IPad opinions?

[samh004]

I may go back to 3.1.2, as this is proving to be too unstable at present on a 3G iPhone.

3.1.3 is the latest stable release.

I stayed up really late last night, not intentionally, just got carrier away in a Skype call, so was able to read the updates live, looks promising, can’t wait to use it 4.0, but not game to load it on my phone now.

 

[drewbles]

3.1.3 is the latest stable release.

I stayed up really late last night, not intentionally, just got carrier away in a Skype call, so was able to read the updates live, looks promising, can’t wait to use it 4.0, but not game to load it on my phone now.

3.1.3 then

Judging on how they handled the 3.0 Beta, I'm guessing they'll have frequent updates. From what i've read, this beta is due to expire mid next month anyway, so they're going to have to stay on top of it for developers

 

[Mal]

Mal, would be interested to hear your thoughts on the new enterprise / email features - I'm sure they would still fall far short of what you'd consider necessary for a corporate workhorse, but I wonder if they're closing the gap in any meaningful way at all.

Haven't looked at the changes deeply. Seeing they are going to be announcing more changes at WWDC in June, one assumes they are listening now to the various chatter about shortcomings and will magically slide some of them into place.

I have no doubt that Apple will improve manageability with the release and help to bridge that gap. Things like "Wireless App Deployment" sounds great, as does improved VPN support and Mobile Device Management. The proof will be in the released product though!

 

[drewbles]

3.1.3 then

Judging on how they handled the 3.0 Beta, I'm guessing they'll have frequent updates. From what i've read, this beta is due to expire mid next month anyway, so they're going to have to stay on top of it for developers

And i'm back on 3.1.3. 4.0 is just too buggy (but it's got a lot of potential for 3GS/new iPhone and iPad.

 

[samh004]

And i'm back on 3.1.3. 4.0 is just too buggy (but it's got a lot of potential for 3GS/new iPhone and iPad.

Let me know when a stable release is out prior to the official release and I might have a look for it

 

[drewbles]

Let me know when a stable release is out prior to the official release and I might have a look for it

You're going to need a paid software developer account with Apple to get it. If your UDID of your iPhone/iPod Touch isn't in the system, it'll not allow you to install the beta (does a software check on activation).

There have also been reports that it's a setting change (you need to jailbreak) on 4.0 to enable multi tasking on 3G iPhones. Moot point though as jailbroken iPhones of all types have had multi tasking for ages now.

 

[simongr]

I am having two issues at the moment with the iPad.

1 - If I am on the train watching TV on the iPhone currently and get a call - all is fine.. the vide stops, I take my call and go back to the TV. The problem with the iPad is that if I get a call I will need to switch headphones from the iPad to the iPhone (assuming I even hear/feel the call coming). A great solution would be to be able to route calls via bluetooth to the iPad (not possible at the moment).

2 - iWork was going to be a great tool. I could check email via webmail, review reports and send them back to people with comments. Sadly now though you can export from Pages to Word but not numbers (Excel) or Keynote (powerpoint). I think though that Pages/Word is the primary tool for me - I might reconsider buying all three unless that is a good financial deal...

 

[samh004]

You're going to need a paid software developer account with Apple to get it. If your UDID of your iPhone/iPod Touch isn't in the system, it'll not allow you to install the beta (does a software check on activation).

There have also been reports that it's a setting change (you need to jailbreak) on 4.0 to enable multi tasking on 3G iPhones. Moot point though as jailbroken iPhones of all types have had multi tasking for ages now.

Bugger, didn’t realise it checked all that info. Guess I’ll wait the 2 months for the official release, what a bummer

I am having two issues at the moment with the iPad.

1 - If I am on the train watching TV on the iPhone currently and get a call - all is fine.. the vide stops, I take my call and go back to the TV. The problem with the iPad is that if I get a call I will need to switch headphones from the iPad to the iPhone (assuming I even hear/feel the call coming). A great solution would be to be able to route calls via bluetooth to the iPad (not possible at the moment).

So your issue is that you’re using another device and (1) might not hear your phone or feel it, and (2) will have to switch the headphones from the iPad to the iPhone because bringing the iPhone to your ear is an inconvenience?

 

[simongr]

So your issue is that you’re using another device and (1) might not hear your phone or feel it, and (2) will have to switch the headphones from the iPad to the iPhone because bringing the iPhone to your ear is an inconvenience?

Yes. One of the reasons I love my iPhone is that I have a single device that does everything. The iPad counters that by being a second device.

And pulling out nice snug fitting in ear headphones and trying to listen to the iPhone over the noise of the train is an inconvenience...

 

[samh004]

Yes. One of the reasons I love my iPhone is that I have a single device that does everything. The iPad counters that by being a second device.

And pulling out nice snug fitting in ear headphones and trying to listen to the iPhone over the noise of the train is an inconvenience...

I suppose the thing is, just because they’re made by the same company, and run similar OS’s, doesn’t mean they should be expected to play well together. I’m not sure Apple would have expected this scenario of use.

However, assuming you hear or feel your call coming through, you should be able to pull the headphones out of the iPad (and whatever is playing will automatically pause) and put them into your iPhone, ready to answer the call. After the call, doing the reverse wont make the movie start playing again, but it’s just a couple clicks.

Oh and as for iWork, no doubt they’ll get lots of feedback and a point release later in the year should help fix/add features.

 

[djfuzz]

simongr - you're not going to like this:

Apple Delays International iPad Launch by One Month - International ipad launch - Gizmodo

 

[simongr]

Not that bothered - I was intending to buy in the US anyway (25% discount and I get to buy it at my favourite Apple store).

The good point is that pre-ordering starts on 10 May so we at least know when pricing should be released...

 

[markis10]

simongr - you're not going to like this:

Apple Delays International iPad Launch by One Month - International ipad launch - Gizmodo

I am shocked not enough stock, didnt see that coming , hopefully the delay will mean better pricing thanks to the increasing dollar!

Surprise Surprise - they cannot make enough - as I thought

 

[samh004]

They might not be able to make enough, but 500,000 in a week is a fair effort.

And lets compare that figure to how many Kindles Amazon has sold since it was released 2 years ago shall we

 

[jamesatfish]

Have had my iPads for a week now, so thought I'd chime in with my experience.

On the whole they're actually a bit heavier than I'd expected, but they're certainly solidly built and I guess that's preferable to a device that feels like it'll fall apart in your hands. If you owned an original 2G iPhone (with the metal back case) the feel is quite similar, though with smooth square edges rather than the rounded edges of an iPhone. My 4 month old daughter loves it - she plays with apps like Drum Kit (or rather just bashes the screen and loves to hear the noises that come out), and I've never been afraid to let her play due to the fragility of the device.

The screen is fantastic - the resolution is perfect for the device and the way Apple's OS renders fonts and images really takes advantage of the available real estate. Going back to an iPhone after using apps built for the iPad really gives me a shock to remember how small and low-res the iPhone screen really is.

Battery life is absolutely outstanding. The device requires more power than an iPhone, and I've found it won't charge when connected to the powered USB hub I use at work (which charges my iPhone perfectly). As a result, I've been relying heavily on the battery and with a solid day's worth of use (I own an iPhone software development company, so we're using these things pretty much all day) the battery drops to about 80-85% from fully charged.

Native iPad apps that take advantage of the screen real estate are fantastic. I've been reading news articles using the free BBC and USAToday applications and they're easy on the eye and I'd be happy to use them exclusively rather than buying printed newspapers if/when local news content becomes available. The iBooks application is very elegant too, but I'm not a novel reader so I won't get any use out of that - except possibly reading the included Winnie-the-Pooh story to my daughter.

iPhone-only applications, however, aren't really all that useful on the device. They can be run in native size (where they take up a tiny portion of the screen) or in 2x size (where they almost fill the screen but look chunky and pixellated), and neither looks very good. Of course location-aware apps don't work particularly well on the WiFi iPads either as they lack the GPS chip found in the as-yet-unavailable 3G models.

As you'd expect, video & TV show playback on the device is fantastic - though you do lose a lot of the screen when displaying widescreen content with letterbox bars to maintain aspect ratio. The built-in speaker is good enough to allow two people to watch a show together without headphones.

There's plenty more I could report, but won't bore people with a huge post. If anyone wants any specifics feel free to ask.

I'll give the device it's first flight run this weekend - just a leisure hop to Sydney - but it'll be interesting to see how the screen and headphones cope in the cabin and whether it'll be a useful tool for IFE.

 

[djfuzz]

I am shocked not enough stock, didnt see that coming , hopefully the delay will mean better pricing thanks to the increasing dollar!

Have to give you props for this markis10 - you called it.

Maybe if I'd backed you more enthusiastically, karma would have given me a double SC promo.

I flight tested the iPad this morning - typed up some notes in Pages in landscape mode with the case propping it up on an incline on the tray table. Used the onscreen keyboard - wasn't perfect (then again my typing isn't perfect on a regular keyboard, and is downright painful on a netbook keyboard), but was definitely serviceable. I only typed, didn't do any formatting (was going to do so later) - but I still haven't quite mastered formatting in the iPad version of Pages yet. No interference from sunlight or cabin light, so the screen was also not an issue. I was actually more concerned about by neighbours reading my work, given the easy viewing angle!

Didn't use any videos / games / apps seeing as it was a short hop. Needless to say, battery was nowhere near an issue - I think it really needs to be given a good flogging with video on long haul, but it's regularly been delivering 10+ hours for me anyway, so I'm quite happy.

 

[simongr]

Thanks to both DJ and James for the feedback on the iPad - sounds pretty positive

 

[serfty]

...
I'll give the device it's first flight run this weekend - just a leisure hop to Sydney - but it'll be interesting to see how the screen and headphones cope in the cabin and whether it'll be a useful tool for IFE.

Please advise how WiFi connectivity goes. An SG Applephile I was speaking to today Luurvved his iPad e but had some issues with connectivity within QP's (dropping out mainly)

 

[djfuzz]

Please advise how WiFi connectivity goes. An SG Applephile I was speaking to today Luurvved his iPad e but had some issues with connectivity within QP's (dropping out mainly)

Have heard about the widely reported WiFi issues - I haven't had any at all. WiFi on my iPhone does get flakier than on my laptop at times, but haven't had that issue with the iPad.

Also used the iPad in the QP today and had no issues - other than one appearance of the usual intermittent connection problems that I always have with any device/laptop on the Telstra hotspot in the QP (which is not bad since it happens all the time on my laptop).

Of course, I may have just been lucky in getting a good unit.

 

[Mal]

If planning to visit Israel, don't bring your iPad!

Why has Israel banned the iPad? - Haaretz - Israel News

The Communications Ministry announced Tuesday that it was imposing a blanket ban on the import of Apple's new tablet computer, the iPad, citing incompatibility with the European Wi-Fi standard, which is used in Israel. For this reason, several such computers have been confiscated by customs officials at Ben-Gurion Airport. Eden Bar Tal, director of the Communications Ministry, defends the ban.

You might be lucky and get them back when you leave ...