Apple iPad Tablet
Posted by Notcot on Nov 2, 2010 in PCs & Laptops |
- 9.7-inch Multi-Touch enabled tablet
- Wi-Fi (802.11 a/b/g/n) and Bluetooth 2.1 connectivity
- Surf the web, write email, enjoy photos, films, YouTube videos, and more
- Up to 10 hours of surfing the web on Wi-Fi, watching video, or listening to music
- iPad will run almost 140,000 apps from the App Store
When this was first announced I thought it looked great and it was certainly a fun and funky novelty, but I couldn’t fully see the point. But then when the hype had died down a bit, I used one….
The first thing you notice isn’t the impressive display, as soon as you see it you are compelled to touch it and the responsiveness is incredible. It responds with precision to every finger flick and you can glide between the screens with ease. I was dubious about using the onscreen keyboard but it holds up well. The keyboard is easy to see and (perhaps more importantly) easy to type on. Turning the iPad re-alligns the screen so you can view things in landscape or portrait. If you’ve used an iPod Touch or an iPhone then you’ll be familiar with the two fingered zooming in and out, this is great when viewing photographs or when web-browsing.
Web-browsing should be a disappointment, the lack of Flash support is infamous and cited as the main iPad flaw. I was ready to criticise it but I have to admit that I was impressed and found web browsing to be a very enjoyable experience. Like most other Apple Mac products it feels intuitive and without reading a manual or receiving a demo you already instinctively know how to use it – and for an item of high-technology that’s a rare a pleasant thing.
This device is best used along with a standard laptop or desktop Mac/PC to synchronise with iTunes and so that you have a main machine for file storage, but if you find yourself baffled by technology and struggle with a laptop then this could be the perfect solution if all you want to do is a bit of web browsing. My dad has a cheap laptop which takes an age to boot up, takes a further age to get on the internet, pops up many confusing messages about conflicting software, and crashes – often. All my dads needs his laptop for is web access but the poor experience it provides means that he has since given up – for him the iPad would be perfect.
There is a standard set of apps which come installed on the device, you can’t remove them and to be honest you wouldn’t want to. They have been incredibly well developed and have a strong pedigree now as they have lived on other portable Apple products for the last few years. The range of apps available for the iPad is nothing short of fantastic, and every time you check the AppStore there’s more! There are thousands of free apps, and plenty which cost only few pence. Once you’ve searched for Apps and added them to your iPad you have a fully customised device tailored to your own tastes and requirements. Whether you want utilities or games you cannot fail to find things you like. To be honest, the iPad is a worthwhile gadget purely on the basis of the AppStore alone!
Apple have created a gadget which isn’t quite a laptop and is more than a tablet PC – it’s a new class of gadget which can easily fit in with your lifestyle and become a device you find yourself using every day. You can read books on it (the iBook app is a great virtual bookcase), surf the web, or even watch TV (via the BBC iPlayer!).
In a nutshell: If you’re buying this as a laptop replacement then you may be a bit disappointed if you’re wanting to do a heavy amount of word-processing, spreadsheets, photo manipulation – the sort of thing you can only really do well on a `proper’ computer. But for many this is the perfect solution, a beautiful looking item which is easy to use and can do far more things than it can’t do. If I were reviewing this as a tablet PC then I’d give it 4 stars, but I’m reviewing this as an iPad – a new sort of device which will establish itself as the first thing you reach for if you had to flee the house.
Rating: 5 / 5
I thought it was time to set the record straight. Before I bought the Ipad (32gb WiFi) I had read hundreds of reviews – mostly negative. As this could have put me off, and made me not buy something which has become such a part of my life, I thought it was time to tell it from my point of view and answer a few points. About me.. I am a PC technician and have been in the industry for years and have seen PCs come in, MP3 players and mobile phones. So I reckon I can be quite objective.
First price, I admit it is not cheap – well not compared to Netbooks. However Netbooks (having owned 2) are garbage pieces of kit and a waste of time. In the majority of cases they are cheap and nasty and put together with the cheapest of components. For me, get a laptop with all the bells and whistles – you still have to carry them around. But I digress – over to the Ipad.
I own a PC and an iMac and do love Apple. This hasn’t swayed my view at all – Apple have got it wrong before and I’m the first to admit it.
So what do I think of Apple’s latest? Well simply it’s awesome – it IS revolutionary in many ways and unless you own one you won’t understand that statement. To answer some of the more common misconceptions :
1. The price, like i said it isn’t cheap – about the price of a medium spec laptop but you just can’t compare the two. Like any iMac user knows, Apple build their stuff well, with the best parts and best components. They last and are generally streets ahead of the latest kit. The iMac for example is about the price of a top-spec PC, but that’s the point missed, they ARE as good (if not better – no viruses here) as a top spec PC so you pay the same price. The iPad isn’t cheap, but it is solidly made. You know as soon as you feel it, start it up that this kit is going to last with proper care. But when you run it, use it the price disappears because it’s worth every penny.
2. A big iPod touch. In a small way it is, in so far as the OS and how it works, but that’s about it. It’s like saying a Netbook is a small Laptop – it’s not, a laptop has much more advantages such as a DVD drive, better processors and memory. The iPad is a powerful device, a 1Ghz processor in something which needs very little will be a great advantage when apps become better and use more of it’s capability.
3. No camera – OK well we all know one is coming, it’s already wired for one and has the space to put one in. Apple will no doubt, just like the iPhone make the 2G have a camera so we can now net-conference and use the technology being tested on the iphone. Not getting one because that will happen depends on you. If you HAVE to netconference or Skype with a video, then don’t get one if that’s what you want it for. If you want it for lot’s of other reasons.. well not getting one because a better version is coming out would mean you would never buy anything. Mobile phones don’t video chat – well they can but no one wanted it so I don’t see how the lack of video recording really means anything. You wouldn’t use an iPad to make video, it could but why would you with so many dedicated cameras around? I’d ask any netbook owner with a camera how many times they make video calls, you certainly wouldn’t on 3G unless you like your family to resemble juddering lego people!
4. Not a replacement for a Netbook. Well, no one said it was. If you watch big Steve on launch, he said this wasn’t a netbook nor was billed as one. It was designed to be a new concept. To make a point, think of the Nintendo Wii. I think Nintendo pulled off one of the biggest gambles of modern times. They sat down, looked at Xbox and PS2 and saw how technology was getting bigger and bigger and new consoles were simply getting faster and more graphical. Nintendo decided to get out of the race and come up with a new concept for gaming. Oh how my pals in the gaming industry laughed, ‘No one will want a slower less technological console’ ‘People want DVD drives and Blu-Ray’… well the Wii has outsold the lot as they found a gap and came up with a whole new way of looking at gaming.
Apple have come up with just that, a new concept for digital media. This is primarily what most critics are missing here. This is not a replacement for anything, it’s a new idea. Yes some ideas don’t work, they fall by the wayside but I doubt this will. In fact it will not for reasons I will discuss.
5. Flash compatibility. Apple have a long standing opinion on flash – and I tend to agree. It eats resources and can be published by anyone and bad flash can screw up systems. Up to now, apart from video on the BBC News site, I haven’t missed flash nor feel I can’t live without it. Apple are already convincing people to use the more regulated HTML 5 and this will get things moving. So yes it is a small pain but I really can live without it. Let’s recall that it was only very recently that flash video was around, prior to that it was WMV and AVI.
6. Multi media playback. Any owner of any Apple format knows that Apple are tight with compatibility. Yes they want their sales from Itunes which to be honest I have always found reasonably priced. However, any power user knows it’s easy to convert anything to the correct format for iPad/Pod/Touch with often free software so who really cares? The only people bothered are either those who are not savvy enough to convert or illegal downloaders who just want to drop the torrent version of Toy Story 3 onto their device..
So onto what it can do and where my humble opinion on where things are going…
What I have found first off is the browsing experience. When on Apple promos they talk about holding the Internet in your hand I found this a bit dramatic and flowery. But I have to say I now get it. It really is a different feeling when you are scrolling around the web and touching it. Yes it sounds so histrionic but it really does. If you have a Touch then you may sort of know what this is, but on the iPad it’s completely different, the touch isn’t big enough to fully put the experience over. Web browsing is a dream, really feels great. It’s quick, it’s easy and Safari is a very good web browser with all the bells and whistles. I have owned some big expensive monitors and nothing looks so vivid than on the Ipad.
Next up is the Apps. App development is in it’s early days. If the current offering is a taste of what’s to come then we are in for a great time. I think the gaming capability of Ipad is being overlooked. No PSP or DS can get close to what this does. Once developers get the control bit sorted the sheer size of the screen and quality (as well as the massive battery life) will make portable gamers (with a lot of money!) look seriously at the Ipad.
Apps are not all games, what really excites me are the online mags. Wired and Igizmo have dipped in their toes and by gosh how superb is it looking?!
Igizmo – which is free – have come up with a simply stunning magazine which is fully interactive. This IS THE FUTURE of publications and Apple know it. Sling in the iBooks and this is where the money is in the future and why others will be left behind. Apple will be talking to all the big players and getting exclusivity deals as we speak. All the big hitters can’t ignore what is around the corner. Now it’s hard to convey this to you if you haven’t seen iGizmo or Wired on the Ipad. Think built in mini-movies. They talk about a new electric scooter, press the mini video and the video plays (in it’s little box or full screen) and shows a quick demo. Wired do an article on ILM and a small video of ILMs big one’s such as Star Wars, T2 etc plays away. A product is being reviewed, press the pic, flick your finger around and a nice 3D version is in front of you in High Res. Yes, this is what magazines should be all about. Now some will say ‘this is already on the net’ – well onto that valid point..
Our family use this, it’s so easy to use my 5 year old is using it already, to pick up like a book and look at stuff. Whether it’s email or just to check a website out such as facebook or wikipedia or have a look at the prices at Amazon. A big influence to me when I got the iPad is the times I have been sat on the sofa watching TV and suddenly wanted to get on the net and look at something I had thought of. Most times I couldn’t be bothered then wished I had, when sat later in front of my Mac/PC. The times we have grabbed the iPad from the coffee table to do just this made us make the very re-assuring ‘how did we do without this before?’ statement.
So yes a netbook can get online magazines and publications, but not with such a good screen – there is currently NO NETBOOK with a screen this good. No NETBOOK is touch sensitive. But that’s the last netbook statement as they really aren’t a comparison – but point made?!
It just isn’t practical to have a net/laptop sat on your coffee table, they have to be booted up (a point lost on the critics) and battery life just isn’t up to it. They ain’t particularly easy to hold and can burn your legs with the heat they give off. You can pick up an iPad, press Menu and it lights up ready to use in seconds. This quick internet/email access doesn’t appeal?? – well I’d guess that’s cause you’ve never had it.
We bought our first iBook – well my wife did as I’m not into books, and they look great and easy to read. I think big book readers will stick with Kindle as it’s likely they got it just for that as that is all it does but does very well. For occasional book readers the iPad cuts it no problem. Even for non book reader like me, I found it relaxing to use. People talk about the bright screen.. well turn it down then or switch to sepia paper which makes it look different.
So my opinion on where this is going? Well on-line media is the future, already the telegraph has a great app which allows you to quickly download a very good summary of all the daily best bits for browsing – something I love when on the road in a hotel and want to keep in touch with the world. As for the new pad devices being developed – so called iPad killers – well I see these the same as when PCs started being mass produced.
Apple have control over their content, I dont think its the big brother thing people talk about, but simply a way to ensure quality. Any developer will tell you that Apple have rules and can be a pain, but I think that is good. We don’t want apps that don’t work, apps that allow viruses in, apps that screw up your OS. I see tablet PCs going the same way as the manufacturers will foolishly think that the only way to sell is to attach everything and allow access to every aspect of the OS. Developers will be able to write any old cr*p and upload/sell it. They will invite viruses just like PCs and I am sure already hackers are planning the next generation of spyware for tablet PCs. You will need to download patches almost daily (my MAC has never ever been virused nor needed a patch – thanks Steve at making the OS so bullet proof!) just to get things working again and generally your tablet PC will be pulled out of your jacket/suitcase and have the same problems any other PC has. Now I don’t want that with a portable device – I want it to work, work first time and not rely on downloads and processor eating anti-virus programmes.
The tablet PCs will be sold with everything – cameras, USB, media readers and multi-format media playback. You’ll buy one but end up doing just what the iPad does but a lot better – browsing the web. Realising that media readers are little use and that camera is just a shiny thing you never use cause no one wants to video chat anyway.
Now this review can be picked to bits by anyone, I have these conversations daily with industry pals – but one thing I will say, when I get the iPad out, boot it up and show my PC orientated pals what it does, there are very few negative comments made. People often say – ‘yeah, ok it is cool I’ll shut up’.
It’s early days for iPad – get one now and be part of the revolution in digital media. I don’t work for Apple and cringe at the soundbite but it’s the best way I can summarise.
And yes, I did write this on my iPad and find the keyboard easy to use indeed.
Oh and get the Apple case a it’s cool and makes it easier to hold.
Rating: 5 / 5
I just bought one for my parents and they are loving it. They have never heard about Apple fanboys before, they don’t know what flash is and they don’t care about not being able to download those apps that never made it into the apple store due to one restriction or another. However they do ring me up consistently regarding various problems they tend to run into while using their laptop. At the end of the day all they want to do is to send an odd email, check the weather and make a Skype call. Ipad makes it easy for them. Everything is a touch away and there are no menus or confusing prompts to deal with. I clocked the battery and it lasted just over 10 hours streaming various videos. This is like a month worth of battery for my parents. Maybe Ipad is indeed not for you, but for some people it’s perfect.
Rating: 5 / 5
I love the ‘concept’ but the implementation is so locked down that it became very frustrating to use.
I did like:
* build quality
* colour screen is very high quality (indoors!)
* using Safari with it’s multiple screens but though this was great for simple browsing, it was not flexible enough for more serious work.
Dislikes:
* inability to transfer files between iPad and a PC ‘directly’. Using iTunes is very intrusive.
* non-standard port (ie not a USB port) and supplied cable was very short (~1m).
* I had hoped to be able to use this primarily as a pdf reader but after playing with it over a number of days I found that it is so hard to get pdf’s on to the thing (see above) it became infuriating.
* It also proved hard to read out-of-doors, though was fine indoors.
* Finally a serious concern, to me, is having to enter all my passwords ‘permanently’ into the system and not being able to type them in only when you log on to eg your email a/c, wireless network etc. This leaves the accounts very vulnerable in such a portable, and hence ‘nick-able’ device.
I’ve not had the time (on loan) to really use it for typing documents, emails etc. So I can’t fairly comment on how usable that aspect is.
Conclusion: I will not buy this but can’t wait for an Android equivalent.
PS My kids loved it!
Rating: 3 / 5
I bought an iPad as I loved the idea of getting a smaller laptop. This was my mistake because the iPad is a poor substitute to a Mac laptop. Everything like word-processing, sending emails e.t.c. I find much easier with a laptop. I found after buying it, using it surprisingly little. I was also frustrated at the difficulty of saving, retrieving and emailing files.
If you want to use it for watching Youtube videos and all the other things the iPad excels in, it will probably make you quite happy. But, for my particular purposes, it wasn’t great value, so I sold mine on Ebay.
Rating: 3 / 5