The former director of the Windows division said what he thinks about the iPad

This month marks ten years since the introduction of the first iPad. The tablet, which many people didn't believe much at first, eventually became one of the most successful products in the history of Apple's business. Steve Sinofsky, who at the time worked in the Windows division at Microsoft, recalled the day when Apple first introduced its iPad on his Twitter.

With hindsight, Sinofsky calls the introduction of the iPad a clear milestone in the world of computing. At that time, Microsoft had just released the then-new Windows 7 operating system, and everyone remembered the success of not only the first iPhone, but also its successors. The fact that Apple is going to release its own tablet has been speculated not only in the corridors for some time, but most imagined a computer - similar to a Mac and controlled by a stylus. This variant was also supported by the fact that netbooks were relatively popular at the time.

After all, even Steve Jobs first talked about a "new computer", which should be better than the iPhone in some ways, and better than a laptop in others. "Some might think it's a netbook," he said, prompting laughter from a section of the audience. "But the problem is that netbooks aren't any better," he continued bitterly, calling netbooks "cheap laptops"—and then showing the world the iPad. In his own words, Sinofský was captivated not only by the design of the tablet, but also by the ten-hour battery life, which netbooks could only dream of. But he was also shocked by the absence of a stylus, without which Sinofsky could not imagine full-fledged and productive work on a device of this type at that time. But the surprise didn't end there.

“[Phil] Schiller showed off a redesigned version of the iWork suite of apps for the iPad,” Sinofsky continues, recalling how the iPad was supposed to get an app for working with text, spreadsheets and presentations. He was also surprised by the iTunes synchronization capabilities, and one of the biggest surprises, he said, was the price, which was $499. Sinofsky remembers how early versions of tablets were shown at CES in early 2010, where Microsoft announced the arrival of its Tablet PCs with the Windows 7 operating system. There were nine months left until the arrival of the first Samsung Galaxy Tab. The iPad was thus not only obviously the best, but also the most affordable tablet of the time.

Apple managed to sell 20 million of its tablets in the first year after the launch of the first iPad. Do you remember the launch of the first iPad?

Source: Medium