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Two Weeks Later: Why I'm Keeping my iPad

Posted on April 19, 2010 by Jeremy Toeman

I purchased an iPad on day one (roughly minute 3), without much assurance as to how or why I’d use it, or even if it would be a “keeper” in my digital lifestyle.  Here’s a recap of my feelings over the past two weeks:

Day one.
Let’s be honest, the first day of any new toy is either “wow this is awesome” or “gosh I’m disappointed”.  Most products don’t get well-tested in their first few hours of use, and it’s generally hard to evaluate the real-world practicality of any device.  For example, a digital camera will take good pictures, but you might not try it in a fast-action setting; similarly a GPS device will get you to your first destination, but you won’t evaluate how rapidly it finds the signal when you are lost up in Tahoe.  My day one was a lot of fun.  I didn’t really “do anything” with the iPad, other than try downloading stuff, typing on the keyboard, doodling in one of the (way too many) doodle apps.  Good times.

Week one.
Within three days I had sync’ed my email, contacts, and calendar to the device, and all worked quite smoothly.  I copied some photos, videos of the kids, some Arrested Development episodes, and some music from my library.  I also experienced my first real “use” of iTunes as a sync platform – it’s okay, but has some bizarre shortcomings that I was quite surprised about.  I downloaded a few apps (all free ones, didn’t want to buy anything yet and still haven’t bought one yet to this day actually),  played with them, kept some, deleted others.

Most of my time in week one was spent using the device in three settings (well, kinda four – read below)

  1. On the bus
    Media device: Watched videos, wrote a blog post, listened to podcasts
  2. At the office
    “Accessory” computer to my iMac:  Mostly light email, calendaring, some Harbor Master.
  3. At home
    Laptop replacement: light-to-moderate email, Web surfing, lots more Harbor Master.
  4. Demo to others
    My fourth scenario was simply showing the iPad to anyone around – lots of inquisitive folks wanting to see it in use. I wish I was getting a commission.

Week two.
The second week of use was my true “now how do I feel” week with the iPad.  Was it actually better/easier/more convenient than my MacBook?  Did I really want to carry this on the bus or other places? Would a murse fit into my lifestyle okay (separate post of iPad cases & sleeves coming)?

The above answers were all “yes”es, and more.  The only three uses of my MacBook last week were: watch NHL GameCenter (Go Habs!), sync and backup digital pictures, and charge/sync content to my iPad.  For literally everything else I used my iPad in lieu of the MacBook.  And not only did I use it, I found myself preferring it for most casual use.  But then this weekend got even more interesting.

On two different occasions this weekend (at a movie theater and while touring farms North of San Francisco) we had the iPad handy to look up long lists of content.  To be perfectly clear, we opted to carry an iPad rather than print out Web pages.  This was a conscious choice, and not in any way for “show off” factor (don’t worry – that was accomplished through plenty of other methods).  It was just an easy way to bring content along with us AND have our calendars AND have email history AND have contacts/address book information.  Things we obviously could do with smartphones (but generally choose not to), paper (ugh), or laptops.  But I’d *never* throw my laptop in the trunk on a day trip – something that just felt natural with the iPad.

It ain’t all kool-aid!
There are certainly flaws with the iPad.  In fact, my evernote-based list of likes/dislikes actually has more entries on the dislike list (future blog post).  It is, unquestionably, about the least ergonomic device I’ve used (the lap-pad pics from their ads are great, but radically unrealistic).   The lack of even simple multi-tasking (mail + calendar anyone?) can be annoying.  They could even take a cue out of Android and include a “back” button that spans multiple apps.  More on this in a future post.  But most importantly…

It’s not a replacement for any computer.  Just some.
As much as I believe the iPad has major impact in regards to light/casual/home computing, I don’t think most households could get by with “only” an iPad.  The lack of ability to effectively handle one’s digital camera needs is a “killer feature” for having a computer.  Further, no businessman could possibly exist on the iPad alone, though it’s an amazing complement to one.  I will say that I believe mail on the iPad vastly outshines any other non-computer device, specifically including BlackBerries, and that’s an important piece of ground for Apple to break.

But it is game-changing, and almost definitely not a bread machine.
I like having the iPad around.  I like turning it on, using it, then knowing it’s still there. It feels like everything the original PalmPilot put into my hands (though unfortunately not my pockets), only in context of computing and the Internet in 2010. I believe my use will only increase, and intend to start purchasing apps now.  It’s probably the most interesting digital accessory one can purchase, and unquestionably dabbles in “computer turf”.  I thoroughly enjoy using it, and find that it is helpful (not harmful) to overall productivity.  Except, of course, when I play Harbor Master.

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Posted in Gadgets, Product Reviews | Tags: ipad | 6 Comments
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6 thoughts on “Two Weeks Later: Why I'm Keeping my iPad”

  1. tivoboy says:
    April 19, 2010 at 12:40 pm

    For me, lack printing (currently) is a big reason it cannot replace,

    and, while the mail app is very nice (compared to iphone and others) the fact that it has not local folder structure for storage, archiving of necessary emails (like travel documents made more than a few weeks prior) and only has the latest 200 emails is a big defficiency. Yeah, I know, on gmail and other IMAP email accounts I CAN go to the server and hope to find these emails, but sometimes I am just not connected and also SOME ACCOUNTS -egads! I actually still use POP as the access protocol and therefore would have no other way to get those emails. I need a better complete email solution for it to be able to replace things like a laptop in total.

    loving it still though, works GREAT as a newspaper replacement reader. I agree, people just come up to you like you have a new puppy or something. The most frequent commen is, “do you LOVE it!” Uh, no, but uh, YEAH I really like LIKE it but it is just too early to know if it is really LOVE per se.

    Makes me think about the “influencer” role in society, there HAS to be a model there something I KNOW IT!

    Reply
  2. Pingback: Storytelling Social Media Marketing PR Technology & Business Curated Stories Apr. 19, 2010

  3. Dave Mathews says:
    April 20, 2010 at 6:46 pm

    And mine is…. Gone! The unit was just too much of a consumption device and too reliant on iTunes for its heartbeat. Even simple file management routines that could have been accomplished in the OS or via file mounting in Finder or Windows Explorer. Now if only iTunes allowed me to resell my Keynote and Pages applications! Where is the used market for apps?!

    My Hackintosh Dell Mini 9 running a full copy of OS-X keeps its reigning 1-year position in my murse. For a piece of gear to spend that much time in my bag, it’s gotta be good.

    Reply
  4. tivoboy says:
    April 21, 2010 at 6:22 am

    Just email apple, they will refund your purchase.

    Reply
  5. Jim Schaff says:
    April 27, 2010 at 8:49 am

    I have taken a step back and look at the top 5 things I do on my iPad – and realize that at $500, the price is just too high. I had procured a netbook about 30 days before the iPad – and find that it accomplishes the “productive” tasks from those 5 as well, or better. Right now the iPad is becoming a toy, and more of a productivity drain than anything. I am beginning to keep it in the bag while at work, and quickly realize I don’t miss it…

    Reply
  6. subcorpus says:
    October 17, 2010 at 10:47 am

    got the ipad … have had it for a month …
    still cant decide on a case … 🙂
    too much choice online …

    http://www.subcorpus.net/2010/10/month-with-apple-ipad.html

    Reply

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Jeremy Toeman is a seasoned Product leader with over 20 years experience in the convergence of digital media, mobile entertainment, social entertainment, smart TV and consumer technology. Prior ventures and projects include CNET, Viggle/Dijit/Nextguide, Sling Media, VUDU, Clicker, DivX, Rovi, Mediabolic, Boxee, and many other consumer technology companies. This blog represents his personal opinion and outlook on things.

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