Though the iPad is a device of consumption, it harkens back to our familiarity with a tablet. Its touchscreen interface is a more facile and effective experience which seems to go against the changing dimensions of the technological experience.
That begs the question though, with technology trying to go back to what we (those who grew up with pen and paper mostly) were used to, does it mean that the children of today should learn what we knew of writing? Mainly, repetitive and structured loops to correspond to what are now essentially light taps on a keyboard or screen.