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Got a new iPad - Not that impressed..

D

DonnieZ

macrumors member
Original poster
Jun 18, 2010
33
8
I was very fortunate and won an iPad at a vendor event late last week.

After a few days of playing with it, I have to say I'm not that impressed with it. Sure, it's got a decent web browser, but for participating in forums I'm not that high on typing on it. The on-screen keyboard is phenomenal for an on-screen keyboard, however it's still not as nice as typing on tactile response laptop or desktop keyboard.

The App selection seems a bit thin, at least for native iPad apps. I had to buy a facebook app (Friendly) which seems pretty decent. I also purchased a Craigslist browser which also seems to work fairly well. Otherwise, when I browse the app store I don't see anything that I can't live without. The Netflix app is pretty decent and the fast forward/rewind operation is top notch.

Otherwise, I'm not exactly sure what to do with this thing. Between my wife and I we each have an laptops and an iPhone 4, a shared iPod touch, a desktop computer, an Apple AirPort Express for Airtunes, an iPod Classic, and now the iPad. Laptops have filled in our "courch surfing" needs, and the iPhone takes us wherever else the laptops won't go.

I did see a remote desktop app I would like to try, but these are all in the $12+ range, which is a little high to buy and then not like. All the decent games are like $10, again.. If it's decent I don't mind but I'd hate sinking $10 into a game that I don't play. I figured at least Apple would have some kind of specialized iPad version of the iTunes remote app, but no such luck. Any decent app recommendations??

Don't get me wrong - It's cool and it gets a wow factor from a lot of people. Being that I have a whole slug of other portable devices, I have to find a fit and a use for it. I really wish they hadn't skimped out on the front facing camera. We all know that Facetime was long in the works when this thing was created. If it had Facetime, it would be awesome. Sorry for what may sound like a nonsensical rant, but I thought when I won this thing I'd be more excited. Turns out I'm more lukewarm to it. To answer the question in the other thread "No, I'd probably not buy another one right now if this one was lost/stolen/broken/etc.." (Maybe that opinion can change!)

I'd also be appreciatave of any case recommendations.. The cases at Best Buy are all wicked expensive. I can't stomach $50 for a case when I know there's $2 worth of materials in it.
 
DonnieZ said:
I was very fortunate and won an iPad at a vendor event late last week.

After a few days of playing with it, I have to say I'm not that impressed with it. Sure, it's got a decent web browser, but for participating in forums I'm not that high on typing on it. The on-screen keyboard is phenomenal for an on-screen keyboard, however it's still not as nice as typing on tactile response laptop or desktop keyboard.

The App selection seems a bit thin, at least for native iPad apps. I had to buy a facebook app (Friendly) which seems pretty decent. I also purchased a Craigslist browser which also seems to work fairly well. Otherwise, when I browse the app store I don't see anything that I can't live without. The Netflix app is pretty decent and the fast forward/rewind operation is top notch.

Otherwise, I'm not exactly sure what to do with this thing. Between my wife and I we each have an laptops and an iPhone 4, a shared iPod touch, a desktop computer, an Apple AirPort Express for Airtunes, an iPod Classic, and now the iPad. Laptops have filled in our "courch surfing" needs, and the iPhone takes us wherever else the laptops won't go.

I did see a remote desktop app I would like to try, but these are all in the $12+ range, which is a little high to buy and then not like. All the decent games are like $10, again.. If it's decent I don't mind but I'd hate sinking $10 into a game that I don't play. I figured at least Apple would have some kind of specialized iPad version of the iTunes remote app, but no such luck. Any decent app recommendations??

Don't get me wrong - It's cool and it gets a wow factor from a lot of people. Being that I have a whole slug of other portable devices, I have to find a fit and a use for it. I really wish they hadn't skimped out on the front facing camera. We all know that Facetime was long in the works when this thing was created. If it had Facetime, it would be awesome. Sorry for what may sound like a nonsensical rant, but I thought when I won this thing I'd be more excited. Turns out I'm more lukewarm to it. To answer the question in the other thread "No, I'd probably not buy another one right now if this one was lost/stolen/broken/etc.." (Maybe that opinion can change!)

I'd also be appreciatave of any case recommendations.. The cases at Best Buy are all wicked expensive. I can't stomach $50 for a case when I know there's $2 worth of materials in it.
Click to expand...

Just so you know there is a search function here that will lead you to a thousand other threads exactly like yours.
 
I can only speak for myself, but when I got mine I was a bit unimpressed.however over tome I've sort of realised that I use it everyday.and I'd miss it if I sold it.

I'd say just keep it round for a little while and see if you find yourself using it day to day.

Oh I got one of those cases so you can ttype on it at an angle.that's made it a bit more usable.
 
Yawn. Pointless post. You are either in to it and you'll take the time to maximise its usefulness by exploring its potential or you won't. Your post will achieve nothing. People will either agree with you or disagree with you.... You ain't gonna gain anything significant.

Sell it. Or give it away. Or give it back. Move on.
 
i love my ipad, its worth the price tag, just to have something to do while taking a crap.

but seriously i travel a lot, and with 3g, its just fantastic to have with you, its like having a ipod, big dsi, ebook reader, work station, laptop, mail ++++ in one device, its fantastic.
 
I love my iPad. Got it on day one and haven't let go of it since. However, I do think the iPad is a device for people who weren't satisfied with the laptop/smartphone mobile combination. That is, I've always found the iPhone/iPod touch's screen too small to use comfortably, and I've felt that laptops, even the smaller netbooks, are too bulky, and the keyboard really gets in the way when I'm focused on reading or watching videos. So for me, the iPad is the perfect device, with a big enough screen to read and watch videos comfortably, minus the bulk of a keyboard. But if you are perfectly satisfied with the laptop/smartphone combo, then yeah, you'll have a hard time fitting the iPad in there.
 
I bought mine a couple of days ago. I have ti admit that I am really liking it. I was one those who thought an iPad was a waste of investment specially when you. Have smart phones that'll do everything it does. Well was wrong, this thing is awesome. It's a completely different user experience. I own an iPhone 4 as well and that's why I am having a little difficulty adjusting to the non retina display but at the same time I don't feel like going back to the tiny iphone screen for web browsing. To wrap it up...it's a solid device.
 
May I suggest Wyse PocketCloud as your remote desktop app. I use it and make money with it doing remote support.

I think those of use that come from an iPhone 3G(s) background may be more impressed with the iPad because of our experience on this type of devise.

Best part is you can always sell it on eBay if you don't like it.
 
I have an iPhone 4 and Macbook and it perfectly fills the gap between the two. I bought mine, day one, and understand what it is for.

If someone gave me a weed eater and I lived in an apartment, I might not know what to do with it either.
 
TheBritishBloke said:
Dawg said it perfectly.

Oh, and you got it for free, don't like it, sell it for a hefty profit.
Click to expand...

And yes, if you got it for free, would it kill you to drop $39 on a case for it? Total cost of a sweet new iPad + case = $39

That's about $600 less than I paid for mine... :)
 
I have iPhone and MacBook pro so def did not need iPad.

But now I have it I use it all the time and my next computer will prob be a Mac mini (cheaper Than laptop) as the iPad can be my portable computer.

I've always had laptops as I hate being tied to the desk as my only computer option. I like being able to move around the house whilst tinkering with web, email, whatever, but the iPad does this better than the laptop ever did.

Having my laptop on my lap on the sofa these days. . . . It just seems so big and heavy and kinda in my bloody way. . . . iPad all the way.
 
Zazoh said:
If someone gave me a weed eater and I lived in an apartment, I might not know what to do with it either.
Click to expand...

Great quote. My advice is to sell it if you're so underwhelmed. That or spend $2 on materials and make your own $50 case.
 
Give it to a nice high school kid. Say you need yard work done, make him work hard and then instead of giving him a $20 bill hand him the iPad. You will feel fuzzy and warm inside.
 
I got one for my wife and she loved it right away. I thought we'd be fighting over it more, but it didn't really excite me that much at first, which really surprised me. After about two weeks of occasionally playing with the thing I started getting the itch to get one for myself. ;) It grew on me slowly. Now I'm just trying to hold out for the next revision if I can.
 
DonnieZ said:
Otherwise, I'm not exactly sure what to do with this thing. Between my wife and I we each have an laptops and an iPhone 4, a shared iPod touch, a desktop computer, an Apple AirPort Express for Airtunes, an iPod Classic, and now the iPad. Laptops have filled in our "courch surfing" needs, and the iPhone takes us wherever else the laptops won't go.
Click to expand...

See, that's the thing, you described exactly what you do with it. You don't have to fold it open, wait for the OS to boot, and worry about battery life like a laptop. The screen is much much larger than an ipod touch or iphone. You can't carry your desktop with you, in fact you can remote desktop right into your desktop so you can carry it with you on the ipad, etc etc.

The ipad fills that niche between your laptop and your phone. Funny enough I was a major doubter that there even was this "niche", but after having the ipad since release I am a huge believer. I have a very light svelte macbook air that I don't even look at other than for heavy typing.

And that brings us to the one major problem, and that is typing, and I definitely don't disagree with you there. IMO Apple needs to design a case similar in size to their existing case, but with a slim keyboard built in for serious typing on the go. But in light of the niche the ipad falls into, I can see what they were aiming at, but if they did solve the text input problem and add handwriting recognition and a stylus I seriously think they would completely blow laptops and netbooks out of the water.
 
DonnieZ said:
I was very fortunate and won an iPad at a vendor event late last week.

After a few days of playing with it, I have to say I'm not that impressed with it. Sure, it's got a decent web browser, but for participating in forums I'm not that high on typing on it. The on-screen keyboard is phenomenal for an on-screen keyboard, however it's still not as nice as typing on tactile response laptop or desktop keyboard.

The App selection seems a bit thin, at least for native iPad apps. I had to buy a facebook app (Friendly) which seems pretty decent. I also purchased a Craigslist browser which also seems to work fairly well. Otherwise, when I browse the app store I don't see anything that I can't live without. The Netflix app is pretty decent and the fast forward/rewind operation is top notch.

Otherwise, I'm not exactly sure what to do with this thing. Between my wife and I we each have an laptops and an iPhone 4, a shared iPod touch, a desktop computer, an Apple AirPort Express for Airtunes, an iPod Classic, and now the iPad. Laptops have filled in our "courch surfing" needs, and the iPhone takes us wherever else the laptops won't go.

I did see a remote desktop app I would like to try, but these are all in the $12+ range, which is a little high to buy and then not like. All the decent games are like $10, again.. If it's decent I don't mind but I'd hate sinking $10 into a game that I don't play. I figured at least Apple would have some kind of specialized iPad version of the iTunes remote app, but no such luck. Any decent app recommendations??

Don't get me wrong - It's cool and it gets a wow factor from a lot of people. Being that I have a whole slug of other portable devices, I have to find a fit and a use for it. I really wish they hadn't skimped out on the front facing camera. We all know that Facetime was long in the works when this thing was created. If it had Facetime, it would be awesome. Sorry for what may sound like a nonsensical rant, but I thought when I won this thing I'd be more excited. Turns out I'm more lukewarm to it. To answer the question in the other thread "No, I'd probably not buy another one right now if this one was lost/stolen/broken/etc.." (Maybe that opinion can change!)

I'd also be appreciatave of any case recommendations.. The cases at Best Buy are all wicked expensive. I can't stomach $50 for a case when I know there's $2 worth of materials in it.
Click to expand...

If you don't like it, then I really think you should just pass it on to someone who can make a good use of it. Making a post here is just pointless.
For a case, no there isn't a case that you can buy for 2 dollars on iPad. This is not a phone. Very pointless post. There are over 25000 apps on iPad and this happened less than 5 months since iPad launch. I am not sure what you are talking about, but ur post is pointless.
 
Since you are looking for apps I will tell you the ones I primarily use...

1.) kindle ... If you enjoy the occasional book, definitely worth checking out...you can even download previews of books before you decide to buy...also tons of free books.

2.) epicurious, big oven lite, Betty crocker cookbook...yes all of these are available online but these apps are so nice on the iPad. So much nicer to use than the websites...

3.) imdb ... Another thing available online but the iPad app is so nice.

4.) videos ... If you put some movies on there, it is great for watching while traveling.

5.) flipboard ... Just a really cool interface for your favorite news sites and Facebook and Twitter

6.) home budget ... Really good for tracking finances and if you buy the full version, you can sync between all of your devices...I cant compare to how it looks on the iPhone but it is nice on the iPad.

All of these are free or have free versions.
 
eww, who pays retail for cases? i got an awesome hard silicone case on ebay for $6 with free shipping. no way in hell would i pay more than $10 for a case. they're worthless and cost pennies to make. $50 is completely unacceptable.
 
likemyorbs said:
eww, who pays retail for cases? i got an awesome hard silicone case on ebay for $6 with free shipping. no way in hell would i pay more than $10 for a case. they're worthless and cost pennies to make. $50 is completely unacceptable.
Click to expand...

Paid $40 for mine (Apple case). Anyhow, if you don't like your iPad then go ahead and sell it - since you got it for free, it's an easy $400+
 
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