Thoughts on the iPad
I recently became the owner of an iPad -- the WiFi + 3G 32 GB model that just went on sale this past Friday. Having had four solid days of using it, I think I'm going to hold on to it. For now.
Here's what I like about it:
1. It's fast and responsive. From booting up in a matter of seconds to switching between apps and manipulating images on the screen, I detect virtually no lag. The A4 processor that Apple is using handles its business well. The Safari web browser is fast, too.
2) It has a robust battery. Using it as much as I did through the weekend, I found that I could go for about 36 hours before I needed to recharge it. That does not mean I used it for 36 hours straight, mind you. The battery life is estimated around 10 hours of straight use.
3) It offers a new way of interacting with others, not just a new way of interacting with a device. What do I mean? This tablet is fun to pass around and show and share things with others. One night, my wife and I used it buy stuff online from Amazon, pay bills and do other tasks -- all while sitting across from each other at the dining room table. We just kept passing it back and forth. For us, this was new behavior. It also brought joy to my 18-month-old daughter, who loved the bigger screen while she played with some educational/kids apps I had downloaded. We also drew with our fingers using Adobe's free Ideas app.
4) Great screen. The touch screen is luminous. I find that when it's dark, it's easy to spot the fingerprint smudges. But when the screen is on, it's brightness cuts through them and you hardly notice them. Mind you, this screen is so bright and powerful that I've found that I've had to dim its brightness, especially when reading books. The virtual keyboard, I confess, takes some getting used to. As a guy who types 60+ words a minute, the keyboard has reduced me to "hunt and peck" typing. But I expect that to change as I get accustomed to it.
5) I don't have much of a problem with the quality of iPhone apps that are expanded to fit the iPad screen. Sure, they're a little jagged around the edges, but they're far from unusable. 
6) Favorite apps so far: The Netflix app and the ABC video player are super cool. Kudos to those two companies for jumping on the new platform and giving users a lot of options to watch quality content on the iPad. The New York Times' "Editors Choice" app (left) is very cool and perhaps the best expression of a newspaper in a digital format that I've ever seen. They got it right.
7) I like the minimal nature of the device when it comes to a lack of ports and other doohickeys. I like how thin and light it is. Apple has chosen to sacrifice some functionality for making a device that's light and easy and fun to use -- and I think that only means people will use it even more.
What I don't like about it:
1) iPad apps are more expensive. And there seem to be fewer free ones in the App Store. If most apps you bought on an iPhone are the price of a cup of coffee, the apps in the iPad App Store are the price of a grande mochachino.
2) The iTunes software that you have to sync your iPad with is becoming a chore to deal with. But, while some say the iPad isn't a true standalone computing device because you have to sync it with iTunes on another computer, I actually see that as a potential strength. If you lose it or it gets buggy, it's relatively easy to just reboot the device and reload your apps and much of your content, without losing the farm.
3) User profiles: as a device that my wife and I will use together, the iPad needs the ability to configure apps and user preferences based on individual users who are authorized to use the device. This device wants to be shared between people -- let them create their own profiles and log-in settings.
I look forward to the next update to the 4.0 update to iPhone OS, which I think will make navigating the iPad a bit easier. For one, I'm looking forward to having folders to store related apps in. This would cut down on flicking from screen to screen to select apps.
Also, multitasking is expected in 4.0 -- and the iPad could really use it. The bigger the screen real estate, the more ambitious your tasks and projects tend to be.
All in all, for a first generation device, I'm surprised at how polished it is. I was expecting something a little rougher around the edges. Granted, it's still missing a bunch of things that many people are craving right now.
The two biggies, I think, are a built-in camera and Flash support. I'm not so rabid about including a camera in the iPad. I understand the desire for video-conferencing, and I could see that working well.
But generally, I don't see this device as a natural fit for taking pictures and shooting video while on the go. For that, I'll stick to my iPhone or a small digital camera. I'm also not so disappointed in the lack of Flash.
If Steve Jobs' criticism of Flash is to be believed, the last thing I'd want is a mobile device like the iPad that's balky and slow due to Flash support. It would defeat its purpose as a light, lightweight and thoughtlessly easy to use device.
I'm waiting to see if/how/when competing manufacturers make tablets that do support Flash, to see if it can be done well. For me, "done well" means Flash doesn't eat the battery and cause crashes or system slowdown.
I have yet to use the AT&T 3G network on the iPad, but I have no reason to believe that it would not be a good experience here in Baltimore. At the moment, my AT&T data service on my iPhone in this city is excellent. My phone coverage, however, is average to mediocre. I still get dropped calls with regularity. But again, if I'm just surfing the Internet on AT&T's 3G network in Baltimore, I can't say I've had any problems with my iPhone. If I encounter any problems with the 3G network on the iPad, I will definitely post an update to this post.
Comments
In Addition to Apple Google (YouTube), Microsoft and others have signed on to support HTML5 in future projects. That could quite possbily answer the "No Flash" issue everyone is concerned about.
If Apple, Google, AND Microsoft says it's good then...it sucks to be you Flash! Flash has a steep hill to climb.
Yup. Good point. -gs
Posted by: Brotha Tech | May 5, 2010 10:28 AM
Did you try running it off a Sprint 4G connection? Any difference in speed noticeable?
Posted by: Charlie | May 5, 2010 11:41 AM
My company creates content -- and we've just started previewing our products to customers and potential customers on our iPad. Celebrity chef Wolfgang Puck has always said "we eat with our eyes..." -- and the iPad does for content what excellent plating does for fine cuisine. It's a fantastic content aggregation tool and presenter. There are all sorts of "connection tools" for the iPad as well. Find them under iPad Accessories at http://store.apple.com, Enjoy! -- Jeff Antkowiak
Posted by: jeff antkowiak | May 5, 2010 12:02 PM
2 comments:
First, I find your 7th point that 'Apple has chosen to sacrifice some functionality for making a device that's light and easy and fun to use' extremely naive. Apple wants you to buy multimedia content on iTunes so they did not include a memory card slot. Apple's business model is based on charging more for more space so there is not a USb slot that you could use to add an external HD. This is exactly the same as the iPhone & iPods. The newly released USB camera extension only works for photos & keyboards, not storage or multimedia. Also, it's not exactly 'light and easy'; you can't hold it for long, you have to use a table or your lap. And, a lack of HD output is ridiculous in this day and age.
Second, how can you write this article without even trying 3g??? We have had weeks of articles covering iPad usage. We know it. We get it. 3G is the only new feature that we are interested in at this point.
Posted by: Larry S. | May 5, 2010 1:24 PM
I have been reading a lot of reviews and posts about this subject and I have to tell you this is one of the most honest and well written. I have had my ipad wifi+3g 64 gb for over a week now and i am amazed by it. Everything you said fits perfectly in my experience. I do not stand any longer all those people that complain against apple, it is all about envy in my opinion. apple is the most interesting and innovative company out there. if you cannot afford their products, there is no need to complain about them. I want to add that my 3g experience in NY was perfect! even better the the iphone 3gs, probably just because the safari app in ipad is faster. i am going back to my home country in a few weeks, Italy, and i am a little worried about data services over there. i will of course cancel att but as of now no italian carriers have data plans for the ipad. Also over there we uses HSDPA, which is way faster then 3g but the frequency is not supported by the ipad. I guess my data experience will not be as good as here in the states. thank you for this nice review.
ciao
Posted by: giorgio | May 5, 2010 3:23 PM
My hope is they make the fastmall iphone app for ipad too. I can only imagine how intriguing an experience may be like that. Interactive guidance, will need some better way to carry the ipad though...
Posted by: Camille | May 5, 2010 5:33 PM
Good article, Thanks!
I has bought iPad WiFi in 5, April. Yesterday, I update it to iPad 3G, and this is cheap and easy, learn more from http://www.ifunia.com/ipad-column/tips-to-turn-ipad-wifi-into-3g.html
Posted by: Leehom | May 5, 2010 9:57 PM
Actually, 32 GB or 64 GB is a lot of space for an auxiliary device. Used to managing content on first an 8 GB and then 16 GB iPhones, I see no prospect of feeling cramped with the 32 GBs available on my iPad.
Any content you can rip from a CD or DVD can be added to the iPad via your iTunes library without spending an additional penny. Of course one likely wants a subset of music and video on an iPhone or iPad anyway.
Though I do not watch much broadcast television, I have already become inordinately fond of the ABC Player app. Highly recommend it.
Posted by: Podesta | May 6, 2010 2:27 AM
Even if Jobs was right about Flash being "too slow" or "draining the battery", that would only happen when actually displaying Flash contents, so they could simply include an option to enable or disable Flash, with a warning saying "this might drain your battery faster".
The real reason is that Flash is an application platform and would allow developers to sell apps directly from their own websites, without going through Apple's store. This has been known since the early iPhone days and isn't going to change now. It's just Apple's business model. Here's an old article about it:
http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2008/11/adobe-flash-on/
What amazes me is that Steve Jobs seems to have managed to convince iPad buyers that less choice is a feature, so not only aren't they complaining about not being allowed to run Flash on a device they bought, some actually think this benefits them!
Posted by: Mike Landreau | May 6, 2010 11:33 PM
The device is amazing in a bunch of different ways, but just doesn't hold any sort of efficient/productive value in my eyes. I just returned my 32GB 3G iPad. Read my amateur tech'ed out review here if you'd like:
http://jakeandjake.blogspot.com/2010/05/new-tech-ipad-review-not-for.html
Posted by: Jake | May 7, 2010 5:39 PM
Well, as usual Apple have pulled it out of the bag. The iPad just looks spot on, and works well.
Unlike a lot of Apple products though, I do struggle to see its purpose. I mean sure, its great to play with while sitting on the sofa every once in a while, but is that really enough?
It's uncharacteristic of Apple to make a product that isn't going to be used an awful lot - mainly because it doesn't make sense, products that aren't used a lot generally aren't as popular, so why spend all that money on research and development of the product?
It's also nothing new to an extent. One of my friends has one and was bragging that he can play Command and Conquer on it. I've been able to do that on my laptop for the last 15 years.
That being said, I have used one, and I am impressed. I think I'll probably wait for the prices to drop before I look into one any further though.
Great article Gus :)
Posted by: Electronic Cigarette | July 1, 2010 4:15 AM