Upon its unveiling, it seemed like the iPad received more criticism than praise. In fact, before I started researching it, I don’t believe I heard a single positive review about the product. The complaints included (but are not limited to) its size and awkwardness, the lack of multitasking capabilities and even its name (which has bothered some, and by some, I mean a lot). So who in the world is going to need or want one of these new technological devices?

One answer is: College students may need the iPad. Supposedly, major textbook publishers and software company Scrollmotion have already begun negotiating deals to adapt textbooks into electronic versions. Along with this, tutorial apps would be introduced to aid in learning. Could this be the end of backbreaking loads of textbooks being hauled around campuses?

Believe it or not, this could be reality in the very near future. The iPad’s introductory price is a fairly reasonable $499 (an average semester’s cost of textbooks). If a price for electronic textbooks can be established to significantly undercut print versions, the iPad could be a hit on campuses for several obvious reasons, including tutorial capabilities, convenience and cost savings.

So the question stands: Will the iPad ever become an “iMust-Have”? If you told a college student at the beginning of their collegiate career that $500 dollars would help them save significant amounts of (beer) money and improve grades, most would probably jump at the purchase of this godsend device. I’m guessing Steve Jobs had more in mind than just a bigger iPhone when he created it, despite what many iPad haters want to believe.