In an interview with “PaidContent” (http://macte.ch/UnxE7), Rupert Murdoch, chairman and CEO of News Corp. says the iPad is end of the laptop. But, wait, I thought the laptop was supposed to be the end of the desktop.

Talking about Apple CEO Steve Jobs, Murdoch said, “Here we have the man who invented the personal computer, then the laptop. He’s now destroying them. That is an amazing life.”

The Sellers Research Group (that’s me) doesn’t think the iPad will kill the laptop nor will the laptop kill the desktop. Here’s my predictions:

° The iPad will cannibalize some laptop sales. For those who want to mostly consume content (surf the web, check their email, log onto Facebook, watch videos, listen to their tunes, etc.), the iPad works just fine. It’s also okay for a limited amount of typing, especially if you add an external keyboard. However, the iPad is still a device better suited to content consumption than creation.

° For serious work on the go, you’ll need a laptop (an Apple laptop, naturally). If you’re going to be doing lots of word processing, working with videos and audio, or performing some serious number crunching, you need the power of a laptop. And if you work with multiple apps at once, you’ll need a 13-inch (or bigger) portable. Laptops are getting ever more powerful, so they will indeed continue to bite into some desktop sales.

° If, like me, you work mainly at home or in your office, you’re going to want a desktop computer. When it comes to processing power, storage capability and screen real estate, desktops — especially the all-in-one iMac — are still the best buy around.

So iPads, laptops and desktops will continue to co-exist long into the future. And doubtless there’ll be other gadgets that will join the line-up.

— Dennis Sellers
dsellers@applecentral.com