iPad First impression: Things I don't like

[The Old Man]

There are only a few but here they are after using it for about 5 hours:

It is heavy. I know, only 1 1/2 pounds but you can't use it with one hand for long. It must be placed on your lap, legs, desk or somewhere.

I have not been able to load a pdf file. This is a major flaw. Perhaps I am missing something or perhaps it will be corrected. If Apple forgot this then they weren't' thinking.

You will need some kind of case. It is dangerous to carry this thing around. It is slippery, smooth, with curved edges just longing to slip on the concrete. Same as the iTouch. Buy a case.

So far - that's it!

One more - it does not charge while connected to the computer. You must use the small supplied charger.

[tlrowley]

The charging issues seem to be windows related - it charges just fine on my Macbook (I should hope so!)

Agree about the case - but I hate the Apple case. It's going back.

Typing is okay - better than I imagined. IBooks is pretty.

[The Old Man]

I didn't mention the things I like. That would have taken me too long to write. These are just the things I didn't like. And, yes, I would plunk down the $700 bucks again now knowing more about it.

[kissyfish]

Originally Posted by The Old Man

I didn't mention the things I like. That would have taken me too long to write. These are just the things I didn't like. And, yes, I would plunk down the $700 bucks again now knowing more about it.

Yep,

This think is a nice device. I have converted a number of PDFs to epub with mixed results, but reading a pdf even with multiple columns is pretty good, much better than any other reader out there yet.

I am still wondering about the Que.

But I am no longer testing, as my kids are watching woody woodpecker on it currently.

SimCity classic is fun too!

[sciredz]

Originally Posted by tlrowley

The charging issues seem to be windows related - it charges just fine on my Macbook (I should hope so!)

Agree about the case - but I hate the Apple case. It's going back.

Typing is okay - better than I imagined. IBooks is pretty.

What do you not like about the Apple case? I thought it was the perfect
case where you can use it in different positions. How does one put
the ipad to the case, do you just slip it in or slide it from the top?

[pilotbob]

Originally Posted by The Old Man

I have not been able to load a pdf file. This is a major flaw. Perhaps I am missing something or perhaps it will be corrected. If Apple forgot this then they weren't' thinking.

Other people have said how awesome GoodReader is. What's another $2 when you've spent $800?

BOb

[tyche]

There are plenty of PDF readers for the iPhone. It's been one day, give it a little time for other rescaled pdf readers to show up.

Oh and Goodreader is only $1 at the moment and well worth the money regardless of how much you've already spent.

The charging issue is more likely not enough power being supplied to your usb ports - it can vary depending on model and year it was made. This isn't a little device so takes a lot of juice. You could try using a dual usb power plug - some usb hard drives come with them for this exact same fact.

[The Old Man]

Originally Posted by pilotbob

Other people have said how awesome GoodReader is. What's another $2 when you've spent $800?

BOb

Just didn't know about GoodReader. I tried it using DropBom and it worked well. I'll have to play a bit more to know good GoodReader really is. It appears the screen is very good at 2x as is all the iTouch apps I have so far tried.

[scottjl]

Picked up mine today, loving it, my list of gripes is small compared to what I like about it. And I love the Apple case, lol. The flexible rubber is kinda neat, should protect it when it's in my backpack just fine.

GoodReader is definitely better at PDF files than the built in viewer. Been using it on my iPhone a while.

I'm actually underwhelmed by the iBook app, Stanza was soo much better. Kobo is pretty good. Hopefully some decent replacement will come out. iBooks is ok, but very bare bones.

Evernote is the killer app on this one for me. I've been using Evernote for years, now it's great to have my notebook/junkdrawer with me on a full screen device.

[pilotbob]

Originally Posted by The Old Man

Just didn't know about GoodReader. I tried it using DropBom and it worked well. I'll have to play a bit more to know good GoodReader really is. It appears the screen is very good at 2x as is all the iTouch apps I have so far tried.

Did you not get the iPad specific version of it?

BOb

[MMascaro]

I am currently playing with ReaddleDocs. It does PDFs plus Office 03 and 07, RTF, TXT, , assorted images and sound files, not sure about EPub yet. While it just views not edits the office files it is not to bad for $4.99. It also allows for nested directorys of storage, so if you have a lot of files they can be stored in miltiple folders. Access is via WebDav. You add the Ipads wifi adress as a drive under My computer/Map network drives, then copy the file/forders over. And this is a IPAD specific version

[Harmon]

Originally Posted by The Old Man

There are only a few but here they are after using it for about 5 hours:

I've had mine a little longer but a plumbing emergency got in my way...

It is heavy. I know, only 1 1/2 pounds but you can't use it with one hand for long. It must be placed on your lap, legs, desk or somewhere.

Same here. But I've found that in landscape mode I naturally use two hands and it is much easier.

You will need some kind of case. It is dangerous to carry this thing around. It is slippery, smooth, with curved edges just longing to slip on the concrete. Same as the iTouch. Buy a case.

It seems to me that a case might improve the experience of holding the iPad. The hard edges are wearing on my tender hands.

[avaloncourt]

Originally Posted by The Old Man

I have not been able to load a pdf file. This is a major flaw. Perhaps I am missing something or perhaps it will be corrected. If Apple forgot this then they weren't' thinking.

If you take a look at the iPad specifications you'll see that it only explicitly states that PDF files are supported as email attachments. There is no other mention anywhere:

Mail attachment support

Viewable document types: .jpg, .tiff, .gif (images); .doc and .docx (Microsoft Word); .htm and .html (web pages); .key (Keynote); .numbers (Numbers); .pages (Pages); .pdf (Preview and Adobe Acrobat); .ppt and .pptx (Microsoft PowerPoint); .txt (text); .rtf (rich text format); .vcf (contact information); .xls and .xlsx (Microsoft Excel)

One more - it does not charge while connected to the computer. You must use the small supplied charger.

This is a hot topic right now. You need to check into this further. It has to do with the available power output on particular devices. At this time it's been determined that powered hubs don't seem to have enough output to power the device and charge at the same time. The same applies to many USB ports on computers, iPhone accessories and adapters.

Keep in mind that the stock iPad adapter charges at 10 watts. An iPhone charger is 5 watts.

It has been determined that the iPad will begin charging once you sleep it but running from various USB ports and iPhone accessories won't get you a charge while using it.

In the end, it has been determined that the USB key is whether the port is USB 1.1 or 2.0. 1.1 ports will not charge it while using it.

Here's a small post on it:

http://www.cultofmac.com/ipad-not-ch...computer/36591

[Harmon]

I don't like that I can't run the Firefox browser.

And I don't like that there's not a general printing function, although evidently there are apps for printing.

[Donnageddon]

I got the incase cover for my iPad. Seems to offer a lot of protection, but it is snug, and a little difficult stuffing the iPad in and prying it out. I will use it mostly for transporting it.

Find it here