iPad Review

[onthebottom]

Well, the wait is over, my new 64gb 3G iPad was delivered today at noon. After an hour with it my impressions are:

It's the perfect size for mobile browsing of the web, watching video and reading a newspaper. The USA Today is actually better on the iPad than the print edition.

Set up was painless, after 5 min of synch it was ready to play with - came 90% charged. Handbreak movies, YouTube and my movies look great.

More later - BTW writing this on my lap on the iPad.

Will be happy to answer any questions.

OTB

 

[onthebottom]

is it heavy?...or is there any type of carrying case it comes in?

Yes and no on the weight, not heavy to hold but heavier than you think it will be. The impression is that it's very solid.

You have to buy a case.

OTB

 

[onthebottom]

How do you get YOUTUBE to work on IPAD?

I have tried & tried, something is not right?

Are you connected to a network?

Mine works like a larger HD version (and much faster) version of my iPhone.

OTB

 

[onthebottom]

Pairing with Bluetooth keyboard (which I'm now using) worked flawlessly.
OTB

 

[onthebottom]

iBook update.

I've downloaded both iBook and Kindle apps, have not bought any books yet but have downloaded several from the Gutenberg Project collection - which is fantastic and free!

Screen is VERY easy to read on, I turned down the brightness a bit (iPad brightness setting default is half way between dimmest and brightest) from the default setting (effects books only) and have read many pages in both portrait and landscape mode - I prefer landscape as there are fewer turns and the screen is plenty large for two up pager.

OTB

 

[jwmorrice]

Pairing with Bluetooth keyboard (which I'm now using) worked flawlessly.
OTB

You've got yourself a keyboard and you need to get a carrying case. So, I'm wondering then, what do you see as the advantage of this iPad over a small good laptop? Sounds like a nice toy but...

jwm

 

[onthebottom]

You've got yourself a keyboard and you need to get a carrying case. So, I'm wondering then, what do you see as the advantage of this iPad over a small good laptop? Sounds like a nice toy but...

jwm

The keyboard will stay home, the case is a very small slipcase.

Think of it as an instant on laptop that will actually fit on your lap. Sort of.

OTB

 

[WoodPeckr]

You've got yourself a keyboard and you need to get a carrying case. So, I'm wondering then, what do you see as the advantage of this iPad over a small good laptop? Sounds like a nice toy but...

jwm

The iPad keyboard works fine once you adjust to it...
As you note, iPad is a nice toy....'bright & shiny' too!
That said any netbook works better/faster and is far more functional and costs far less....

 

[Powershot]

Better screen, battery life, quicker startup, more portable, usable when not stationary... it has some advantages over a netbook but has no killer app as of yet to make me want to get one. Perhaps if I took the GO Train into work I would get a 3g one.

 

[canucklehead]

The iPad keyboard works fine once you adjust to it...
As you note, iPad is a nice toy....'bright & shiny' too!
That said any netbook works better/faster and is far more functional and costs far less....

as what category of machine are u placing the ipad in ... if that is the case then any laptop will work better then any netbook ..... hold on ....
Anyways i have been testing and using one at work.... ssh works great ... so i can actually work and run to meetings but easier then before and leave my laptop at my desk and sync up after... i really want a 3G one as soon as they are ready ... i find the 3G is definitely needed for my needs.
Think bigger this is a the cusp of true mobile OS freedom ..... Chrome and clouds ....
I found a use for my Android finally .... turned it into a wireless access point and used my ipad from the truck.

 

[onthebottom]

I don't have a net book (never saw the point) but those of you who do would/have you done the following on your net book:

Read a book
Watch a movie
Watch a podcast
Listen to music
Play games
Read a newspaper

I've done all the above on my iPad in the last 48 hours and it is fantastic at these in addition to the more pedestrian web surfing / terb posting (like this one).

OTB

 

[Berlin]

I can understand that you like your new toy , and there are legit reasons.

But dude, you're just trying too hard.

 

[onthebottom]

I can understand that you like your new toy , and there are legit reasons.

But dude, you're just trying too hard.

Not trying at all, just relaying my experience.

OTB

 

[onthebottom]

I updated all the SW on my Mac before I synched the iPad for the first time.

Watched an episode of Cougar Town lastnight streamed from the free ABC app - funny and stupid show... doubt it will work for multiple seasons. Resolution was fantastic, episode started in less than 10 seconds (faster than Showtime on-demand on my cable setup) not a single stutter in the video.

OTB

 

[jwmorrice]

You have to wonder if MS, in its greed, isn't assisting iPad sales by pushing W7 for the netbook category. http://news.cnet.com/8301-13924_3-20003944-64.html

jwm

 

[nova5]

Apple sells 1million iPads, with 12million Apps and 1.5m e-books downloaded by iPad users.
http://www.apple.com/pr/library/2010/05/03ipad.html

 

[nova5]

iPad WiFi + 3G: jailbroken, dismantled, 3G video criticized ...
http://arstechnica.com/apple/news/2...tm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss

 

[onthebottom]

iPad WiFi + 3G: jailbroken, dismantled, 3G video criticized ...
http://arstechnica.com/apple/news/2...tm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss

I have not tried the 3G part of my 3G yet as It's been home for the last 3 days. I have a Mifi card from Verizon for my work PC so I'll most likely use that with the iPad so the company can pay for the network service.

I wonder how Apple products work in other countries not hampered by the AT&T weak-ass network.

OTB

 

[onthebottom]

Took my iPad to a two day planning meeting this week at HQ.... I didn't boot my laptop for two days, did email, took notes, contacts and calendar all from the iPad. While it's not a great text impute device it worked fine for what I needed to do. It was a global meeting with Sr. guys from each of the major geos in attendance (Europe, Asia, Latin America) - to a person they will all go home and buy one (when they can) - a guy from Sydney picked one up at the Palo Alto store after the first day of the meeting.

OTB

 

[nova5]

Took my iPad to a two day planning meeting this week at HQ.... I didn't boot my laptop for two days, did email, took notes, contacts and calendar all from the iPad. While it's not a great text impute device it worked fine for what I needed to do. It was a global meeting with Sr. guys from each of the major geos in attendance (Europe, Asia, Latin America) - to a person they will all go home and buy one (when they can) - a guy from Sydney picked one up at the Palo Alto store after the first day of the meeting. OTB

--
Based on your experiences with the iPad, it sounds like I might be able to replace my laptop with this device.