Juicy Two-Handed Goodness

I wouldn’t call it a fetish – it’s closer to an addiction – but I love gadgets. Not the kitchen-type stuff (althought I love that too) but the high-tech toys, the iPhones, Netbooks, e-readers, etc. etc. So, sooner or later, I had to get an iPad. I was hoping to put off the purchase till later, when the second version arrives sometime next year – it will probably sport a camera by then – but AT&T and Apple forced my hand when they announced a new data pricing plan. They eliminated the unlimited data plan and, if I wanted that, I needed to buy the device before the new plan went into effect. Given the financial situation that is affecting us all, a new toy and data plan were stretching it but, given the potential of what the device can do as an online tool, and the data it can chew up, I decided it was a good investment. OK, so I’ve given up a lunch here or there, but I had to have an iPad. Here are my impressions of it.

I’ve had it for more than a month as of this writing, and I was looking to offload some of the things that I would do with my Netbook (small laptop). I had such high hopes that I could replace my laptop and e-reader but, as of today, the iPad can probably replace my e-reader, but it can’t replace my laptop: it does more than an e-reader but a lot less than a laptop. It will let me surf the net, read digital magazines, interface with Facebook and other social networks, play games, and run mini-apps. It’s a great interface device for interacting, and that’s exactly what I do with my iPhone, except now I can interface on a larger screen. I can consume loads of info and make a note here and there. I can view websites, but not those in Flash. I can read email, view email attachments and Microsoft documents, listen to music, and watch videos. However, the operative words here are View and Consume. I can create some documentation – but with limitations.

It would be nice if I could add the capital-letter words Modify and Create to describe what I can do with the iPad; unfortunately, I can only use the small-letter words for it. It’s just not a laptop replacement. The limitations to modifying and creating depend on what applications are available, as well as the limits of the device. Some of these limitations are pretty big. For instance, I can’t really modify an email attachment. I can’t create/reply to an email and add an attachment, and file viewing is limited to images unless you have a mini-app (if I purchase a mini-app, I can have some editing ability with Microsoft documents). I can view some PDFs, but don’t try a floor plan or a set of construction documents – the contractor will have the problem fixed by the time you have the file open. I’m limited to what iTunes allows me to sync with the iPad; for instance, I (currently) can’t take a document off my hard drive and place it on the iPad. If iTunes can’t add it to its library, you can’t sync it.

It’s a great-looking device and I love to use it daily, because I can just sit on the train, plug in my headphones, and catch up with the world: read my New York Times, view CNN and ESPN, and read my comic books. But only if I’m sitting. It’s a little heavy for one hand, and it’s too big for my thumb to get from one side to the other. It’s a two-hander – like a really big cheeseburger.