This is one of the main points right now over which flame wars are bursting out in the nooks and crannies of the Internet. There are actually several reasons why Apple does not support Flash on the iPod and the iPad. Each of these reasons has its own argument and share of supporters, so I will just list them here for your reference and you can make up your own mind.
No Flash show during iPad Launch Keynote
Flash is heavy stuff
Flash both slows down the loading time of a page and eats up CPU cycles while running. I.e. – it slows things down. That is something that any developer would want to avoid at all costs. The UX (user experience) should be smooth and fluid, not jumpy and slow. And since this is Apple, the company that is completely OCD about UX (thanks to Steve), they are going to keep this in mind even more. According to some developers and coders — Flash would bring the iPhone down to its knees. This is of course speculation but it is true that things would slow down. There’s also another downfall to Flash being heavy on the device — reduced battery life. CPU cycles need power and that comes from the battery, which gets drained in the process.
Apple Prefers HTML5 And Wants To Replace Flash With It
HTML5 is a new standard for HTML and no, it is not complete yet. Which is why there is a lot of debate about how it should be. One thing HTML5 can do is replace Flash video players. Google has already enabled YouTube with this and hence the iPad will be able to view YoutTube videos. Apple has been a known supporter for the HTML5 standard so that things can be coded for better performance across browsers and not require plugins, which slow browsers down (some of them do). For some HTML5 is a way to ensure that things stay open and non-proprietary but even that has its problems. And of course, Flash is currently the best way to ensure cross-platform support and that hasn’t changed yet. Still, HTML5 means a good future Internet ahead, Flash or no Flash.
Apple Is Protecting Their SDK
This one might as well be a major part of the reason but it’s not like Apple will say this out loud. Thing is, you can make web-apps just fine with Flash and some of them can be pretty good when done right. But that way, what use is the App Store? So some people are of the opinion that Apple is doing it in part (if not wholly) to protect their SDK. There can also be the UX argument here — Apple is just trying to protect the UX by ensuring that nothing too heavy is encountered by the user. If they don’t find anything that slows the UI down, their UX is maintained as pretty good. Out of sight, of mind.
Ad Blocker!
This is not a very solid argument and if it is at all a reason, it’s a small one. Flash is arguably the platform for the most annoying forms of advertising. Flash popups, take overs, etc. are extremely annoying and can often be as nagging as they are annoying. By eliminating Flash, Apple has ensured that the web browsing experience is much cleaner.
Over all, Apple can easily implement Flash in the blink of an eye. But now that they have seen so much success with the iPhone without Flash ever touching it (unmodded anyway), they have even less reason to support Flash and bring down the quality UX (their official reason of sorts). So will the iPhone OS 4.0 support Flash? Highly unlikely.
