Steve Jobs screws my wife (out of $944) I couldn't tell who was more excited about our new electronic toy: me or my wife. She snuck out of bed at 3 am local time on March 11 to order me an iPad 2, and considering how much my wife likes sleep, that probably means she still likes me, even after sixteen years of dating and marriage. At least enough to shell out $729 …
...A trip to your local vehicle accessory store and a few bits of masking tape.
Buy a can of Ferrari Red Spray paint.
Mask of the bits of the iPad2 you don't want covered in paint (i.e. the camera!)
...and go to town on the thing (while outside! the fumes are bad Mmmmkk!!)
There fixed! One vulturized (sic?) White Ipad2 for your pleasure...
..Mines the one with the spray can and hammer in the pocket... :)
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What does this have to do with Steve Jobs?
In what way was your wife screwed out of money? It seems that you have already found the device useful.
This article seems like it belongs on the cover of Womens Weekly, not the pages of a tech blog. It's a story, and not a very good one at that. Man dislikes apple, man ends up buying apple (or being bought apple in this case).... wow riveting stuff.
The title is a cynical attention(clicks)-graber with no actual relevance to the article.
I don't see how you (or your wife) can be "screwed" out of money if you are satisfied with the result.
It is like having a headline "Terrorists are going to kill us all" and then an article about how, no they really aren't.
"I don't see how you (or your wife) can be "screwed" out of money if you are satisfied with the result."
Because the article is about how the iPad doesn't do anything. It does everything exactly the same as older technology. It provides the author no new capabilities, is neither magical nor revolutionary.
And that's why butthurt Apple fanboys like you are posting. No one is allowed to look behind the curtain.
We don't come in here dissing the Manchester Silly Nannies Futbol Club now do we? Show a little tolerance for things you just can't understand, Ohio State is evil...
Go Vols!
"Rocky Top, You'll always be, home sweet home to meeee.
Good ol' Rocky Top, Rocky Top, Tennessee!"
On a Side Note: How Dare You show Your face here after failing to destroy the Earth so many, many times? Like anybody would listen to you.....
:)
I found the article amusing, on several levels, but I'll never understand why anyone really wants one of these weak sisters. I've been using Motion Computing slates for over 10 years now and love them. Rugged, understated, beautiful and REAL PCs. http://www.motioncomputing.com/
"I cut my computing teeth on an old Ohio Scientific Z80 machine with deal eight-inch floppy drives back in the early 1980s."
Wow!
Talk about flashbacks. Only I cut my teeth a few years earlier on an Ohio Scientific C3A.
But then again, I lived pretty close to the factory.... (Aurora Ohio).
I thought I could respect a fellow Ohio Scientific owner except when you made the following comment:
"But to my horror, the back of the iPad 2 is gray brushed aluminum with a black apple and black sensors, and when you take it all in, that makes it an Ohio State BuckeyePad, Penn State's arch rival. I will get a blue leather cover as soon as Apple makes one."
I'm sorry, Penn State who? Sure I respect Joe Pa as one of College Football's coaching greats. (Along w Woody and I'll even salute Bo since he was an Asst Coach under Woody...) But Penn State isn't much of a rival since Tressel took over.
But I'll overlook that...for now.
You continue to write...
"I don't like the idea of using Google Docs because it is bad enough that Google is reading my office email, does it have to read what I am writing as I am writing it?"
True, but the iPad lacks a real keyboard and of course you can purchase a wireless one for it, but that then defeats the purpose of the iPad where a regular laptop has its value.
I'm am by no means an Apple fanboi. And I'm sure you'll get flamed by them. I am however someone who has waited for the iPad2. It will allow me to easily surf the web, do e-mail, and of course act as my e-reader of .pdfs and e-books. Sure there are other apps, but its the fact that I can easily have all of my technical documents that I get in .pdf forms, easily available on one device.
While the Kindle DX would also allow this, it unfortunately does't handle resizing as well and doesn't handle e-mail or web site wikis where some other documents exist.
But I really have to flame the author because the head line doesn't really match the content. Its more of a story how the author lacks vision or need for a new 'play toy'.
Charles Stross posted this about writing on an iPad last year - its a bit out of date now, but its a good starting point. But to summarize, DocsToGo seems to the be the app of choice, with Pages a good competitor. Not sure about Word compatability, though.
http://www.antipope.org/charlie/blog-static/2010/05/ipad-writing-stuff.html
At least the author recognises it's a play oy, with limited work application - I wholly agree.
As far as Word Processing, combining DropBox and Office2HD is the answer. DropBox is great multiplatform doc store, integrated with Office2HD. It also nicely lets you drop pdfs and ebooks into your DropBox folder and open them in iBooks without the nasty virus that is iTunes.
Another unmissable (multiplatform) is Instapaper, to save interesting web pages and read later.
I'm still looking for a decent note taking app - Evernote is nearly there, but not quite.
When reading a book, you don't stab the pages either, you flip them by grabbing them on the sides. Forcing touch interfaces on everything doesn't always make sense, and I would vote for the Kindle way: no need to release it to flip a page (with an ipad, you need to let one hand go to flip via the screen, try that when you're holding it in one hand)
But if the color of the cover freaks you out, and you eat ice-cream while in bed, the ipad is definitely for you!
"Right now, the iPad 2 is going to be my Kindle and my portable Web browser. I know people love their Kindles, but I like color and I also like touchscreens. Sorry, but there is no going back once you have been there."
Back? My arse. I have neither a pad nor an eink reader but having tried both if I decide I want to go the electronic book route then there's no way it'll be an LCD. I have a laptop with an excellent non glossy screen and I have tried reading PDF books, its a bloody awful experience. If I need to read a large document I'll print it. However I found the Kindle and Sony I've tried just fine for 2 hours plus hard study.
"My Droid is empty and has been for two years except for photos, with the Droid having replaced expensive still and video digital cameras of higher quality. Convenience does trump quality sometimes, but the iPad 2, at 300 kilopixels for the front facing camera and 700 kilopixels for the rear facing one, is bloody awful. And of course, this being Apple, I won't be able to upgrade the camera ever. Apple should have put the 5 megapixel camera in the iPad 2."
Convenience trumps quality, so why do you need a quality camera in your pad? Most people take their phone everywhere, to the pub, gig, work, whatever. Chances are when you are out with your iPad you'll have your phone too so what is the point of a quality camera on your pad? Waving a slab in the air does not fit my idea of convenience. As for complaining it's not upgradable that's just laughably naive. You don't get modularity on a device this compact.
The biggest fail IMO of the iPad2 is the screen. Kudos to Apple for not using an aspect ratio designed for movie theatres on a computing device but if 326ppi is correct for an iPhone how on earth can 132ppi be defended on an iPad 2? Not so much revolutionary as archaic.
"Back? My arse. I have neither a pad nor an eink reader but having tried both if I decide I want to go the electronic book route then there's no way it'll be an LCD. I have a laptop with an excellent non glossy screen and I have tried reading PDF books, its a bloody awful experience. If I need to read a large document I'll print it. However I found the Kindle and Sony I've tried just fine for 2 hours plus hard study."
I tried to explain the reasons why I wanted an e-reader to my wife....
I printed out just one of my tech manuals from a .pdf. 380 pages. You do know how large 380 pages are, right?
Now just for that one system, I have 4 documents like that.
And there are other products that I support . Then there's the list of books that I constantly use for references because I have the memory of a gold fish... ;-)
So. Imagine having 1 device that contains all of those books and .pdf documents, that can also do e-mail, web, internet chats/IM ...
Plus at my age... I don't really enjoy the 1.6 miles of walking commute carrying a book back filled with books and a laptop.... Especially in winter when there's ice on the sidewalks.
So yeah. I'll take the iPad2 for now, and when the iPad comes out with the improved processors and higher screen resolution... my wife will get this and I'll get the new one.
Fair points all IMG, I have the memory of a gold fish too. I carry buckets of pdfs and project documents on my laptops and have no problems with the screen for a days work, reference or lookup. But if a chapter or a drawing needs digesting in depth I just don't get on with an LCD. The other functions you mention I do directly on a Desire or via it tethered. That's what works for me, vive la difference.
My gripe is with TPM's comment that an iPad screen is superior to a Kindle screen for the purpose of reading ebooks. I can't accept that. Reading a book is not the same as referencing a technical manual. I spend a lot of time away from home for work and while travelling and overseas I get through a good number of books. Regularly packing and carrying sufficient dead trees to get me through a 6 to 9 week rotation is a significant motivator to put a lot of thought into getting an ebook reader. When I do make the jump it will have a screen designed to be the best paper replacement possible and not one designed for entirely different purposes.
Can't even get it in the right colour, LOL. Not a total loss though he did use it as a portable video player.
Its amazing how many people have to show off their new ipad, who then use it as a glorified picture frame. Apple could sell ice to the Inuit...
Damn that Steve he's trying to rifle my families pockets again....
We have an i-pad in the office and I bought the wife a kindle (avid book reader) for her birthday and as far as reading comfort goes there's simply no comparison IMO. e-ink is a much easier on the eye experience than a 'regular' screen. There's also an experimental kindle web browser which of course is nowhere near browsing the web 'properly' like on an i-pad but its good enough to check the email and read articles.
Also the fact that it's SO much cheaper, even with a lifetime of free 3G access makes kindle the winner over the i-pad as a reading device any day.
/nod
I recently had the opportunity of using an ipad for a few weeks. Only used it to read the papers and like stuff which I sincerely believe it excels at. For sites like El Reg which I routinely plaster with comments of dubious value, it sucks.
Youtube videos ... yeah that too but you can't save 'em on an iPad (at least I didn't think the browser had such add-ons, maybe they do now). Here where banwidth is metered, that's a big disadvantage.
Yeah, it's nice... It's really flashy.. but wouldn't buy one for 2 reasons :
1) don't need one
2) Apple/Jobs... yadadada etc...
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"It has a bigger screen, but that doesn't change anything. You still read one sentence at a time."
But the bigger screen does change things - it's less work on both the eyes and the fingers to read on a bigger screen (up to a certain point), and therefore less annoying. Reading on my phone is annoying and tiring as I continually have to scroll down. The eink screen of my ebook reader is better - it's larger and eink is gentle on the eyes. But I prefer thew ipad as the bigger screen is nicer to read off.
Bullseyed, you are one blind cow, you've stated the reason there yourself.
Maybe you read one sentence at a time. Maybe that's all you need. An 80 column x 1 row display.
Personally I like seeing the whole page as well. Nice with the papers, you know? They come with pictures sometimes?
I was expecting another review of the iPad by someone who hates Steve Jobs and for that hatred to influence the review.... the headline meant I was drawn into reading the article. Fortunately, the article seems a lot more balanced that I was expecting - aside from the fact that I don't know of *any* phones or tablets with a replaceable camera.
For a monday morning, when the clocks have just changed so I have one hour's less sleep - it was very enjoyable to read. I was amazed that the the author thought a C64 was not as good as a gaming computer as an Apple 2.
Now, what I don't understand is, if I want just one iPAD2 - can I have different logins - i.e. son's emails/music different to daughters or mine when they use the device ? And is it a replacement for a computer - e.g. if I buy one for an 80 year old relative, will I need to visit to upgrade the software on it ?
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My 80 year old relative wants to get / send emails.
When a TV programme says "go to this web site for the recipie" then she wants to be able to enter a URL. If there is a link to Youtube from that site then great.
She might want to also look at the BBC News website. Or to be able to see what's on TV that evening.
She does not want a PC where she gets asked to update the O/S and then warning pop's up. because I've not given her admin rights (to protect her from herself).
She does not want to get similar warnings for Anti Virus software.
I doubt Facetime will work with a normal web camera, so I don't think this is going to be a bonus (unless other apps can use the camrea for standard chat type video conferencing).
For some reason, non technical elderly people think they can "break" PCs and are very cauitious - I want to alleviate stress (and minimise the need to support in person).
You got an unexpected iPad2 as a present. You aren't really sure what you're going to do with it. It has some value as a talking piece and you don't like the colour.
That probably puts you (apart from the colour intolerance) in the 95% iPad2 owner group. The rest being the small, but disproportionately vocal band of advocates.
I don't understand why people feel the kindle needs a touch screen, apart from its fashionable. The kindle does one thing well and that is allows reading of ebooks. The buttons on the side are neatly places(for lefties and righties). It doesn't do drawing, fancy graphics, games. Its an ebook reader.
I had a Sony before the kindle and to be honest it was far more effort to swipe the screen to change a page because you had to move your hands from the side of the device and place them on the screen. For a simple binary command which you wanted to repeat again and again it was far to much effort. Plus there was no real positive feedback. The kindle interface is far, far better.
The only annoyance is that when you give the device to some iPhone fanboy they start poking the screen and leaving greasy prints on your pristine reading device. I have to restrain myself from not take a knife to those digits.
Touchscreens are not the answers to all lifes problems. They have there place, but leave my kindle alone!
Have a Kindle and really like it. When I first got it I keep touching the screen to make it do things (no I don't have any other touch device, so that;'s a bit odd). Now I've had it a while, you are completely right -those buttons are way faster for page turns than using a touch screen would be. But, there are still times when a touch screen would be useful.
Whether the increase in cost of putting a touch screen on would be worthwhile for those times it would be advantageous, I am not sure though.
The failings of touch have been well known for quite some time. That is why real tech companies in the past have given up on the concept. That isn't the target market for Apple; they're searching for the consumer who is stupid enough that they cannot contemplate the difference in time for a button versus a touch.
Just ask any PC gamer which is better, clicking or keybinding. Clickers are hundreds of times slower (and therefore worse) players in PC gaming. Touch is the same thing as clicking.
I read through the whole article, nodding with agreement. I too am not sure what the unique must have app for the iPad is. Personally, I want a Blackberry Play Book, that way it can go in my suit pocket. So, totally concured with the confession...
... Until we got to the Trekkie dressing up thing. I mean, thats just weird. If Tim had suggested doing this in the same bedroom where the photoi was taken, I think it was a contender for possibly NSFW.
Well, I'll admit that I've wondered if Prickett Morgan indicated a middle name or hyphenated dual surname, so I guess you've cleared that up. Idle hands and all of that. :-)
Okay...back to the real point of the article. I recently came into a first-gen iPad (64GB/WiFi if you must know) and while I've got to say that it is truly slicker than snot on a doorknob...and frankly I'm glad it hasn't got a camera in it...after many hours of messing around with its built in web browser and some of the other applications, I still don't see what the iPad's real purpose is. What does it want to be? Why do I need one and what will I do with it?
On the other hand, I do have an Amazon Kindle (3G+WiFi/latest generation hardware) that is used primarily as a reading device. I don't browse the web with it much, but it does what it does very well and the fact that Amazon is paying for the 3G service only makes it more appealing to me. I haven't had the problem with mistaking the device's e-ink screen for a touchscreen, but others certainly have, so there's something there. The lack of color in the screen really doesn't bother me that much.
With flash memory, of course, there is no need to worry about magnets. It'll take a lot more than that to corrupt anything.
I'm not really trolling per se, just kind of responding to the article. Hopefully you'll get a blue cover for your new iPad soon enough...
When did the Yanks take over the Reg? Go away with your over the water references that we don't quite get here in good old Blighty. This is a local blog for local people we don't need your kind here. Normally this would have been overlooked but the article was terrible.
Man buys IPad doesn't know what to do with it. Well it's a portable media consuming device(yes you can create too but it's not it's strongest point) So load with Movies, tv shows, games books, pdfs read emails and surf the web. Add a few apps for managing servers and it means you can leave your laptop at home and save a few kilos in your suitcase. Oh and it's instant and and has a nice battery life too.
Nothing that can't be done on other devices but IMO the IPad at the moment does it the best.
*So my text looks like this.
I gave in and got a keyboard for my iPad. Yes, that makes it more like a netbook, even if it is a netbook where you can type with the screen six feet away. However, you only take the keyboard along when you are going to need it - as I did recently for an online chat session with work colleagues while I was out of the office.
But Google docs has issues with the iPad, because every time it saves, it puts my cursor back to the top of the screen and my text goes on from there.*
I'm using notes now, but will look at some of the apps mentioned here. Thanks guys!
If you don't care about formatting then IAWriter is a decent text entry bit of softrware and you can sync it to Dropbox. You might need to move stuff to your public folder using the Dropbox app mind
All I need to do now is to send my cheapo bluetooth keyboard back and hopefully get a working one and that means the iPad is a decent netbook replacement
“you open it, the device turns on instantly, you close it, it turns off. This suits my 21st century impatience perfectly. I want all computers to do this”
And my 1999 Psion Netbook satisfied my 20th Century impatience similarly. Colour, check. Touchscreen, check. 10 hour battery life, check.
Yup, welcome to the future.
Funny (if a tad useless) article.
On the iWork issue:
I use iWork a lot, mostly Pages and Keynote, but Numbers as well and must say that I've not hit any particular problems.
True, if you want to export a Word file (.doc) then you have to.. export. And the program is laid out differently to Word and uses a completely different UI approach. Very Apple like in that controls are close at hand (NEVER in menus three deep and dialogue boxes) and drag and drop really works properly (haven't used the latest Word enough, but the older versions haven't exactly been lovely to work with)
The ONLY key thing you need to know is that a floating palette called the "Inspector" is the key in all three programs. It's accessed from the tool bar and is marked with a little blue "i" icon (like an information icon of some sorts. BAD Apple!). The inspector holds most all controls in a tab system.
The only thing that bugs me is that reference programs don't work with Pages because Apple haven't provided't an API for that. Only Endnote has been made compatible. This is annoying.
Pages is a Word replacement.
Numbers is great for those that need tables, linked tables, and good looks but is not a full Excel replacement.
Keynote takes Powerpoint by the balls, rips 'em off and force feeds them to Steve Ballmer. Just WAYYYYY better.
The floating palette concept of the "Inspector" can be criticised, but at least it's not a ribbon which takes the top 1/3 of the screen on a laptop which already has the working area way too low for ergonomic purposes (due to the screen and keyboard being stuck together)... The ribbon is one of the silliest UI idea of the last few years and Microsoft should know better (no matter whether the interaction of the ribbon is good or bad, just the ergonomic downside is a killer)
I bought an iPhone 3G a long while back. A few weeks later, the 3Gs came out so, I gave the 3G to the wife and got a 3Gs for me. I had it for a while, loved it. Got an iPhone 4, gave my son the 3Gs and all was good. Then the wife felt left out and wanted a 4. So we got her a 4 and my daughter got the 3. Then the wife got an iPad at work since she works at help desk and handles most of the phones and stuff like that. Then my boss, who for tax reasons or something couldn't give cash, gave us all iPads for Christmas.
I couldn't figure out what to do with the iPad.
1) It doesn't sync my iPhone, I have to use my Mac Book for that (which runs Windows ONLY)
2) It doesn't fit in my pocket
3) It doesn't run anything my iPhone doesn't
4) It takes FOREVER to charge
5) I can't install software on it without buying it again since I've used all 5 of my activations for 4 iPhones and the wife's iPad. So I'd need another account.
6) It sometimes loses track of the files on it (movies for the kids in the car)
7) I either have to sit up straight to type with two hands or type with one hand and move that hand back and forth like mad since the keyboard is too damn big for one hand typing and too damn small for two hand typing.
8) I can write programs on it unless I use remote desktop to a PC or a Mac and then try desperately to use a tablet with either of those via remote (SLOW!!!)
9) If I want to save an MP3 file from the net to the device, I have to plug it into a computer. Can't do it directly.
10) I can't type on it for shit since I can't feel the keys. You shouldn't have to see the screen to type. Even if you do need to see the screen, your neck will break eventually since you have to look down at the screen with the keyboard on it to see what you're typing.
11) It can't play the Mac or PC games, only iPad/iPhone games. Kinda lame.
12) If you don't use headphones and a remote, you can't listen to music and play a game most of the time since starting many games stops the music, so you exit out and start the music again, the go back into the app which stops the music. You need the remote on the headphones to start the music once the game is running.
13) Most web sites with iPhone content insist on sending shitty half asses iPhone web pages to the iPad which makes the letters HUGE and everything is formatted as it's laid out for a 90 year old lady who hasn't bought new glasses since Hoover was in office.
I can go on for a while. But, what I use the iPad for is to avoid running down my iPhone batteries when I read books from the Kindle app to my kids before bedtime and I use it to keep my coffee cup from leaving rings on the coffee table.
Oh... then 3 months later, Apple releases a new version which effectively jacks the specs on the new one SO much that app developers will now write great apps and games for the new ones and either not bother with the iPad 1 OR they'll suck balls because they won't be optimized for the iPad 1. So, before I really even get used to using it, Apple has nearly obsoleted it.
Next time, I hope the boss just gives cash instead.
is a sentiment I really don't understand, if I had something more valuable to spend 6 minutes on instead of reading el reg then I would be doing that, but I don't because I am at work so I really don't want those 6 minutes back. In fact what I wanted to do was precisely that, waste 6 minutes and then some by reading it and the comments.
So thanks for that tpm!
but one quote.. [I don't like the idea of using Google Docs because it is bad enough that Google is reading my office email, does it have to read what I am writing as I am writing it?]
Odd, I wrote an e-mail awhile ago, and in the mail I wrote "attached is my CV...".
Gmail stopped the send, because "You've written 'I have attached', but there is no attachment."..It was right..
Now, send a letter to your 16-year-old girlfriend about a meeting and will Gmail pop up with "It seems you're meeting a lady tonight. See ads on the right for all-night chemists"
-Erm?
...and it's available for under $300 and is getting Android 2.3 aka Gingerbread before the Summer:
"Right now, the iPad 2 is going to be my Kindle and my portable Web browser. I know people love their Kindles, but I like color and I also like touchscreens. Sorry, but there is no going back once you have been there."
You need a Nook Color, not an iPad, it's pretty obvious form this article. Or give a shot to the upcoming Blackberry PlayBook - I rarely get to anything positive about RIM, it's a giant cluster*&^% but PlayBook, running QNX-sourced OS, looks really awesome + it runs all Java-based Android apps (most of them are.)
Let's face it: iPad 2 is simply tired, boring and just another skin on the same old, boring, broken iOS architecture - other than Mac users already using iPhone w/ Mac desktops it does not make any sense for anyone to buy it especially for such a laughable price.
Paris because buying an iPad 2 is really her IQ level...
I can imagine him sitting on a destroyed bit of kit; looking over a devastated landscape and watching the battery die.
At least offer me solar recharging; I mean come on, thousands of years into this civilization nonsense and the arrowhead still works.
The Ipad has got to eventually pass up the blunt instrument as a civilizing tool.
Well we are not there yet.
I have a rock.
Irock*.
*in some circles.
*and paper.
*and scissors.
For years I have put up with the deplorable standards of this rag (actually enjoined it, in fact), but this policy of bashing the Buckeyes must desist, or I shall cancel my subscription.
Go back to Michigan if that's how you feel.
(One more thing, "bashing the Buckeyes" is not now, and never has been, a euphemism. Just thought I should clarify with this lot.)
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