This morning, Apple released the long rumored Magic Trackpad for $69. This device is basically the trackpad from their Macbook Pro torn from the machine and attached to a bluetooth receiver, the Magic Trackpad adds all the multitouch gestures that users have come to know from the iPad, iPhone, and Macbook line. Although the Magic Mouse has most of these gestures, the Magic Trackpad ensures a seamless gesture experience across the Apple platform.
Are trackpads for desktops really what we need? I use the iMac/iPad/iPhone combination, but I know plenty of people who hook their Macbooks up to monitors and mouse for when they are at their desks… Aside from that and the fact that I think that the Magic Trackpad is more of a bridge step between a mouse/keyboard iMac and making the iMac a touch-based device (trust me, this is happening), my real problem with the Magic Trackpad stems from how it “magically makes $69 disappear” to quote someone on twitter via @radiocolin.
I am the proud owner of a Wacom Bamboo Pen and Touch. Wacom is the gold standard in the graphics world for drawing tablets and the Bamboo is their more portable, entry level tablet that can double as a multitouch trackpad for normal computing use. Since most people do not need a pen for drawing, they offer a version that is just a multitouch trackpad. Not only is it slightly bigger, offers two customizable buttons, but it costs $35 on Amazon. If you want the pen, for only $20 more than the Magic Trackpad, you can get the Bamboo Pen and Touch if so inclined.
Being a person who has time and time again defended Apple’s pricing, this advice may come as a surprise to hear from me, but that has been when I believed that they were offering a level of quality above their competitors. When entering into the trackpad/tablet realm, their competitor is a company like Wacom, who has virtually destroyed every other company in their space through simply the quality of their products. Try to think of another tablet company… they used to exist, believe me.
