You should get a cheap HP Touchpad at just £89.

I did 😉

Bought a reverb iPad 1 for much cheapness, used everyday for general surfing, photos and music.
Awesome device.

Only time the flash thing bothers me is on the BBC, but it’s generally not an issue.

The other factor is security: Apparently the Android system is far less secure than the Apple OS.

They’re both crap. Treat them as such.

To be honest it is predominately for surfing on the sofa and I don’t want a situation where I am sitting there and I want to watch, say, a video on Dirt and I can’t because the bloody gadget I’ve just spend £400 isn’t compatible. That, for me, is a deal breaker.

Where did you get your returned one from? I want a tablet to use as my portfolio rather than carrying around folders etc.

The samsung Galaxy 10.1 looks good but then pricing is pretty similar to the iPad.

For me, it’s an age related issue. I’m old enough to be irritated when I can’t view something due to the lack of Flash support.
If I was younger and more adaptable, I probably wouldn’t mind searching for an alternative website.

Take the BBC News website. The app for this is too restrictive.
If I use the normal website, I go to the sports section and am unable to view any of the videos. Very annoying.

I want to watch, say, a video on Dirt and I can’t because the bloody gadget I’ve just spend £400 isn’t compatible. That, for me, is a deal breaker.

there is an mpora app that has all the video from Dirt and more available.

I don’t think it’s got anything to do with age at all. Yes, there may be other options, but why buy a piece of equipment that limits what you can look at? It’s a bit like buying a car that can only drive on motorways.

Anyway, I ordered a Asus Eee Pad transformer, so I’ll let you know what they are like.

Only time the flash thing bothers me is on the BBC, but it’s generally not an issue.

Try the SkyFire browser. Works on the BBC and most other Flash video.
Not ideal but does the job.

Posting thisfrom my blackberry playbook. Great form factor – I thought the ipad was too big for regular travel. Synchs with my blacberry perfectly and seems pretty fast.

To be honest, i bought it for work with drag and drop pdf transfer. It’s not as slick as an iPad, but handles flash seamlessly, is portable, gives about half a day of charge, has a great screen.

Probably best if you already have a blackberry. If you have an iphone, then you already have a small iPad as far as I can see.

It’s not the device that’s incompatible with the website for watching flash movies it’s the website developers who are too lazy to provide alternative content or update their code. The movies behind the flash interface are compatible. It’s just the player that’s the problem. Your frustration should be aimed at the people trying to sell you an app or force you into watching ad based flash systems (mpora)

You should get a cheap HP Touchpad at just £89.

It looks like Amazon are still flogging those at £400.

No, that’s like saying it’s not my betamax player that is at fault it’s the film industry’s decision to go with vhs.

The player won’t play the most popular software for viewing video on today’s internet.

I just bought an iPad 2 yesterday and my other half thought I was stupid as we have iPhones and a nice MBP.

Within 10 mins of me opening the box she was all over it! I’m literally having to fight her off.

Just bought VNC Remoter for 69p so I can log into my Mac at home from anywhere and use it as if I’m there. Just opened up the camera to watch the dog from the in-laws house via my iPad.

What’s the dog doing?

what’s the dog doing?

Just kicking back 🙂

why buy a piece of equipment that limits what you can look at? It’s a bit like buying a car that can only drive on motorways.

Other devices are limited/compromised in other ways, so it’s really just choose your poison.

Personally the lack of flash rarely causes me any issue on my iPhone, but I guess if you need flash then it would.

Feefoo – you are talking rubbish, it’s the choice of website to ignore Adobes own advice and not provide an alternative. It’s nothing like VHS/Betamax they were competing formats. Flash is a proprietary system, without a competitor. The iPad can play the movies on dirt etc. It’s just they choose not to allow you too. 90% of the videos on the web are recorded or encoded in H264 the native format of iPad. That’s how YouTube/Vimeo starting supporting it almost immediately, all the videos were already h264.

tworide – I own an iPad. I know its limitations. It’s annoying.

It won’t play the most popular software for viewing video on today’s internet.

I’m going to lay the blame for that with apple not with the millions of sites that choose what software they want for videos etc.

Incidentally, if you are against using the dedicated mpora app then I can confirm that the Dirt flash vids play fine in the SkyFire browser.

millions of ipads and iphones out there. how long till market forces makes all websites compatible?

Still only 3% of web traffic comes from iOS (iPhones and iPads). As a web dev, I’m not sure I’d always bother to cater for that

http://marketshare.hitslink.com/operating-system-market-share.aspx?spider=1&qprid=8

and whats the rate of change? note I said “how long?” that 3% are more likely to be cashed up, too.

and whats the rate of change? note I said “how long?”

A long time, by the looks of it. iOS is growing, but Android is growing a lot faster.
This, for example shows ad impression by platfrom in the US in July.

Colin

Still only 3% of web traffic comes from iOS (iPhones and iPads).

Crikey. Given the amount of guff from press, viz Sky banging on about the App etc, you’d have thought it was waaaaay more than that.

Does anyone have a comparitive list showing Android, MS etc figures?

You should get a cheap HP Touchpad at just £89.

I did

Link please? I could do with sommat to watch films and surf the web, but £300+ for a glorified smartphone minus the phone bit doesn’t cut it. Plus, I’m sure someone will be along soon with an Android OS hack for the HP thing.

I have an iPad 2 and a PC. The most annoying thing for me when watching videos is the seemingly constant updates that go along with flash and stuttering imaages. This on the PC! Now the BBC have updated their iPlayer app the iPad is a joy to use 🙂

iSteve wrote an open letter a while ago explaining why the iPad would not be supporting Flash.
http://www.apple.com/hotnews/thoughts-on-flash/

Seems to me that those were, and still are, valid points.

They are valid. But the point remains that they’ve brought out something that is too ahead of the accepted technology used by the majority of websites.

If 97% of people (going by the 3% web traffic figure above) are accessing my site’s video with a PC/Laptop, I know how bothered I’d be.

It’s a great piece of technology, just wish it was better that’s all.

This article covers the UK stats which may be more relevant to us:
http://www.tecmark.co.uk/uk-mobile-stats-2011

“Mobile now accounts for 12.59% of UK web traffic… 58% of mobile visits coming from iPhones and an additional 17% coming from iPad devices”

If 97% of people (going by the 3% web traffic figure above) are accessing my site’s video with a PC/Laptop, I know how bothered I’d be.

That was the stat for iOS only and probably worldwide (it’s doesn’t say).
UK “Mobile internet” in general is ramping up massively:

So catering for mobile makes a lot of sense – which typically means video should be supplied in HTML5.

58% of 12.59% is pretty close to not a lot at all……

You might want to check you arithmatic there CF, 7.3% of the total web traffic of the UK on iPhones seems like quite a bit to me.

and you’re not counting iPads there. It should be 75% of UK mobile traffic coming from iOS devices, which is 9.4% of all UK web traffic – that’s pretty substantial and doesn’t show and sign of slowing down.

The remaining 92.7% seems more important.

If the trend continues hopefully all sites will be “forced” to use HTML5.

That means however (if I’ve done my maths right) at present, in the UK, iPad users account for 2.1% of people accessing the internet.

Anyone know the figure globally?

Edit: just looked it up – 1%

99% of the world doesn’t use an iPad to view video on the internet…

in the UK, iPad users account for 2.1% of people accessing the internet.

Plus iPhone users (which are basically the same deal) = 9.4%

If you run a UK site that doesn’t work on iOS for some reason then you are turning away 1 in 10 visitors – and those are visitors with disposable income to spend.

No idea on global figures but mobile internet in general is likely to be much lower worldwide – due to lack of mobile infrastructure and disposable income.

If the trend continues hopefully all sites will be “forced” to use HTML5.

Can’t see that happening for a long time. Sites are STILL being made that have to work correctly on ie6…

Can’t see that happening for a long time. Sites are STILL being made that have to work correctly on ie6…

UK IE6 usage is at 5% and dropping, iOS is at 9.4% and rising.

I know which I’d back.

Plus iPhone users (which are basically the same deal) = 9.4%

Agreed it shows an increasing use of these devices and hopefully it will help speed up the change to HTML5 or whatever.

Not sure what the figure of those using the iPhone to actually shop is though.
90% of UK users (shoppers) use other means of accessing the internet.