Personal Review: the iPad 2

iPad 2 review

Picked up Monday at the local University bookstore. Curious that the usual suspects are sold out but the Uni was not. Apparently lucky timing.

I will not attempt to duplicate other reviews or be comprehensive, but rather comment on the aspects of iPad ownership I and my wife most care about.

So first, the iPad is a notebook computer replacement for my wife. To fill the bill it has to print, not overheat when watching movies (ala MacBook Air), sit nicely on gym equiptment, not make the wife regret buying a device without a DVD, and lastly the virtual keyboard has to at least be acceptable. We have a Mac-mini hooked up to the large plasma display in the house, and I am slowly but surely giving it server functions too. So now the mini is a print server for the iPad, and it also streams video really, really well. I have not tried to stream more than one video at a time, and at least for now DVD video cannot be played in real time. First I rip and re-encode. The other wants mentioned earlier are well cared for: no heat problems, and the keyboard is fine for email and web posts. Say, half a page fine, perhaps more as experience is gained. The trick by the way to using the keyboard is to let the OS correct typos.

I also set the mini to be a WebDAV server so that the equivalent of a storage device for documents would be available but a glitch is present. I may get around to solving the problem although I suspect my wife may never use the utility so I am not too motivated.

The iPad has two very attractive attributes that are in the "you have to experience them to appreciate them fully" category. One is the long battery life. It is *great* to not have power cords strewn over the kitchen table, or to have to track down a charger during the day. Truly liberating. The other thing we keep gushing about is how the device feels and looks. It is svelte, and almost sensual to hold. I know the iPad 2 is not that much lighter than the first generation, but it feels much different. Like the difference between the first and most recent iPod. The smart cover only adds to the appeal. Speaking of the smart cover, it is a feat of industrial design. I keep taking it off and folding it in the air to discern how it clips, swivels and gains structural rigidity. Neat stuff.

The first day my wife left the notebook computer on the kitchen table open and ready for use. By day #3 it is still there, but now sits closed in a corner. I expect it to be a reservist very shortly.

I think the iPad will not only be a well respected computer, it will continue to delight by virtue of the sea of apps available for a couple dollars each. I don't buy Mac OS X software without a good reason since it usually costs $30 plus dollars, but the inexpensive iPad apps encourage software exploration. I had become somewhat blase in my computer ownership, thinking that I had all I wanted and neither faster or bigger was an attraction. The iPad is a new frontier and I am getting a real kick out of it when allowed. I know my wife will start taking it with her when she leaves the house, but by then hopefully I'll be able to buy a second without having to beg and scrounge.