/30/2011

A lot of people are stuck on the idea of buying something new that doesn't completely replace another product. So why buy an iPad if it doesn't completely replace a laptop? Sounds reasonable, right? But look elsewhere in their lives, and their logic is never followed.
TVs? They have a large screen in their living room, another in the bedroom, little ones in the car... none were replacements for another!
Someone has a car AND a motorcycle? how dare they!
Wait! They have a digital SLR AND a small point and shoot, AND a camera on their phone??? What's their problem?
I found when I started using my iphone (just like someone using a droid or BB) the need to start up my laptop dropped 70% on client's sites. I imagine an iPad could do the same thing and more.
Really, I'd love to see a new iPhone with no data plan. Like an iPod Touch with the phone function and the nice visual voicemail. I would then get a 3G iPad for data use. Especially nice as older eyes are struggling with the smaller screens! (when people use the putdown of 'it's just a big ipod touch!' , I'm thinking BRAVO! great idea!)
I think they would do a HUGE business with such a non-data plan iphone (and you could still do WiFi), and they could charge a premium , even with no carrier subsidy, as the ipod touch sells for $229 with no phone)

[crayola 08b]

05:40 PM on 01/28/2011

didn't Steve Ballmer knock it? He usually talks crap about all Apple products when they're released, then a year or so later Microsoft comes out with a "me too" product.

[John Kramarz]

11:04 PM on 01/28/2011

right before it was introduced, Balmer was singing praises for the HP Slate, running Windows.
A week later, apple intro'd the iPad.
HP dropped the Slate as it was, and went back to the drawing board.
Haters are telling us things about new Android tablets, yet actually released, that are "way ahead of the iPad". Get the contradiction there? It's funny. They don't.

[Morgantheaxe]

04:16 AM on 01/29/2011

Actually, Bill Gates of all people knocked it. Said he felt, "It wasnt there yet." I guess my question is wasn't where? Seem slike the only people disappointed by the Ipad are the ones who, no matter how many times you tell them it's not to replace their desktop or even their laptop, still insist its a failure because it doesnt replace their desktop or laptop.


YET.

[J242]

11:53 AM on 01/29/2011

Well, that's not really knocking the product, I love my iPad but it's no replacement for my pro systems. It's a great casual computer but it really doesn't have the app availability to be a workhorse just yet. It's building, but it's not there just yet.

When I can open up and edit my Final Cut projects on my iPad (I would LOVE THAT!) and have my workhorse computer do all the heavy lifting for the rendering and exporting, then I would say it's all there but I don't really see that happening anytime soon. Until then, I use it for my casual computing needs and thoroughly enjoy doing so! :)

[hamalnamal]

04:26 PM on 01/28/2011

One of my many issues with the iPad: It can be very fun, useful, etc. but you pay so much more than you need to. I have a netbook and tablet that I got for $600 dollars total, TWO YEARS AGO, each are more powerful and versatile than the iPad.

"yeah, but the iPad is pretty!" Yes it is, but I won't pay more than 600 dollars for pretty.
So go ahead and buy your iPad, I however never will.

Ubuntu FTW!

[crayola 08b]

05:41 PM on 01/28/2011

that's why i'm waiting for the 2nd gen iPad. i want more bang for my buck.

[HBHB]

05:58 PM on 01/29/2011

2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th generations... keep waiting. It's never going to give you "more bang" than a laptop. It's always going to be just about on the same level as your modern smart phone minus the capabilities of making phone calls and fitting in your pocket.

[John Kramarz]

11:07 PM on 01/28/2011

""yeah, but the iPad is pretty!""

no one really said that, except you. You can win arguments with yourself all day long. Rush does that on the air. I don't know what you got for $600, but if you're happy with it, bless you!

[ZeFoussa]

02:00 PM on 01/28/2011

So easy to criticize... Just take it for what's it worth: A new device, very well built that happens to be very popular and is hugely entertaining. It's not for everyone, just like Christianity, yet it deserves respect for all Ze followers it made.

[J242]

11:55 AM on 01/29/2011

Ahhh, c'mon now... Don't be tainting my lovely technological corporations with comparisons to X-ianity! lol You'll make me feel dirty. :P