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Ask HN: Four months since launch: how are you finding the iPad?

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Re: Ask HN: Four months since launch: how are you finding the iPad?

#71

Post by c1sc0 »

wmeredith wrote: post #70
npp wrote: post #64

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm just curious; how can you recommend it to family/friends looking for a computer , since currently you still need an extra machine to sync the iPad to? Is it that they have a desktop and wanted a laptop?

You can just have them sync or activate it at an Apple store. You really don't need to do it again after that. OS updates would be out of reach, though, which are important. I'm still not sure why Apple tied the iPad to an iTunes install. It's such a brilliant device (wife and I love our 32gb wifi model) but this is a serious flaw.

Maybe because then the user is more likely to put their credit-card on file with Apple?

Re: Ask HN: Four months since launch: how are you finding the iPad?

#73

Post by c1sc0 »

fierarul wrote: post #36

I know HN is US-centric but I would just like to point out that it's only been about 2 months since the iPad is available in large EU countries like France and Germany and 2 weeks since it's available in other (Austria, Belgium, New Zealand, etc). It doesn't even sell world-wide yet. The same about the iPhone 4 which although available in the US for almost 2 months, has just been released to some other countries.

It's not just the devices that are US-centric, it's the whole iTunes experience. I find the selection of Movies & Books available through iTunes Germany to be sub-par insofar that I've bought all of my eBooks in Amazon Kindle format.

Re: Ask HN: Four months since launch: how are you finding the iPad?

#74

Post by danudey »

zzzmarcus wrote: post #66

I like it, though for as much as I use it, I can't seem to fall in love with it like I did the iPhone. I use it principally for: -Reading. iBooks is awesome. I love how it syncs your place so you can pick up on the phone. I haven't used the Kindle app much (which does the same) because most of the books I read are old and freely available in epub or PDF. I also use, to a lesser degree, Instapaper and Reeder. I used t…

iBooks is easily the best PDF reader I've used on any platform. I find myself syncing PDFs to it to read instead of scrolling through them in my browser, even when I'm at the computer anyway.

We use it for a lot of browsing. I have a laptop and a Mac Mini connected to the TV, so when my girlfriend is over (often) she uses it to browse, browse YouTube clips, catch up on news, Twitter, etc. it's quite handy.

I got a copy of Air Video and the associated free server for Mac, and we use that to watch TV or movies in bed (we watched Lisa's Wedding the other night to celebrate Lisa's wedding).

For games, I finally got her into PvZ by loading it up on the iPad, and then putting the thing down for a few minutes. There's also Dig It HD, stick golf, and a few other casual time-wasters. Also planning on getting Scrabble and the Scrabble word tile iPhone app for myself and my girlfriend (and other friends), to try that out. Interesting use of technology.

I started reading comics as well, though I only browsed through a few free or cheap issues available on Comixology. I also found myself getting frustrated with books, so I loaded up digital copies of Scott Pilgrim on it, and found myself reading much faster than I normally would.

Likewise, I read more on the iPad (and now, my iPhone 4) than I have in recent years, mostly because of the convenience of having books anywhere. I mostly use the Kindle app, just because the iBooks store was devoid of non-free content when the iPad launched in Canada, and Amazon has a better selection (plus I can shop from my laptop).

Losing it wouldn't be devastating, but it's incredibly convenient. I take it with me most of the time when I leave the house (I have the 3G version) and it's nice to be able to just load something up.

Re: Ask HN: Four months since launch: how are you finding the iPad?

#75

Post by danudey »

elblanco wrote: post #48

Considering how many people here seem to be using it for simple browsing and book reading, perhaps a better question is, is it a $500-900 value or would a lower price point make more sense considering the typical use-case?

The high point is the versatility. It makes a great eBook reader, but it also makes a great comic reader, a great web browser, a great YouTube watcher, a decent twitter client, a remote control for my home theatre, a game console, a Skype phone, an interactive map, a Scrabble board, an image editor, a newspaper, an RSS reader, the National Film Board of Canada's digital archives, an IM client, a way to stream video to anywhere in my home, an iPhone locator (MobileMe), a dictionary…

The point is, it's incredibly versatile, and it does a lot of things very well. On top of all that, it's light (but feels sturdy), it's small (but not too small), it can go a few days of casual usage without a charge (so I can plug it in whenever is convenient), and it's easy to use.

I paid $850 Canadian or so for the 32 GB 3G version, and other than the first day, when I was trying to get a hang on what to use it for and where it fits into my life, I've never wondered about the purchase. Using it to read news articles and RSS feeds, then switching it over to recipes so my girlfriend and I can make truffles before we curl up in bed and watch a movie on it, it's really a wonderful device. I could do all of that on my laptop, but it would be more cumbersome, take up more space on the counter, run out of battery faster, weigh more, etc.

Re: Ask HN: Four months since launch: how are you finding the iPad?

#76

Post by mattdw »

ugh wrote: post #69

There was a lot of talk about how you couldn’t use the device for ergonomic reasons prior to the launch. Anyone care to share experiences about that? An Gorilla Arm experiences? How/Where do you use it?

I temporarily screwed my wrist/forearm reading books while holding it up one-handed for a good week or so. Switched to two-handed or sitting it on my lap/table/whatever and problems went away.

That was only for multi-hour reading sessions, too. Casual usage is perfectly fine.

Re: Ask HN: Four months since launch: how are you finding the iPad?

#77

Post by danudey »

ugh wrote: post #69

There was a lot of talk about how you couldn’t use the device for ergonomic reasons prior to the launch. Anyone care to share experiences about that? An Gorilla Arm experiences? How/Where do you use it?

I use it:

  - Sitting on the couch
  - Lying in bed, on my side or back
  - Sitting at my desk, holding it or with it sitting flat on the table
  - Walking down the street (if I need to look up something)
  - At cafes, etc.
Perhaps I just have large hands (~9 inch handspan) and can get more leverage to hold it properly, but I haven't had a problem. Your arm will get tired eventually if you're not being ergonomic, but generally I haven't had a problem.

Re: Ask HN: Four months since launch: how are you finding the iPad?

#78

Post by danudey »

AlexMuir wrote: post #3
jawngee wrote: post #2

Honestly, I don't think the iPad becomes truly useful for a couch surfing thing until iOS 4 is released for it. I started out using it with a bang, but the flow of iOS 3.x was no where as smooth as just using my laptop. Reading in Safari, switching to email, switching to the iPod, etc. it's still clunky and mildly frustrating. Also, my fingers are getting fatter as I get older, so I'm constantly tapping the wrong fri…

Even with iOS 4 I think multi-tasking will be crap. Copying and pasting from a web-page to an email is a real slog. The power of multi-tasking comes from having multiple windows visible at the same time and this will never happen.

After using the multitasking implementation on my iPhone in iOS4, I can heartily disagree here. Copy/pasting back and forth wasn't too much of a chore before, but it's lightening quick on iOS4.

The reason for no 'multi-tasking' is that people generally do one task at once. You read twitter, you click on a link, you post it to Facebook, you play a game, etc. Most people I know fullscreen their apps on computers anyway, so switching back-and-forth to copy/paste something is already the normal use-case. It's really not that big of a deal.

Re: Ask HN: Four months since launch: how are you finding the iPad?

#80

Post by kirpekar »

Wow. I'm certainly in the minority here. I returned mine after about 3 weeks of use.

For me it's just a very expensive browser. I spend 10 hours a day in front of a computer screen at work. When I come home in the evenings, I like to minimize my screen time. I usually limit myself to checking email/facebook/twitter for about 5-10 minutes only. On weekends too, I like to spend less time in front of a computer. And if I do, it's work, so I have to use my work laptop.

So the iPad did not really make any sense. Check email, check out CNN, HN and check out twitter. 5 minutes a day and $600?

The other thing I noticed is that there are significantly fewer apps for the iPad as compared to the iPhone. And iPhone apps look plain ugly in the iPad.

Basically seems like an overkill for me. I know, different strokes...

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