Monday
Mar142011
Initial Thoughts on the iPad 2
Monday, March 14, 2011 at 12:00PM
Last week I decided to jump on the iPad bandwagon, and get the newly released Apple iPad 2. Here are some of my initial thoughts after spending most of the weekend playing with it.
Why I Finally Bought One
When the first iPad came out, I wasn't all that excited about it. I felt it was overpriced, and lacked cool features I thought it would have (camera, Flash support, etc.). I couldn't justify paying $600-1000 for what seemed to be a giant iPhone. Plus, most photographers were screaming - "perfect way to carry your portfolio with you", and I just didn't see it. Nothing substitutes a good web-site, and also fine prints.
But then three things happened.
First, I bought a Kindle 3. There's no better way to read books. I can download a book I want to read within seconds (and a lot of them are available for free). I can also carry hundreds of them together the same time. Since I bought Kindle, I couldn't stop reading. Kindle converted me to portable readers. What I loved the most about it was that it was so light that I never noticed any extra weight in my work bag.
Second, I played with iPads that some of my friends have and absolutely loved the whole experience - browsing pictures, reading news, playing games and so forth.
Third, since iPad first came out, over 50,000 apps were created for it. Some of the popular iPhone apps (which is nice, as I'm not an iPhone user), and other cool ones. A lot of them are free. Apps is the future of personal computers, and especially tablets and phones. I know as a Blackberry user. Love the phone - hate its software and its apps.
Getting an iPad 2
I went to the Oakridge Mall not far from my house in San Jose. I got there around 3pm - which was 2 hours before the official launch at 5pm. The line already had about 150 people there. Quite a few people in the line were playing with their original iPads. How genius is Apple - people are upgrading to iPad 2 because they love their original one so much.
The line was an interesting experience too. Local retailers popped up often with free gifts - such as snacks with coupons to their stores. Local restaurants were also passing the menus and delivering food to people in the line. Apple was not the only one making money from its fanboys. The experienced people brought chairs. I didn't, but will remember that next time.
The line started moving at 5pm, and did so quite fast. I got into the store around 6.30pm and was able to get the model I wanted - 3G 32 Gb Verizon version, although I did want AT&T, and they were out of all AT&T models by then. Comparing to what I heard about iPhone 4 launch, the line wasn't as long, but still I'm certain Apple store sold all the iPads they got delivered to them (probably at least a 1,000 of them). The estimate says Apple sold at least 400,000 of these devices over the weekend.
I'm glad I went to the store instead of ordering online. Right now Apple's web-site is showing 3-4 weeks delivery times.
What I loved about iPad
I'll mostly use the iPad for two things - (1) catching up with news and (2) sharing it with my kids.
I spend at least an hour or two every evening reading news, browsing the blogs I follow, looking at pictures, and catching up with my social circle on Twitter, Facebook and Flickr. There's simply no easier and funner way to do it than on an iPad. There are great apps to do that. Flipboard just blew my mind away. It transforms all the important sources of information (social networks, or blogs, or bigger news sites) into a newspaper one can flip. News, tweets, blogs look so much better this way. Twitter for iPad is also the best way I found to use Twitter. It's much faster and more interactive than any tools I used on a big computer. I loved TweetDeck. Now that I tried the Twitter app on iPad, I don't ever want to use Twitter any other way. Photos also look so much better on the iPad screen they they do on my PC or even large iMac screen. iPad has one of the best screens I have ever seen in terms of how it handles contrast, color and rich blacks.
Then there are games. I'm not much of a gamer - last time I owned a game console was in mid-90s. But there are plenty of educational apps/games I can play with my kids and interact with them. It'll be fun to spend more time with my kids this way.
Kids are also excited for our next road trip and airplane trips. Now they get 10 hours of movies on one battery charge. Plus, we can plugin in the iPad into the cigarette charger in our car without any problem. The screen on the iPad is much bigger than on any average DVD player, and we don't have to shell out $2,000 for the system in the next car we'll be buying just to get a DVD screen that is smaller in size and nothing even close in resolution to the HD quality of an iPad.
Finally, I do plan to use it for my photography portfolio when meeting with clients, and it's nice that iPad 2 now comes with HDMI adapter. I frequently meet with clients in their homes, and it'd be nice to be able to blow up my portfolio on their HD TVs, right there in their living room.
Besides the apps and the whole experience, I also loved how light and slick iPad 2 is. The first version seemed a bit clunky when I compared it to Kindle 3. This one while weights the same, due to its redesign, feels very similar to my Kindle - small, light and very easy to hold.
What I didn't like about iPad
The Smart Cover Apple created works just like they show in Apple videos. But I don't know how effective it is. We'll see if it sticks when I put an iPad in the bag. Also, it won't protect the back of an iPad which I expect will get scratched with heavy use. I am thinking of abandoning it for a more standard leather cover that will cover both front and back.
Typing is not practical on an iPad. By that, I mean typing anything longer than 140 characters. My fingers still want me to feel the buttons. I'll never want to compose a blog post on it. I will eventually buy a collapsable bluetooth keyboard for when I travel so I can leave my laptop at home.
My kids love it as much as I do. iOS is designed perfectly for a 3 year old, and my son can now operate it as well as I can. Even my 1 year old, who is typically not into computers loves how interactive iPad is, even for someone of her age. As a result, I have to fight for the iPad with my little ones when I'm home.
Overall
Otherwise, I love it. Those of you who own a Mac know that Apple products just work. It's certainly the case with the new iPad. The internet is a whole new experience.
If you haven't yet spend any time playing with an iPad - be careful. Once you do, you just may want to get one.
Why I Finally Bought One
When the first iPad came out, I wasn't all that excited about it. I felt it was overpriced, and lacked cool features I thought it would have (camera, Flash support, etc.). I couldn't justify paying $600-1000 for what seemed to be a giant iPhone. Plus, most photographers were screaming - "perfect way to carry your portfolio with you", and I just didn't see it. Nothing substitutes a good web-site, and also fine prints.
But then three things happened.
First, I bought a Kindle 3. There's no better way to read books. I can download a book I want to read within seconds (and a lot of them are available for free). I can also carry hundreds of them together the same time. Since I bought Kindle, I couldn't stop reading. Kindle converted me to portable readers. What I loved the most about it was that it was so light that I never noticed any extra weight in my work bag.
Second, I played with iPads that some of my friends have and absolutely loved the whole experience - browsing pictures, reading news, playing games and so forth.
Third, since iPad first came out, over 50,000 apps were created for it. Some of the popular iPhone apps (which is nice, as I'm not an iPhone user), and other cool ones. A lot of them are free. Apps is the future of personal computers, and especially tablets and phones. I know as a Blackberry user. Love the phone - hate its software and its apps.
Getting an iPad 2
I went to the Oakridge Mall not far from my house in San Jose. I got there around 3pm - which was 2 hours before the official launch at 5pm. The line already had about 150 people there. Quite a few people in the line were playing with their original iPads. How genius is Apple - people are upgrading to iPad 2 because they love their original one so much.
The line was an interesting experience too. Local retailers popped up often with free gifts - such as snacks with coupons to their stores. Local restaurants were also passing the menus and delivering food to people in the line. Apple was not the only one making money from its fanboys. The experienced people brought chairs. I didn't, but will remember that next time.
The line started moving at 5pm, and did so quite fast. I got into the store around 6.30pm and was able to get the model I wanted - 3G 32 Gb Verizon version, although I did want AT&T, and they were out of all AT&T models by then. Comparing to what I heard about iPhone 4 launch, the line wasn't as long, but still I'm certain Apple store sold all the iPads they got delivered to them (probably at least a 1,000 of them). The estimate says Apple sold at least 400,000 of these devices over the weekend.
I'm glad I went to the store instead of ordering online. Right now Apple's web-site is showing 3-4 weeks delivery times.
What I loved about iPad
I'll mostly use the iPad for two things - (1) catching up with news and (2) sharing it with my kids.
I spend at least an hour or two every evening reading news, browsing the blogs I follow, looking at pictures, and catching up with my social circle on Twitter, Facebook and Flickr. There's simply no easier and funner way to do it than on an iPad. There are great apps to do that. Flipboard just blew my mind away. It transforms all the important sources of information (social networks, or blogs, or bigger news sites) into a newspaper one can flip. News, tweets, blogs look so much better this way. Twitter for iPad is also the best way I found to use Twitter. It's much faster and more interactive than any tools I used on a big computer. I loved TweetDeck. Now that I tried the Twitter app on iPad, I don't ever want to use Twitter any other way. Photos also look so much better on the iPad screen they they do on my PC or even large iMac screen. iPad has one of the best screens I have ever seen in terms of how it handles contrast, color and rich blacks.
Then there are games. I'm not much of a gamer - last time I owned a game console was in mid-90s. But there are plenty of educational apps/games I can play with my kids and interact with them. It'll be fun to spend more time with my kids this way.
Kids are also excited for our next road trip and airplane trips. Now they get 10 hours of movies on one battery charge. Plus, we can plugin in the iPad into the cigarette charger in our car without any problem. The screen on the iPad is much bigger than on any average DVD player, and we don't have to shell out $2,000 for the system in the next car we'll be buying just to get a DVD screen that is smaller in size and nothing even close in resolution to the HD quality of an iPad.
Finally, I do plan to use it for my photography portfolio when meeting with clients, and it's nice that iPad 2 now comes with HDMI adapter. I frequently meet with clients in their homes, and it'd be nice to be able to blow up my portfolio on their HD TVs, right there in their living room.
Besides the apps and the whole experience, I also loved how light and slick iPad 2 is. The first version seemed a bit clunky when I compared it to Kindle 3. This one while weights the same, due to its redesign, feels very similar to my Kindle - small, light and very easy to hold.
What I didn't like about iPad
The Smart Cover Apple created works just like they show in Apple videos. But I don't know how effective it is. We'll see if it sticks when I put an iPad in the bag. Also, it won't protect the back of an iPad which I expect will get scratched with heavy use. I am thinking of abandoning it for a more standard leather cover that will cover both front and back.
Typing is not practical on an iPad. By that, I mean typing anything longer than 140 characters. My fingers still want me to feel the buttons. I'll never want to compose a blog post on it. I will eventually buy a collapsable bluetooth keyboard for when I travel so I can leave my laptop at home.
My kids love it as much as I do. iOS is designed perfectly for a 3 year old, and my son can now operate it as well as I can. Even my 1 year old, who is typically not into computers loves how interactive iPad is, even for someone of her age. As a result, I have to fight for the iPad with my little ones when I'm home.
Overall
Otherwise, I love it. Those of you who own a Mac know that Apple products just work. It's certainly the case with the new iPad. The internet is a whole new experience.
If you haven't yet spend any time playing with an iPad - be careful. Once you do, you just may want to get one.
Reader Comments (17)
great post ivan... i really loved your breakdown of it. i just might have to cave and get one soon too! :)
Beka - its very hard to resist once you play with it. Its a problem with most Apple products..
Great article Ivan. I ordered mine online - now i'm even more excited to get it!
Scott - thanks. Hopefully you get yours soon. Sounds like they've sold out in stores and there's a backlog of deliveries.
Hey Ivan. Thanks for sharing your experience. I am about three months in with a MacBook Pro and an iMac. I, admittedly, am still adjusting to the switch, but it's been good. I have almost intentionally steered away from playing with the iPad2 for the very reason you ended you mention at the end of your piece. With a MacBook Pro, I am still in the space where I don't feel like the iPad2 is a necessary bridge between my smartphone (Droid X) with a 4.3" screen and my 13" MBP. I do like to write a good bit, though, and would likely miss a keyboard. However, there are times when I could see how the iPad2 would be an even better travel companion than the MBP. My wife and I were sitting in the airport in Charleston, SC, last weekend, returning to DC. We sat next to friends, and one of them had the iPad. I sat and thought about how much more convenient having an iPad (either with WiFi or 3G) would be for trips. The thought carried over when I got into my seat and felt crammed trying to open my MBP.
Damn you Apple! :-)
Matthew -
You bring up excellent points - I think that's exactly how my thinking went.
My wife has a MBP and I been borrowing it sometimes in the evenings for my
evening reading. The general experience of the internet is so much better
than PC or sitting in front of the big iMac - because I can be anywhere. But
first, MBP is still not as convenient as small iPad - especially in bed. And
second, it doesn't have as many apps available as does iPad (and iPhone), to
say nothing or bringing it with me everywhere when I travel (much lighter).
So that convinced me I don't need another MBP, but instead I need a new
iPad. Apps, apps, apps!
So far so good, though when my iMac dies (going on close to 4 years now, and
still works like new) - I'll probably get MBP and a large screen for photo
processing.
Also, I'm still using Kindle for reading books.
[...] on Mar.14, 2011 I almost bought an Ipad 2 this weekend. My friend Ivan Makarov wrote a cool “Intial thoughts review” on the new device and I think he hit a few good points about what the device is good for. It [...]
I love my kindle. iPad will never replace that thing but it is nice to have access to the same books on other devices. I can't say that I would ever choose to read a book on the iPad over my kindle.
If you have not got it already, Flipboard is my favorite free app for news, facebook, and google reader. Shows the power of an app that really does nothing but reformat the display of information.
I'm not a gamer, but if you want to waste a ton of time with or without your kids, Angry Birds or Cut the Rope will do the trick...
Tyler -
I agree. Kindle is not going anywhere and I'll still use it for reading
books. The eyes do not get tired on it - while they do with an iPad. Also, I
did download Flipboard, and I think right now it's my favorite app. I
imported all the important feeds, and reading them is so much better this
way, including Facebook and Twitter. Also, yes, I love Angry Birds. I've
actually been playing it with Maks on my iMac. Haven't tried Cut the Rope
yet. Also, love the Fruit Ninja multi-player game.
WOW, you almost have me convinced that the money you spent was well worth it. ALMOST...
It's totally worth it.
Admit it, Rebecca. You love it too. You KNOW you do.
[...] almost bought an Ipad 2 this weekend. My friend Ivan Makarov wrote a cool “Intial thoughts review” on the new device and I think he hit a few good points about what the device is good for. It [...]
Some people think that iPad are just a luxury. I don't think so. It is the best way to surf the net and do all things with a thinner and more handy device.
I love iPad 2. It's way better than Kindle which focuses on ebooks. I like Facetime also :)
iPad 2 came a little late for me. I just bought iPad 1 a month before this was released. It's hard to switch to 2 in a snap. I still need to save. :)
iPads are the best way to keep kids quiet while you work. :)