Blackout in New Jersey, iPad to the rescue.

[likemyorbs]

Just thought I'd share, the iPad is making itself useful once again. The power has been out here in my part of nj for the past few hours now. My laptop died a while ago and obviously my wireless router has no power either. So here I am posting this on my iPad in the dark, tethering the internet from my iPhone via mywi, thank god for 3G. This thing still has 76% of the battery left, so i should be good for a few hours.

 

[iShater]

It truly is a magical device!

 

[GoCubsGo]

It truly is a magical device!

If it were magical it would restore power.

 

[likemyorbs]

If it were magical it would restore power.

True that!

 

[gillybean]

I haven't been using my 3g lately, but I had a power outage a few days ago that got me to sign up for a month of 3g because my router was down.

 

[saberahul]

Not having a power outage right now... maybe it's your city. Such an awesome device though - just wish those idiots would release 4.1 already for it.
(Sorry I'm pissed off from this long wait)

 

[likemyorbs]

Not having a power outage right now... maybe it's your city. Such an awesome device though - just wish those idiots would release 4.1 already for it.
(Sorry I'm pissed off from this long wait)

i know its getting ridiculous. ill be shocked if its not announced on wednesday. and i hope the dev team jailbreaks it promptly, as i dont use unjailbroken devices, makes me feel limited...

 

[aleni]

but your iPhone's battery life which is broadcasting wifi through bluetooth doesn't last any longer. so you're going to be stucked with iPad with no internet

 

[likemyorbs]

but your iPhone's battery life which is broadcasting wifi through bluetooth doesn't last any longer. so you're going to be stucked with iPad with no internet

ah! thats where you are mistaken, i can charge it in my car! also, it doesnt involve bluetooth in anyway. its just turns the iphone into a wireless router.

 

[sanPietro98]

At the moment, there seems to be a Verizon DSL outage in South Jersey. We have power, but the net is down.

Again, iPad 3G to the rescue.

 

[IrishVixen]

but your iPhone's battery life which is broadcasting wifi through bluetooth doesn't last any longer. so you're going to be stucked with iPad with no internet

That's what external battery packs are for. Mine will fully recharge the iPhone at least three times before the pack itself requires a recharge. With any luck, the iPhone/iPad pair plus that pack will outlast most outages.

Plus an iPad with no Internet still lets you read books, play games, watch movies, and listen to music you have loaded. Still not a bad deal at all!

 

[aleni]

ah! thats where you are mistaken, i can charge it in my car! also, it doesnt involve bluetooth in anyway. its just turns the iphone into a wireless router.

might as well you sleep in the car with air conditioner turned on

 

[aleni]

That's what external battery packs are for. Mine will fully recharge the iPhone at least three times before the pack itself requires a recharge. With any luck, the iPhone/iPad pair plus that pack will outlast most outages.

Plus an iPad with no Internet still lets you read books, play games, watch movies, and listen to music you have loaded. Still not a bad deal at all!

which battery pack do u have? i might get one.

the iPad's screen is so bright even in the lowest setting, i can't use it in the dark. damn, my eyes getting old.

 

[IrishVixen]

which battery pack do u have? i might get one.

the iPad's screen is so bright even in the lowest setting, i can't use it in the dark. damn, my eyes getting old.

I bought the NewTrent IMP500 from Amazon a few weeks back, and I've been pleased with it for the iPhone 4. It's not much bigger than the phone, so it's really portable--great for tethering, but also for topping up the battery after heavy camera/video camera usage. It'll even power the iPad to about a 50% charge, though just like any non Apple USB charger, it'll throw the "not charging" message at you if you power the screen on--it'll just run directly off the IMP500's charge that way.

They have a larger capacity version out that will take the iPad up to an 80% charge as well.

For the brightness issue, I have a fairly dark wallpaper on both devices, use the white text on black settings in the Kindle app for reading, and there are a couple of alternative browsers out there in the App Store that will darken the screen quite a bit more than the brightness settings can. So those are possibilities that might make things easier for you.