How much is too much when it comes to the iPad?
You may notice that this week's issue is heavy on stories about Apple's new blockbuster product. Very heavy. I justify the coverage because no single product I've ever heard of in my nine years of covering health IT--including mobile healthcare--has had so much buzz within the healthcare industry. Really, it's hard to remember any new product at all having so much buzz. Wii Fit perhaps? Tickle Me Elmo?
We've been hearing about some kind of Apple tablet since last year. We've known since the beginning of 2010 that the company had been testing prototypes at hospitals. And from the time Apple introduced the iPad in late January, people--myself included--have been salivating over the device's possibilities for changing healthcare computing.
Now the iPad is on the market, and one source says Apple has sold more than 750,000 units as of this morning. Significant? I'd say so. The healthcare apps are coming fast and strong, too. So yeah, I can justify this week's emphasis.
We'll just have to see if the real-world experience lives up to all the hype. - Neil