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Last post Author Topic: First iPad Reviews Are In  (Read 28679 times)

mouser

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First iPad Reviews Are In
« on: April 01, 2010, 07:52 AM »
The Gizmodo website sums up the early iPad reviews and they are quite positive..

The iPad is not a laptop. It's not nearly as good for creating stuff. On the other hand, it's infinitely more convenient for consuming it - books, music, video, photos, Web, e-mail and so on. For most people, manipulating these digital materials directly by touching them is a completely new experience - and a deeply satisfying one.


Eóin

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Re: First iPad Reviews Are In
« Reply #1 on: April 01, 2010, 08:45 AM »
There's already a rather... shall we say critical thread for the iPad so I'm not going to go down that road.

One of the main selling points of the device is media consumption. And I do appreciate it's abilites there but I also think it over stepped it's mark by sacrificing too much portability. The iPhone couldn't fill that purpose properly because it only had a 480x320 resolution, but at the moment my HD2 has a 800x480 4.3" screen. So it's fantastic for browsing the web, full web that is not sites optimized for mobiles. Also eBooks work great and PDFs, though not perfect, are very readable.

I'm not suggesting that such a phone is up the iPad standards for those purposes but the fact that I can fit my phone in my jeans means I always have it with me.

TomTrottier

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Re: First iPad Reviews Are In
« Reply #2 on: April 02, 2010, 12:14 PM »
Not very FLASHy tho..... YouTube ==> SomeOneElseTube

zridling

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Re: First iPad Reviews Are In
« Reply #3 on: April 02, 2010, 10:45 PM »
To do anything with it, it appears you'll have to pay for every little page view. I'm cheap. I pay for online access, but not for content. I don't need rupert murdoch's insanity for that.

Darwin

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Re: First iPad Reviews Are In
« Reply #4 on: April 02, 2010, 11:23 PM »
I am waiting to see what happens with the Microsoft Courier - looks sweet.

Renegade

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Re: First iPad Reviews Are In
« Reply #5 on: April 03, 2010, 04:45 AM »
The tablet form factor has failed numerous times in the past. Let's see what kind of orgy the Apple marketing department and the fanboys can whip the masses into though. ;) I'm sure they'll do well. :) (I'd rather have an iPad than a MacBook.)

I am waiting to see what happens with the Microsoft Courier - looks sweet.

WOW! Now THAT looks like a seriously cool little tool! I've been hoping that a digital book would come out, and that looks like it!
Slow Down Music - Where I commit thought crimes...

Freedom is the right to be wrong, not the right to do wrong. - John Diefenbaker

y0himba

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Re: First iPad Reviews Are In
« Reply #6 on: April 03, 2010, 08:15 AM »
Oh look, yet another iFad.  I am sure all the iClones will need one to show everyone else they have one.  I love how the media frenzy is manipulated to make this thing look useful.  The media coverage of this reminds me of the movie "Idiocracy".  They stand in line for a day, get the device, unbox it, then show everyone else they have it.  That's the only thing the iPad is useful for, showing others you have the latest media mentioned 'it' device.

Wait, there is yet another use for the iPad:


Dormouse

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Re: First iPad Reviews Are In
« Reply #7 on: April 03, 2010, 08:17 AM »
Microsoft Courier

And the comments section has people reflecting my own concerns rather than the hype on Ars Technica comments on the iPad.

I can't see the point of a device that is too big to be really portable and doesn't have the functionality of a laptop or notebook. And which doesn't have good battery life. The Courier seems better than the iPad for portability, but I still can't see it having a decent battery life but better than a phone or netbook for email, reading, maps etc. So long as it's instant startup.


nudone

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Re: First iPad Reviews Are In
« Reply #8 on: April 03, 2010, 09:14 AM »
i don't think we are going to see anything really great until we get the flexible colour screen - something like the courier but without the hinge breaking the viewing area into two sections. can't be that far off can it? that really would revolutionise portable devices.

as for the iPad, they are going to be truly rubbish compared with the clones that come out.

Darwin

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Re: First iPad Reviews Are In
« Reply #9 on: April 03, 2010, 10:07 AM »
The Skiff appears to utilitze a flexible colour screen. I'm REALLY wanting an e-Book reader, but I don't want to buy one *just* yet - I want to see what happens with the Courier (which I think looks brilliant) and with the next generation of eBook readers. HP's Slate looks promising, too, albeit a bit thick for my liking. But then it is a full tablet (ie a proper computer running Win7).

Dormouse

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Re: First iPad Reviews Are In
« Reply #10 on: April 03, 2010, 10:13 AM »
Skiff Slate

Still, neither really very portable.
Ebook readers can be put in pockets (just, depending on pockets) - and that's the size I'd be looking for.

Darwin

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Re: First iPad Reviews Are In
« Reply #11 on: April 03, 2010, 10:29 AM »
Still, neither really very portable.
Ebook readers can be put in pockets (just, depending on pockets) - and that's the size I'd be looking for.

Agreed. From what I've read, it REALLY is desireable to have a dedicated eBook reader to avoid unnecessary distractions. I'm dithering now because neither the Kindles nor the entry level Sonys have expandable memory (a deal breaker for me) and the Sony touch screen readers (which do have expandable memory) apparently have screen visibility issues in some lighting conditions. They're also PRICEY. The other option available to me where I live is the Aluratek Libre which is cheaper and has expandable memory, but is not well reviewed.

Overall, this is why I'm waiting to see what happens with the Courier. It looks to have the right form factor and the right feature set (even if it is more feature rich than a dedicated reader). IF it is as good as promised and at a reasonable price I'll get one, unless the next generation of eBook readers drop their prices significantly.

TucknDar

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Re: First iPad Reviews Are In
« Reply #12 on: April 03, 2010, 10:44 AM »
All this iWannaBeYourDigitalBook stuff makes me think of this: http://www.youtube.c.../watch?v=4pyjRj3UMRM

40hz

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Re: First iPad Reviews Are In
« Reply #13 on: April 03, 2010, 01:47 PM »
Over at boingboing Cory Doctorow has a nice little essay that pretty much sums up for me exactly what the problem is with a company like Apple and the entire idea behind a product like the iPad.

Well worth a look if you're interested in reading an unusually sane analysis of why the iPad represents a colossal step backwards rather than forward as far as the web and mediaspace are concerned.


Link:  http://www.boingboing.net/2010/04/02/why-i-wont-buy-an-ipad-and-think-you-shouldnt-either.html

Why I won't buy an iPad (and think you shouldn't, either)

Cory Doctorow at 5:23 AM April 2, 2010

I've spent ten years now on Boing Boing, finding cool things that people have done and made and writing about them. Most of the really exciting stuff hasn't come from big corporations with enormous budgets, it's come from experimentalist amateurs. These people were able to make stuff and put it in the public's eye and even sell it without having to submit to the whims of a single company that had declared itself gatekeeper for your phone and other personal technology...


 8)

« Last Edit: April 03, 2010, 04:44 PM by 40hz »

zridling

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Re: First iPad Reviews Are In
« Reply #14 on: April 05, 2010, 02:03 AM »
I second y0himba and 40hz's (Doctorow's) responses. It will definitely kill the Kindle based on the fact that Apple will allow publishers to charge any price they want for their ebooks. The iPad is primarily a consumption device built to deliver content (and get paid handsomely for it).

The larger problem I see is that the net is quickly being carved up and fenced off while the snapperheads in the media are WOWEE'd! by anything Jobs tosses out, reflecting his narrow vendor concerns (lock-in, no content transfers, proprietary batteries, chargers, etc.). It's really weird to see one after another talk show host get orgasmic over this thing. Already there are 40 governments around the globe that filter the web, and with ACTA coming along with the DMCA and endless patent pissing matches, most information use we enjoy now will suddenly be criminalized to protect influential industries. Soon you'll have to pay a gatekeeper like Rupert Murdoch, Apple, or Microsoft just to get online, taking us back to the old Compuserve/AOL days. Pay-per-view devices like the iPad would drain oceans of information we find now, leaving only highly-policed canals.

An iPad is like building your own private prison -- pay us to lock you in and lock your content down. As long as the media is approved by Apple and makes it into the iPad app store, you're free to use your iPad, that is, as long as their Safari browser will play it. If Apple doesn't approve -- and they're notorious for what appears to be god-based censorship -- neither your app nor its content will ever find you, the consumer. bleh.

40hz

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Re: First iPad Reviews Are In
« Reply #15 on: April 05, 2010, 05:15 AM »
On January 22, 1984, Apple Computer ran the following ad in the third quarter of Superbowl XVIII. It was seen by 38.8 million television viewers - a number that represents 46.4% of all households - and 71% of the entire USA television audience on the day it aired...

http://video.google....-715862862672743260#

1984.jpg


Now take a look at Steve Jobs' 1983 Apple keynote speech:

http://www.youtube.c.../watch?v=lSiQA6KKyJo

Pay close attention around the 3 minute mark.

It is now 1984.

(dramatic pause...)

It appears IBM wants it all.

Apple is perceived to be the only hope to offer IBM a run for its money. Dealers initially welcoming IBM with open arms now fear an IBM-dominated and controlled future.

They are increasingly turning back to Apple as the only force that can ensure their future freedom.

IBM wants it all and is aiming its guns on its last obstacle to industry control: Apple.

Will Big Blue  dominate the entire computer industry? The entire information age?

Was George Orwell right?

And while it's true that 1984 ended up not being "like 1984," the year 2010 is sure starting to feel that way.

Bravo Steve!  :Thmbsup:

(I still can't make up my mind whether to laugh or cry.)


Or maybe just throw up.
« Last Edit: April 05, 2010, 08:38 AM by 40hz »

KynloStephen66515

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Re: First iPad Reviews Are In
« Reply #16 on: April 05, 2010, 06:58 PM »
The Gizmodo website sums up the early iPad reviews and they are quite positive..

Im still not buying one! lol

JavaJones

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Re: First iPad Reviews Are In
« Reply #17 on: April 05, 2010, 09:40 PM »
A good "real person" review on Slashdot:
http://apple.slashdo.../1544234/iPad-Review

This is probably closer to the likely views of the DC tech-savvy audience than some of the other reviews seen so far.

- Oshyan

Target

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Re: First iPad Reviews Are In
« Reply #18 on: April 05, 2010, 10:28 PM »

JavaJones

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Re: First iPad Reviews Are In
« Reply #19 on: April 05, 2010, 10:48 PM »
Oh yeah, I was so glad to see Will It Blend is still on the ball. :D I wasn't sure what he was going to do with it at first since it doesn't fit, so what came next was a bit of a shock, but oddly satisfying. :P

- Oshyan

Darwin

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Re: First iPad Reviews Are In
« Reply #20 on: April 05, 2010, 11:21 PM »
Oh yeah, I was so glad to see Will It Blend is still on the ball. :D I wasn't sure what he was going to do with it at first since it doesn't fit, so what came next was a bit of a shock, but oddly satisfying. :P

- Oshyan

Indeed...

superboyac

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Re: First iPad Reviews Are In
« Reply #21 on: April 05, 2010, 11:37 PM »
Over at boingboing Cory Doctorow has a nice little essay that pretty much sums up for me exactly what the problem is with a company like Apple and the entire idea behind a product like the iPad.

Well worth a look if you're interested in reading an unusually sane analysis of why the iPad represents a colossal step backwards rather than forward as far as the web and mediaspace are concerned.

Link:  http://www.boingboing.net/2010/04/02/why-i-wont-buy-an-ipad-and-think-you-shouldnt-either.html

Nice 40hz.  Even though it's not related to the article, this is my favorite part:
So what does Marvel do to "enhance" its comics? They take away the right to give, sell or loan your comics. What an improvement. Way to take the joyous, marvellous sharing and bonding experience of comic reading and turn it into a passive, lonely undertaking that isolates, rather than unites. Nice one, Misney.
This is something that I actually discuss often with my friend.

JavaJones

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Re: First iPad Reviews Are In
« Reply #22 on: April 06, 2010, 12:39 PM »
Meanwhile competition is stiff:
http://www.engadget....ure-complete-tablet/
I wonder about weight with that one...

- Oshyan

Darwin

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Re: First iPad Reviews Are In
« Reply #23 on: April 06, 2010, 12:47 PM »
Looks interesting, Oshyan. The more I think I'm following the technology and keeping up with it all, the more unrealistic that goal seems to be! I'm getting ready to go look at the Aluratek Libre - $169 locally - because I'll be old a grey before I get to read an ebook on a portable device otherwise! If the Aluratek doesn't "do it" for me, I may just jump at the Sony Touch Reader, which is on sale for $299. I'm fed up of waiting - I have literally 100's of unread books on my computer because I simply can't read them that way. Never mind the academic papers - 10's of 1000's of them... Of course, now that I've ditched my PhD, does it really matter? Oddly, it does, for reasons I can't give voice to...

40hz

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Re: First iPad Reviews Are In
« Reply #24 on: April 06, 2010, 02:32 PM »
One thing I find hysterical.

I'm noticing that more than a few apps that used to cost $1 to $5 back in March 2010 are now priced between $10 and $15 if they also run on the iPad.

And from the screen shots and descriptions, they're the same bloody apps they were before!  :-\

It would be bad enough if they were just jamming the iPad early adopters. Unfortunately, the pricing increases also appear to apply to the iPhone 'versions' as well. Gotta love that...

Reminds me of a place I used to get coffee from. One day they brought in an expresso machine. It was one of those big-ass copper jobs that can generate enough steam to power a medium size freight train. After they got it all set up and sussed out they started selling cappuccinos and lattes for about $4.50 a pop.

That didn't bug me. But what did was when they jacked the price on their regular "extra large" coffee from $2 to $3.55

When I asked why their prices went up so much they told me that not enough people were buying lattes and they needed to "do something" to cover the cost of the new expresso machine.

I wonder if something like that is what's going on over at the App Store...

meh2.jpg



« Last Edit: April 06, 2010, 02:37 PM by 40hz »