iPad

What do you all think?

I think it's the perfect travel device; ebook reader, iPod, internet, GPS, and everything you can find in the App Store in a 1.5 lb device for $500.

Best I can tell there is no way to get photos to it without another computer. No USB port or card reader. I would definitely need that to backup photos and get them online. The rest of it looks interesting except that I already have an iphone and netbook. Maybe when comes time to replace those they'll have a way to put photos straight to it.

You could use an EyeFi to upload pics automatically from the camera, but I agree that's the biggest drawback.

minerguy wrote:Best I can tell there is no way to get photos to it without another computer. No USB port or card reader. I would definitely need that to backup photos and get them online. The rest of it looks interesting except that I already have an iphone and netbook. Maybe when comes time to replace those they'll have a way to put photos straight to it.

That's pretty much my take, as well. And it doesn't support flash. Which means on a few important fronts, it fails to make much of a bridge between a netbook and the iPod Touch, and the cost is significant enough (but much lower than anticipated) that you could easily get the largest iPod and a sleek netbook for the same cost, and achieve greater functionality.

But it's not really marketed as a travel device. For someone with Mac everything in their house, sitting on their couch, it might be nice to browse the news or something. But a lack of Flash support continues to be a rather big flaw in Apple's portable devices, its affect on battery-life aside.

I bought an Amazon Kindle when it first came out, and I thought I would carry it with me everywhere. Mostly I'm paranoid it'll get stolen or I'll lose it. The same goes for my Macbook Pro. I can't imagine how paranoid I would be with a device that can be hidden under a magazine. And the Macbook makes me feel like a target for theft, since the aluminum body and glowing Apple does tend to stick out more. Damn expensive and desirable devices.

minerguy wrote:Best I can tell there is no way to get photos to it without another computer.

Engadget is reporting an Apple-designed accessory that will connect cameras to the iPad. Read about it here.

Kate and Dan wrote:

minerguy wrote:Best I can tell there is no way to get photos to it without another computer.

Engadget is reporting an Apple-designed accessory that will connect cameras to the iPad. Read about it here.

Yeah, it looks like they're making an accessory to connect the iPad directly to your camera, and another accessory that can read SD Cards. Unfortunate that they have to be separate devices instead of some multi-format card reader.

From the Apple site:

iPad Camera Connection Kit

The Camera Connection Kit gives you two ways to import photos and videos from a digital camera. The Camera Connector lets you import your photos and videos to iPad using the camera’s USB cable. Or you can use the SD Card Reader to import photos and videos directly from the camera’s SD card.

Maybe I'm being unfair, since it's the first generation and likely the first to be released of an entire new budding market of devices.

http://mashable.com/2010/01/27/9-upcoming-tablet-alternatives-to-the-apple-ipad/

I mean, despite it being Apple, it doesn't seem to have much in the way of features, functionality, and even physical design that set it apart from its upcoming competition.

Still, kind of like how Asus initially crushed all contenders in the netbook realm, it'll be cool to see how the tablet market, with various sizes and feature sets, develops. Heck, by the time I decide to take the trip I'm saving for in 2011 maybe one of them will be feature-rich enough to tempt me into ditching the trusty MP3 player/notebook combo.

I also have to keep correcting myself from typing "iTab", which seems a lot more natural and less prone to being ridiculed.

One of the advantages to the iPad would be using it to read travel books. The Kindle can't view photos in color and it's difficult to jump from section to section. I can see where the iPad would outshine here.

For just reading fiction, however, I'd rather have the Kindle (or even the iPod touch) as it's much easier to hold.

I will be waiting to see who is the first to travel with an iPad, though - my trip isn't till September, so I can wait.

I already use the Kindle app on my iPhone for guidebooks, it works great. Lonely Planet also has a good app in the App Store so I'm definitely looking forward to seeing what they do for the iPad.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KKwCy5gT_ao

Linked on OBOW. I have to admit, seeing it in action is a lot different than reading about it. Still not sure I'd want to use it for typing, but as an around-the-house gadget it seems great.

I must admit I'm looking at it but like WhereForArt I'm not intending to leave until the end of the year so will be interested to see if anyone does take it travelling and how it went. Though no flash support is a major drawback for me as well.

The second drawback is content. I'm Australian and quite frankly the current legally downloadable content is miniscule compared to what is available to people in the USA & UK . So unless they allow greater content available here there's really no point in buying it.

However if they swing the content then for the eBooks alone it would be worth it from my perspective.

As a 2+ year iPhone user, I can say that the touchscreen typing is just okay. It's gimmicky, and was loaded with novelty, but I'm having a very difficult time seeing it as enjoyable on a larger device.

I'm trying to picture typing with my thumbs on a magazine sized screen, and it doesn't work. I'm picturing laying the damn thing down flat, and trying to type with my fingers, and that doesn't work either. Now I'm thinking I'm going to have to hold it with one hand and peck at it with one index finger like my grandmother does to her keyboard.

It's a neat reading device, I'll give it that, but it's a gigantic step backwards in the evolution of interactive technology. It's a moving magazine with a clumsy data entry interface. Sure, it has a keyboard, but what good is that if you get irritated trying to type an email or two?

Note that I've been in CR for the last couple of months and not really able to load videos on the slow connections I've had. I haven't seen any of the video demos yet, and am just picturing a bigger iPhone, which is neat, but limiting.

I've also seen reviews like

CNN SciTech Blog wrote:In a demo at Apple's invite-only event, Apple CEO Steve Jobs tapped away on the iPad keyboard using all of his fingers. He said typing on the device is "a dream." I found typing on the iPad to be rather cumbersome. Hardware keyboards are tactile. Your fingers can feel where they're supposed to be.

But if you're not looking at the iPad screen, then there's no way to know what you're typing until you see the errors popping up in your documents. I found myself choosing finger-strokes with anxious care, which slowed me down considerably - more than the iPhone keyboard does.

I chatted with some other tech reporters to see what they thought. Jacqui Cheng, associate editor at Ars Technica, said she had some similar issues and overall described typing on the iPad as "very frustrating." She's an adept iPhone typist, but said the iPad screen is too large to let users type with their thumbs, as many do on the much-smaller iPhone.

Gizmodo wrote:The iPad's Onscreen Typing Solution Isn't a Solution At All
Typing in portrait is better than anticipated but still quite a stretch for our average-sized hands, which means that letters like F G and H will take a moderate conditioning for some. What about in landscape mode, sitting flat on the table? Well this is problematic too, as the iPad sort of wobbles. The back is not perfectly flat, meaning your typing surface is never perfectly flat, so the virtual keyboard becomes that much more difficult to use.

Super nifty digital toy? Yup. Viable communication device for anyone who likes to use words and has short thumbs (me)? I'm not thinking so.

A big problem about the iPad is that its not really a proper e-reader, since it does not have an e-ink or similar display. Reading books on an LCD screen or whatever is very tiring on the eyes. I think I'd prefer an e-ink e-reader that doubles as a web-browser, which will hopefully be happening soon, maybe the new Asus Eee Readers for example.