Too Many Rectangles

The Onion once had an article about our obsession with these glowing rectangles.  It wasn't long ago when the genres were distinct in function and size: TVs, computers, and phones.  Now with the advent of laptops and netbooks and iPads (oh my!) or even internet TV and e-readers and TV on the internet, it's ridiculous trying to choose one over the other.  All are multifunctional to some degree and we have this need to optimize and maximize whatever we have.  Each one is cool in its own right, but no one item is perfect in all respects.  One tends to be better than another in some shape or form.   Despite having a TV, computer, and phone, and even a netbook, it seems inevitable that I'll be buying another glowing rectangle.  But which one? 

I love my iPhone.  I hate AT&T.  I've accepted that.  Verizon selling the iPad is a good sign for the future to come.  I travel a lot, so portability is nice.  I've played with the iPad.  It's got the cool factor, no doubt about it, and I am an Apple fan.  But after the honeymoon phase, I don't see myself using it for games or movies or what not.  Sure, I'd surf the net, but I still like the physical keyboard.  Plus, a bit too heavy and awkward to hold for my liking.  The Samsung Galaxy Tab?  I haven't played with it, but a colleague of mine didn't like the size.  I don't like the contract; things will evolve quickly with tablets in a two-year contract window.  The Macbook Air?  Perhaps.  The thing that I love about both the iPad and Air is the flash memory: instant on!  It accentuates the pain I feel every time I see the Windows screen when my netbook boots up.  We'll see if PCs go that route.  The Nook?  I played with this at a Barnes & Noble in NYC.  It's really nice.  Books and magazines looks great.  Web sites easy to use.  I'd prefer the Nookcolor over the other Nooks, but why is it that the regular Nook has 3G and Wifi but the Nookcolor has only Wifi?  It was when I played with the Nook, that with any of these, I think I really want a good e-reader.  It can be annoying hauling books around.  Ask my brother, who's hauling Tolstoy's War & Peace.  So that leads to the new Kindle.  I think that's the one for me.   Plus given it's low price, 3G and Wifi connectivity, and hey, the Amazon Store?  Sounds like a winner.  But what about the things it can't do?  Well, I have an iPhone for that.