For photographers, they do offer a camera connector kit (which comes with an SD card reader ..no CF slot for my 20D) and it works great with my Sandisk card reader. I have also tested the SD card attachment with the card from my P&S and it works great, too.
Not sure what the complaining is about? I bought a Creative Zen W for this purpose a while back, if I remember correctly, the 60GB version used to go for $399 and it did not have the numerous other uses that the iPad has…I couldn't even edit the pictures until I got them home.

This is a first generation product, and regardless of whether the first iPad is only a moderate success, a huge success or a game changer (I very much doubt it will be a dud), it has opened the floodgates for mobile computing and you can bet there will be 5 other tablets from competing manufacturers within the year. And that will force Apple to up its game and offer better features.

I do think this is revolutionary – the whole idea of the fridge is dead on. Our methods of interacting with information so far have been dictated by the limitations of the original computer's interface systems – keyboard and mouse. Something that takes time and effort to learn. This kind of system makes a lot more sense as we already learnt how to touch and point when we were all toddlers. You open the fridge and take what you want. It should be that easy. And that's what tablets are all about. Apple is probably the only company that could open that floodgate and now the tablets are here to stay.

And as photog's, we'll find a million uses for them.

The lack of a camera isn't an issue for photogs really because who is going to use it as a primary camera? It's too awkward to hold well to shoot anything. No camera is mainly an issue because it could be a cool video chat tool. But with third party apps, maybe someone will let it connect to the iPhone to share the iPhone's camera? Maybe even incorporate video chat like that or edit photos you quickly snap with your iphone?

Stop and think for a second about all of the possibilities for developing apps for this thing. limitless.

by the way, Gizmodo's gripes are mainly either software (which are fixable/upgradable) or just kind of nitpicking.

Everyone seems to be so shortsighted about the iPad.

So in the real world of how photographers actually use communication appliances, the iPad DOES offer something for them: mobile email and web access, which many of us need, plus a bigger “frame” for our pictures, in one reasonable-sized, not-ridiculously-expensive device.

PS — I'm sorry your professor exaggerated, but that's not Apple's fault. And in a way, I think the device IS revolutionary, in that it moves computing closer to what I was taught is the perfect paradigm for user interface design: the refrigerator. The technology behind a refrigerator is complicated, but nobody needs to be taught how to use one: you open the door and grab what you want. The iPad moves computing a bit closer to that ideal: you look at it and poke at what you want. It's almost as if Steve Jobs, having helped invent the personal computer, is trying to un-invent it again. I admit there's nothing in THAT specifically for photographers, but it's an interesting story arc.

Now imagine you can multi task, you dont know anymore how much ram you have which mean that sometime your app will stop working in the middle of a process or wouldnt just not run. And lets be honest, while we all understand why it would acts so, Average Joe user wouldnt and would blame the product.

The other reason why multitasking isnt present is all the security flaw it creates and potential drain on the battery if the app is left open and forgotten.

I agree with much of what you're saying. However revolutionary the device is (and I do believe it's revolutionary), I feel like it was a let down compared to the amount of hype and speculation that surrounded it.

I'm currently in a web entrepreneurship course here at UC Berkeley, and my professor (who previously worked with both Wozniak and Jobs) spent pretty much the entire 2 hours of class time yesterday discussing how revolutionary this device would be, and how it would literally do EVERYTHING, literally change the world, and become as much of a milestone in computing as the initial demo of the personal computer.

I think that was a hope held by many prior to the announcement today, and something Apple could have done a better job meeting (IMHO). For example, providing flash-capability and the ability to run multiple apps at the same time seems like a minimum they should have met. If Android powered phones have it, why can't the revolutionary iPad?

Anyhow, we're not trying to bash on Apple or create controversy (I use a MacBook myself). Jess is just pointing out that the device doesn't seem to currently offer very much specifically geared towards photographers, which is a fair thing to report on since nothing was known about the device before, right? :-)

…by the way, I see endless possibilities with having a wire-less keyboard that goes works with the pad..