This is a gadget and digital media blog, so despite the fact that Apple iPad reviews have been done to death, I feel the need to weigh in with my own initial thoughts after a week with one in our household. My husband is the rightful owner of the new iPad, but he’s been gracious enough to let me spend some time with it.
First of all, there’s no adequate way to describe how well the iPad display works for photos and video. There just isn’t. If you’ve seen anything close up in 3D, it’s kind of like that. The screen isn’t really 3D, but it feels like there’s an extra layer of depth in high-resolution pics and flicks. Because of the touch screen, you also get to interact with photos – zooming in and out, moving pictures around. It’s nothing you can’t do on an iPhone or iPod touch, but the screen size improves the experience exponentially. And Netflix? Forget it. The iPad is a sure travel companion if you’re going anywhere with Wi-Fi. Even if it’s just upstairs to watch a movie in bed.
As good as the iPad display is, it’s a shame more apps don’t take advantage of it yet. Google Earth, for example, only runs at iPhone size, which is extremely disappointing on a 10″ screen. And when I tried out a couple of shopping sites, I was underwhelmed by product shots that seemed to be begging for high-res, 360-degree views. In the New York Times Editors’ Choice app, one enterprising watch manufacturer has claimed all of the apparent ad space with stunning, rich-media display ads. Unfortunately, no other companies have jumped on board, so the same inescapable ads are rotated endlessly. Photos from stories in the newspaper app are generally disappointing too. They certainly don’t live up to what the iPad can deliver.
Beyond the display, which changes certain functions dramatically, using the iPad really is just like using an iPhone, with all the good and bad that offers. In the good column, the touch screen is very responsive, the apps are plentiful, and even a two-year-old could intuit the basic workings of the device. In the bad column, I’ve come to discover one thing in particular that I like a lot better with my Droid Eris smartphone than I do with the iPad – namely the menu button. Why can’t I get a “menu” selection that works with any iPad app? I was using the Safari browser one day and couldn’t remember how to view the multiple windows I had open. If I had been using my phone, I would have hit menu and found what I needed right away. With the iPad, however, the only menu I could get to was the home screen, completely outside the Safari app. I even found myself looking for a File menu in the top left corner. How old school.
Another thing I don’t like about the iPad? The keyboard. Clearly this is an issue of personal preference, as many people have stated their delight with the iPad soft keyboard. However, I am not a fan. Not only is it difficult to type on, but with some apps, it really gets in the way. I tried to type a blog post in WordPress and found I couldn’t see much of the text field at all. I had to minimize the keyboard to review what I’d written, and then sometimes I couldn’t get it to reappear.
Finally, there are the fingerprints. I don’t know how you get around the issue of fingerprints on a touch screen device, but when the iPad’s biggest selling point is its display, fingerprints are just annoying. And they’re unavoidable.
Overall, I’m greatly enjoying having an Apple iPad around the house, but I know I’ll enjoy it a lot more when more apps take advantage of its capabilities, and especially its screen size. I also know I won’t be getting an iPad to replace my netbook in the future. For entertainment and media consumption, it’s great, but as a productivity tool, I’m still a skeptic.