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A new study by Adobe finds that if markets had to choose between a mobile app and a mobile site they would choose the site. It then goes on to say that consumers want rich tools and experiences on these sites and, of course, to do that easily you need to use Adobe Flash. That brings us back to the Apple vs. Flash contest. Apple says no flash on it’s products, but Flash is still used in so many sites and is comparatively easy to develop rich experiences with. So what’s it all mean? Who wins? will Flash fade away because it doesn’t work on an iPhone or an iPad? or will consumers, especially with iPads, start to be bothered by the fact that so many sites just won’t work. Part of the answer I think is what happens in the tablet space in general. Tablets like the iPad are killer web browser devices so if other companies introduce tablets that surf the web better than the iPad, then perhaps Apple’s ploy doesn’t work. We’ll see.

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As I write this I am in Buenos Aires on vacation, where I have been coming for years. Part of my vacation ritual is to pick up a copy of the Herald Tribune every day to stay in touch with the news States side. Of course I have always had the option to go to the New York Times online, but it never quite replaced the physical paper for me. This trip I brought along my iPad, with my iPad version of the NYT on it. Despite how delightful the walk is to pick up the Herald Tribune, the experience of the iPad is so superior that the paper paper is now a thing of the past. Then this morning I saw Flipboard and the magazine/newspaper electronic experience just went into hyperdrive. This elegant, effortless reading experience is vastly superior to even the excellent NYT iPad experience and it’s aggregation of content is a category killer. I know it’s early days for the iPad, but if it’s this good already, think what’s coming.

Who guessed? Toddlers know intuitively how to use an iPad. Imagine how adroit this little guy will be by 5 years old. Click HERE for story

The iPad is not only hot news, but controversial too, or at least Steve Jobs is:

http://adage.com/mediaworks/article?article_id=144135

So the point that Dumenco makes in this article is that Jobs may be exerting too much power by being a gatekeeper for the kind of content that will be viewed on the iPad. What an interesting conundrum. In a free society, we don’t want to be restricted too much. On the other hand, “Who has the right to censor content?” Networks censor the content of their shows… to an extent. Parents censor content for their children. Is it too much to accept that Jobs should be able to set a standard too? Afterall, maybe he just wants to leave a legacy, feeling that his work has done more of what he defines as “good” than not in this unpredictable world.

IPad Meets Retail: Half a dozen ways industry execs imagine the iPad could be used at retail

• Catalogs: Online versions of print catalogs haven’t taken off, but iPad versions, with embedded video, as well as the ability to browse whenever it’s convenient and make purchases could be the next big thing.
• Customization: Cars, furniture, shoes and apparel could all be customized in-store, with customers able to easily view and select colors, fabrics and finishes, and then place the special order.
• Sales Floor Assistant: The iPad could provide easy access to product data, customer data and customer reviews, in addition to allowing transactions to be completed away from the register.
• Personal shopper: Customers finding a jacket in one department could access recommendations for coordinating apparel and accessories in other departments.
• Registries: Now divided into an offline and online experience, iPad could enable customers to create registries from a store’s entire inventory.
• E-Commerce: Consumers are already shopping on their phones; it’s only a matter of time before the iPad becomes another shopping tool.

So, there is a lot of buzz going on about Apple’s new baby. Maybe we don’t need it because we have a nice IPhone and a steaming laptop already. Is it just a step up from our everyday IPhone, but a cool counterpart to the home computer? Or, is it a revolutionary product? Even though I think it may just be a bigger IPhone, I like it… or at least the potential it affords. Let’s face it. Although it is a bit pricey, it is like having a Surface table in your hands at an affordable price.  We all love our IPhones (maybe not the service because of the dropped calls), but we can’t get enough of the maps, surfing, calendar, email, and cool apps all in one device. Now, we can have all of that, but not have to look into a 3×5 card device with a little more mobility than a laptop and more usability than an IPhone.  For example, wouldn’t it be great to turn on the IPad to create a lovely menu for each day of the week, then use one of the upcoming apps to assemble a nice shopping list that, by the way, shows you all the great deals at your favorite grocery stores.  You could sync up your grocery list app and use your IPhone at the stores because you probably wouldn’t want to carry around that IPad at the local Whole Foods. Even though the IPad looks cool, you may look too much like an eager geek.  Then… after doing all your shopping, you could have a nice meal plan for the week that tracks your nutrition on an ongoing basis.  Finally, when prepping each meal, you have a nice IPad to display your meals and recipes. I’ve always wanted a great electronic device to display my recipes, and I think the IPad might be it.   So, what do you think. Is it a revolution or just an evolution? Either way, I’m waiting a bit until some of the kinks get worked out (or until they get a stand to hold the IPad, so I don’t have to strain my neck as I’m looking at the recipes).