The iPad Is Good For The iPhone
While we're all very excited about the iPad over here, we know that many of you iPhone and iPod Touch owners did not or won't make the jump. Does this mean you should ignore it or rant about its existence? No! The arrival of the iPad is fundamentally good news for you; here is why.
For starters, think about online content and Flash. While many flash-powered websites have pretty much ignored the iPhone's inability to access their content, it's a different story with the iPad.
Indeed, thanks to the iPad, you can now watch TED, CNN or even Sports Illustrated on your iPhone without the need for Flash, just check out Apple's official list of websites who made the step. Not supporting the iPhone/iPad is becoming an increasing disadvantage for websites and I'm convinced that in a year from now, you'll have a tough time finding a flash-only page online.
Further, the iPad is making iPhone OS and its apps an even bigger business. In consequence, developers will soon have even more resources and interest to develop all these apps you love. The fact that the iPhone is so similar to the iPad also creates some important synergies and economies of scale.
The iPad is also an accelerator, apps like Netflix that took so long to make it to the iPhone are already on the iPad and will hit the iPhone anytime now.
Lastly, the iPad will push Apple to put even more efforts into the iPhone's hardware and software. It's obvious for example that the technologies developed by Apple for the iPad, like its incredible long-lasting battery, or this new fast A4 processor will also be leveraged in the next generation of iPhones.
In short; the iPad is for the best, even if you don't want/have one.