Are you on the fence regarding the iPad? Perhaps you aren’t sure what it is all about? Well, today the hands-on tech review floodgates opened to answer any and all questions for consumers prior to this Saturday’s launch of the iPad.
And the techies are right about another thing: 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.
The bottom line is that the iPad has been designed and built by a bunch of perfectionists. If you like the concept, you’ll love the machine.
For the past week or so, I have been testing a sleek, light, silver-and-black tablet computer called an iPad. After spending hours and hours with it, I believe this beautiful new touch-screen device from Apple has the potential to change portable computing profoundly, and to challenge the primacy of the laptop. It could even help, eventually, to propel the finger-driven, multitouch user interface ahead of the mouse-driven interface that has prevailed for decades.
… one thing I can say about most Apple products, and certainly the iPad: There may be things it doesn’t do, but what it does do, it does remarkably well. Aside from the aforementioned limitations, there isn’t a lot else to gripe about. And to my great surprise, you can actually get real work done with the iPad. There aren’t a lot of directly comparable products in this nascent category. We haven’t had enough quality time with the competing Fusion Garage JooJoo, but it will be a huge coup if it can match the utility and grace of Apple’s first tablet. I’m curious to see who actually buys the iPad, apart from Apple enthusiasts. But I can tell you that when my laptop eventually dies, I’ll be getting one.
The most compelling sign that Apple got this right is the fact that despite the novelty of the iPad, the excitement slips away after about ten seconds and you’re completely focused on the task at hand … whether it’s reading a book, writing a report, or working on clearing your Inbox. Second most compelling: in situation after situation, I find that the iPad is the best computer in my household and office menagerie. It’s not a replacement for my notebook, mind you. It feels more as if the iPad is filling a gap that’s existed for quite some time.
The first iPad is a winner. It stacks up as a formidable electronic-reader rival forAmazon‘s Kindle. It gives portable game machines from Nintendo and Sony a run for their money. At the very least, the iPad will likely drum up mass-market interest in tablet computing in ways that longtime tablet visionary and Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates could only dream of.
A Compendium of iPad Reviews
Are you on the fence regarding the iPad? Perhaps you aren’t sure what it is all about? Well, today the hands-on tech review floodgates opened to answer any and all questions for consumers prior to this Saturday’s launch of the iPad.
David Pogue, New York Times:
Walt Mossberg, Wall Street Journal:
Tim Gideon, PCMAG.com:
Andy Ihnatko, Chicago Sun-Times:
Edward Baig, USA Today:
ABC News: