Much to my dismay, I didn't get to see 2001: A Space Odyssey in 1968. However, I read the book in 1970 and finally got to see the movie when it came back to the theatre in 1971 (and again in 1972). This is one of my all-time favorite movies.
The newspad, shown here, set part of my view for what such a device would be like since that time.
Is the iPad it? Possibly. I'll comment more, soon.