The first three hours of having an iPad it sat in a box and with such a busy day it was not until 7PM before I was actually able to touch and play with the device. I sat on the couch next to my six year old, he looked at the iPad and said, “That’s a big phone.” I could not help but laugh because it is similar to what most tech people have been saying over the last 3 months, it’s a big iPod Touch.
I am going to try to break this down, the good and bad, while explaining how this is like and dislike an iPod Touch/iPhone.
Initial and Immediate Disappointment
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The UPS guy arrived at 10:04 AM but I had my three kids and did not have time to do unboxing photo’s until my wife got home. So the iPad sat in the box for 3 hrs waiting for me to play. After unboxing images I was gravely upset when I saw a screen I can only call a middle finger from Cupertino. A ‘connect to iTunes’ icon appeared. While I knew this device would use iTunes I did not want to see it require iTunes at power up. I don’t have an iPod Touch and suspect it suffers the same flaw. This single issue ensures two things.
I will never travel with only this device on a trip, I cannot give this device to my parents instead of a computer.
My logic behind this is simple and the same for both reasons mentioned above. I took a trip once with only my iPhone and it got into a state requiring it to be connected to iTunes. Without having a computer to connect into iTunes, it was rendered useless. My parents, who I wanted to give and iPad, live 600 miles away from me, which makes it impossible for me to stop by to help them out when the iPad falls into a “need iTunes state”. Once bitten twice shy.
Accelerometer
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My iPhones (2G, 3G, 3GS), Blackberry Storm, and Motorola Droid all have accelerometer. For those unfamiliar, the accelerometer detects rotation of the device and adjusts the screen from portrait to landscape. On the iPad, in part due to a stronger CPU and GPU, the responsiveness to screen rotations is unmatched on any other devices I have used with this technology.
Additionally, the screen, unlike on the iphone, will adjust to any orientation (all 4 ways you can hold the device!). The iPhone will not allow you to hold the device upside down and adjust, where the iPad will.
Settings
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If you are a heavy iPhone user with multiple email accounts or you find yourself constantly adjusting the settings, the additional screen real-estate on the iPad is a welcome addition. Something that is not possible on the iPhone due to size restrictions is having a navigation column. There is a feeling on the iPhone of constantly going in and out levels to make adjustment or change email accounts. This navigation bar allows you to quickly jump around on the iPad. It is almost as good as the bread crumb feature on the Microsoft Zune HD.
Web Browsing
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While web page rendering on the iPhone was delightful and navigation was unmatched there was one perceived flaw that really was bad for the user experience. On the iPhone/iPod Touch the address bar (where you type the web address) would scroll away from you as you scrolled down a web page. Sounds odd but if you scrolled down a really long web page, then in order to get back to the navigation bar most users believe they have to scroll all the way back up the webpage.
Every user I have talked to had no clue that there is a shortcut to get the address bar back. Simply double tap on the title bar where the network, wifi, click, and battery power indicators are located, and you will be there instantly. Most users don’t know this so they curse and scroll. Only one warning: his does auto scroll the screen for you, therefore you will lose your current position on the web page.
On the iPad the address bar is stationary and always present. Android in contrast just hides the address bar when you start interacting with the page. The ZuneHD put the address bar on the bottom auto hidden.
Revolutionary, Magical, Unbelievable
I hate to say it but there is nothing that is revolutionary about the iPad. Not one single thing. Think of it this way:
Is a Computer Running Windows 7 with an Intel i7 980x Extreme 3.3 GHz processor any more revolutionary than one running Dual Core ADM Athlon 2650 1.2 GHz processor?
No, it is the same, just faster. Having a fast computer over a slow one is always an improvement, but at the end of the day, it is still only faster and not different. True, the user ‘experience’ may be a bit better, but not that much.
Is a computer with a 32 inch OLED screen any more magical then one with a 17 inch OLED screen?
No, you just have a larger screen. Although the experience is magnitudes better due to the increased screen size.
I won’t pretend the iPhone, iPod Touch, or iPad are not ground breaking devices. The magic is in how we interact with the software. If you look at the devices as an evolutionary chain, then the progress is similar to Intel producing a faster chip and supporting a bigger screen.
A Different View
As I was lying in bed I started thinking about a couple apps I have already downloaded, NetFlix and ABC. I realized that with some minor adjustments these are the true ‘game changers’ and that they can come on any device or platform.
When I first got Pandora Radio I stopped syncing music to my iPods. Once Pandora was on my mobile phone I stopped carrying an iPod all together. It changed the way I consumed music. Netflix can do the same for video. 90% of the time I have internet access and would be happy to stream my content on-demand to the device. As I said, I do this today with Pandora Radio. If NetFlix finds a way to address the 10% of the time I am without internet with some type of caching option like on Slacker Radio, then this will truly be magical.
I hope Comcast, DirecTV, Dish, Cox, Time Warner and a host of other providers will find a way to offer their on-demand content on the iPad. More critical I would be happy to pay DirecTV to add the iPad as a “TV” on my plan so I can have full access to content like I was at a set-top-box. Just like with the Wall Street Journal app, existing subscribers can logon to access content. I want the same from my cable or satellite provider.
Today, so many of us rip CD’s and DVD’s to our computers to let us watch on other devices. If I knew at any time I could download or stream my DirecTV content then you could have DRM all over the content and I would not care in the least.
Ubiquitous access changes the way you think about “owning”. If I can play any song or movie I want 90% of the time via streaming why should I bother with storing it? The NetFlix and ABC apps lets me consume my shows the way I want, when I want. I have never cared to buy a TV show. Streaming shows via the ABC app on the iPad works just fine for me.
Is this a Kindle Replacement
The short answer is no. Let me be clear: replacement implies you already own a Kindle so I cannot see replacing a Kindle which is a best of breed ebook reader with the iPad. If you want a book reader you should buy a Kindle, Sony Reader, or a Nook, but if you want a multi-purpose device then the iPad makes sense.
I can see the iPad excelling with reality type books where you actually have to interact with things in society to progress in the book. More important, when you have to make decisions and the story branches into a new possibility, again the iPad makes more sense.
If you’re a light reader or you just don’t mind reading on a computer screen, the iPad again makes perfect sense. If you’re a reader that can start a 600 page book and put it down several hours later completed, then the Kindle will be a better reading experience. Â The iPad will impact Kindle sales because it is a sexy multi-purpose device vs a dedicated reader.
Magazines and Interactive Content
I suspect I just don’t get this. The iPad is said to be the “ultimate media consumption device”. We are supposed to see a new way to interact with content. Reading an article and then launching a video vs looking at static pictures. I’m sorry but don’t we already call this the web? There is nothing new here; just a new device to provide it on. You can zoom and scroll with your fingers but again the iPad is not doing anything magical here. The only benefit to the iPad in the category is if you need to read off-line, i.e. in an airplane. Then perhaps it makes better sense. But in that case, you don’t get the interactive video unless it is locally cached. Always trade-offs.
Gaming and Video Player
For gaming, it is as fun as the iPod Touch with similar limitations, but it has a larger screen and faster processor. My kids took to the device like fish to water and had a blast playing their games on a larger screen. My son has never asked about a Nintendo DS but he always asks to take my iPhone on long car rides. Â AniMatch and Crash Bandicoot have dominated the activity on my iPad with my kids.
My truck and car both have rear DVD systems with a single screen. I can see the iPad allowing one kid to watch or play while the others watch a different show. On an upcoming family trip it will be the video player on our flights and in the hotels. If you’re remotely considering a portable DVD player over $250 in cost, then the iPad has to be on the list for consideration.
A Curve Ball
A friend of mine got notice that his iPad would not arrive for Saturday delivery; see my earlier post. I got a text from him saying he was playing with the device. In response I sent him a single message, “Big iPod Touch or something special?” For him and hundreds of millions others that question was as cryptic as can be. I wanted to know if he thought the iPad was just a larger iPod Touch or was it something different, new, and special. When we spoke he said, “I have never owned an iPhone or iPod Touch so it is all new and amazing to me.” Damn it, such an obvious thing overlooked. If you have not experienced an iPhone or iPod touch then of course the iPad is a mind blowing experience.
For the millions of tech geeks that follow and track technology, the revolutionary, magical, and unbelievable parts of the iPad are lost to us because we are so absorbed in the world of technology. This device is just as magical as the day you started using a digital camera and stopped having to change the roll of film. While magical initially, today it is second nature. For us the magic is lost in it being so second nature technology.
Conclusion
For me, this is just as great as the iPod touch but faster, larger, and with enhancements to take advantage of the larger screen. It’s not a netbook. It’s not a laptop replacement. It’s an extension of your computer or iTunes library. For many it will be magical, for others just more of the same. I guess that’s my final review on the matter. I will try to provide more detailed reviews on specific sections going forward.