With confirmation that the iPad has sold over one million units in under a month, the era of the tablet computer is upon us. It’s more readily portable for entertainment than a laptop and its uses are sure to expand as more apps are released in categories related to travel.

As far as it being a mobile-entertainment platform, it’s better for viewing content than laptops, reading devices or smartphones. Its larger screen and clever, wide-viewing angle feature ensure good views of the images even when the tablet is held sideways, writes Ilana Bryant. And TV advertisers, take note: Recent qualitative research from PHD among iPad owners indicates the iPad TV experience is so good that many respondents forecast it will replace the second and third TV in their homes and, possibly, their primary TV sets. ABC’s TV app, which offers free access to the network’s shows in exchange for users watching five traditional 30-second ads per hour, generated millions of ad impressions in the first 10 days of the iPad launch.

Some research suggests that the iPad’s large screen and streamlined interface can be better for making connections with a brand. Pampers recently used the iPad’s abilities with its “Hello Baby” app that allows pre-natal moms to see their baby’s changes week-by-week with 3-D images and sounds of the baby.

The iPad’s cinematic, touch-screen experience is also game changing. People, for instance, are buzzing about the app Elements: Visual Exploration (an interactive look at the periodical table) because of its visually breathtaking approach to the normally mundane table, describes Bryant. Imagine the potential of this device for the visuals in print magazines. The iPad also has a willing audience of e-readers waiting. According to a CNET poll taken last week, 20 percent of iPad owners bought it for the primary purpose of reading books and magazines.

The iPad’s friendly accessibility means that it might find a place with older, less tech savy consumers in the long run. iPad users also seem to be very enthusiastic Internet consumers and the device’s own sexiness will probably mean even more uses will be found.

The launch of Apple’s iAd service that allows app developers to create advertising experiences within applications also means there’s the potential to develop new kinds of in-app ad formats. To put it simply: the iPad is a solution waiting for a problem. And when marketers start figuring out what problems the iPad can solve for them, things will really get interesting, concludes Bryant.

Source: AdWeek