Yes, I want one

I am not an early adopter of much of anything. I bought cassette tapes until they stopped making them. I got a CD player just when everyone started getting MP3 players. I was the last person in America to buy a telephone answering machine and the second-to-last to buy a cell phone.

But I want an iPad, and I want it now.

I’m in desperate need of a new laptop. Every time I fire mine up, it growls, “Leave me alone.” But I have been wallowing in indecision about what should replace it. I need more than a way to check e-mail and connect to the Web. I do actual work while I’m on the road, and I need a keyboard that I can see without a magnifying glass.

So when the Apple guys announced that they would be selling “iWork for the iPad” for $30, I got really interested. When I saw the cute little keyboard/dock charger, I got all warm and glowy. When I learned that the iPad will fit in my handbag and weighs less than 2 pounds, I was in love.

Fortunately, I have friends with cooler heads. “Wait for Version 2,” they say. And I will. New tech toys always have their glitches, and what’s up with the non-removable battery? That’s a feature that is begging for problems.

While I wait for the Second Coming of the iPad (and hope my grumpy laptop holds up for the duration), I ponder how travel marketers will use it. TravelTainment has done fun things for travel agencies with Microsoft Surface, and travel apps for the iPhone are proliferating like mad. Will iPad inspire similar creativity?