But other than that it can't keep up with my contacts or calendar with the demise of MobileMe.
I never had MM. I would argue about how much "business oriented" MM was anyway. I connect to an Exchange server for business stuff with additional syncing to Yahoo & Google (mail, calendar and contacts for both) as additional "insurance" against any one service "going away."
It is not really useful for production answering of emails due to the difficulty of typing on the virtual keyboard.
Bluetooth keyboard? I have the Zaggmate because it's a "case" for the iPad. If I typed more, I'd just get a normal BT keyboard since the "case" type iPad keyboards are little smaller than normal keys. But still I type a lot on the Zaggmate, more so than the onscreen keyboard.
It really isn't a very useful browsing device without flash or java support.
Debatable. In general, I avoided Flash & Java sites even on my desktop PC & Macs so not having them accessible on the iPad is fine with me. The only Java site I use is LogMeIn, so I had to get the LogMeIn app for the iPad. Many vendors have produced apps to "compensate" for the inability of the iPad to access their websites, which is a good thing overall since the apps often are easier to use than the websites.
It can't do the things a ultraportable can do...print,
You obviously haven't looked hard enough since HP does make Airprint capable printers, in addition to the other apps you can run on a Mac to share it's printer.
calculate,
??? iWork (Numbers) and all the other spreadsheet apps, as well as word processing an banking apps. Again, it sounds like you haven't attempted to look for an app.
synch with calendar and contacts.
iTunes already syncs with Outlook on a PC, and iCal & Addressbook on the Mac. And as I said previously, I sync my iPad to Exchange, Yahoo and Google.
So I have made the personal choice to downgrade it to a leisure time device and likely pass it to a child.
That is your decision.
Now I do hear of many of my colleagues being provided Ipads by their enterprise, so for those just starting out, please share the things that you find the Ipad does well for you during the business day.
Now, if you really do want to hear what business I do with my iPad, (and haven't already locked your opinion,) then in addition to Email, (light editing of Word documents and Excel spreadsheets sent as attachments) the biggest thing I do with my iPad, business-wise, is remote control of client's computers. Through VPNs, VNC, RDP & LogMeIn to my client's offices, I can take trouble calls as necessary on my iPad. Since I have an iPad with 3G, I can be (almost) anywhere and still provide "direct" support for my clients. I also RDP to my workstation at the office for anything that the iPad can't handle. (i.e.: Access databases.)
One could argue that I could do the same with an ultraportable. Yes, and I can also do the same with my Macbook Pro and my Win7 desktop. What I've done is to configure my work in such a way as to not be tied to any one device or vendor. I've made my business workflow fit within the limitations of the iPad, just like I would have done with an ultraportable notebook. I had used Windows Mobile devices for many years before using an iPad and could even do VNC and RDP with WM. The limitations of WM were the "training" for me when I got the iPad. The epiphany was when I realized to NOT use the iPad as a "normal computer" but to treat it like a large screen Windows Mobile device. (Large screen iPhone for the Mac-only people. 😉 ) After that, much of my initial frustration with the iPad went away and I realized how much more I could do when I stopped using the "just like how I do on my desktop PC" mindset.
In my case, I've gotten a lot in the cloud, but didn't rely on just one cloud provider. IOW, instead of just using MM, I use Yahoo, Google and a private Exchange server as redundant cloud services. I've already gone through the pain of HD failure, which had an unknown backup device failure, so had to re-enter everything from scratch. Thus the multiple cloud services.
So iPad is not a useful business devices? Nope. It fits perfectly well in my business. While it may not be a perfect fit for all business', it's like any other device and so one size does not fit all. (e.g.: that 18-wheeler can't fit in my parking deck so it's not a good "business device." 😝 )
