10th Apr 10
iPad: is it Worth Buying?
by Chas Parker
A few weeks ago Apple revealed the iPad.
Steve Jobs quoted that netbooks are just cheap laptop and are pretty much worthless. Instead, the iPad is a half-inch thick tablet with a 9.7 inch multi touch screen will be available in 6 different models, starting from $500. Consumers can purchase either a 16, 32 or 64 gigabyte iPad complete with Wi-Fi (add another $130 and wait one more month and you can purchase a iPad with both Wi-Fi and 3G). International pricing has yet to be announced.
The newest feature for the iPad is the iBookstore. Upon opening this App you are greeted with your own personal bookcase with all your purchased ebooks nicely displayed. With a simple tap of the screen you are taken directly to the iBookstore. There you can purchase a range of titles. The iPad has everything the iPhone/Touch has, such as iTunes, but has some neat additional features.
Photos now features stacks; if you’re browsing through albums you can drag the album apart with two fingers to check what’s inside before completely opening it up. Using the map App you can see exactly where each picture was taken. When charging, the iPad displays your pictures in a slideshow.
Every iPhone App will work perfectly on the iPad except the ones that require a camera. When opening an App that was designed for the iPhone/Touch only a small portion of the screen will be used. In the bottom right of the screen a x2 icon is displayed; pressing this will expand the App to fill the entire iPad screen. This may cause some games to become pixelated but they will still run smoothly. Apps designed specifically for the iPad are also now being released on the App store.
Watching movies will be even more pleasurable due to the bigger screen, and of course can be purchased from iTunes directly on the device. Browsing Safari will be a good experience with the almost full size touch keyboard that pops up from the bottom just like on the iPhone/Touch.
When using the Mail App, holding the iPad horizontal will display all your emails while your reading an open email. Turn the iPad vertically and your list of emails will move to the side so you can focus on just the one email.
Apple’s office creation application suite iWork will also be available on the iPad. Working on a Keynote presentation whilst on the move will be much simpler – looking for a specific page is as simple as running your finger down the side of the page and checking the little preview icons for different pages. Pages and Numbers are also available for the iPad, with Pages having the same page finder as Keynote.
Apple new A4 chip will allow the iPad to run smoothly and get a incredible 10-hour battery life while using Apps, Safari, playing games, watching movies, listening to music, pretty much anything, and with a standby time of one month Apple have created something truly revolutionary.
Accessories will be released foo the iPad including a keyboard dock for people who want to use a full physical keyboard (if you have a wireless Apple keyboard you can use that via bluetooth). A USB and SD card camera connector will also be available, so after taking pictures or filmed a home movie, just pop the SD card or USB cable in and they instantly import to the iPad. A protective case is also available that flips over to function as a stand when displaying pictures and movies. There are plenty more 3rd-party accessories already available too.
Now for the big question: is the iPad worth buying? That depends on what you have now or are planning to buy. For people who have a iPhone or iPod touch, it’s worth purchasing. For people with both an iPhone/Touch and a Mac already, it’s probably not worth purchasing or at least waiting for the next version.
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