First, the ‘What’:
For the sake of really being able to talk about the iPad, I decided to write this entire blog entry on the iPad. I’m hoping the typing get’s easier. To be honest, it is awkward at first. Especially if your hands are like mine and resemble those of a medium-sized ape. The optional keyboard accessory should make this a moot point, but if a few of the iPad’s selling features are portability and convenience, then typing on the iPad should at least be tolerable. I’ll let you know if it get’s easier as we go along.
The first thing that impressed me about the iPad was its speed. Apple’s new A4 processor seems to be doing its job very well. Navigating around the iPad is a breeze. Running apps, browsing the Internet, and watching movies are all fast and easy. In fact, Netflix ran faster on the iPad than any other device on which I’ve previously used it. It looks just as pretty too. From watching movies, playing games, and creating Keynote presentations, everything I’ve done on the iPad looks beautiful. The Netbook and Kindle just became obsolete.
Being able to connect the iPad to a projector or TV makes it a great presentation tool for Keynote, movies, or photo slideshows. The iPad will be great for travel too. While some may find the size of the iPad a bit awkward, if it had been any bigger or smaller, it would have defeated its purpose. It’s the perfect travel size laptop/iPhone in-betweener (not a word but it works).
And if all that isn’t enough for you, there is the feeling it gives you that you’re a crew member on the Starship Enterprise. If you’re reading this Mr. Jobs I’m still saving up for the iTransporter. Fingers crossed.
The iPad isn’t perfect, but if the simplified OS and lack of a built-in camera are deal-breakers for you, then send an angry email and wait for the next version of iPad. Just because it isn’t perfect doesn’t mean it isn’t useful. Which brings us to the next question:
Why?:
The question many of you may be asking yourselves is ” Why do I need an iPad?”. The short answer is, you don’t. The fact is, if you approached technology purely from a “need” standpoint your most advanced piece of technology would be a horse-drawn plow. The “need” of technology comes when we take a luxury and mold parts of our everyday lives around it until we can’t imagine doing a related task without it.
The iPad has endless “need” potential. No matter what your interests may be, from sports to scrap booking, to knowing what you missed when you walked out of a movie to go to the bathroom; there’s an app for it.
Someone out there, somewhere, is going to create an app that makes something you do or love that much easier and convenient. Embracing that idea could lead to a whole new realm of technological splendor. If it isn’t there now, it soon will be. Until you pick up an iPad and take one for a test drive, you may not even know why you really want one.
The iPad has its place in everyone’s life. Whether or not you allow it to fill that space is up to you, but I’m confident if you do, you’ll soon see just how much you really “needed” an iPad.
P.S. This may be revealing too much about myself, but if you do get an iPad, fight the temptation to just use it to play countless hours of Diner Dash and Plants vs Zombies. It’s hard to still like yourself at 3:00 in the morning when you realize how much time you just wasted and can never get back. On a positive note however, if you do get caught in that trap the iPad’s battery life will be more than sufficient. And for those late night term paper write ups, the typing DOES get easier.
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