Simply Hippo

iPad Review

I own an iPad, an iMac, an iPhone, a Kindle, and an HP laptop.  Since I can’t help but compare them to one another, I suppose I should jot down a few observations for my hippo fan base. The iPad is the newest horse in the stable, so I’ll use it as the central point of reference throughout this article.

The iPad beats the iPhone in many ways:

1)       The display is much larger.  I can actually see what I’m typing, and the on-screen keys are big enough to accommodate my fat fingers.  The larger display is also great for movies and television shows.  I’ve streamed Netflix to it, and I was happily impressed with the quality.

2)      The battery appears to be light years ahead.  I routinely use the iPad all day before recharging.  The iPhone is an all day phone, but if you tinker with it all day, the battery will drain before sundown.

3)      The iPad’s built-in speakers are pretty good.  Headsets still sound best, but the speakers will do.  On the iPhone, the built in speaker is not a viable alternative.

The iPhone takes the lead in several other areas:

1)      The iPhone fits in a pocket, which cannot be said of the iPad.

2)      The iPhone makes phone calls, which the iPad cannot do.  The iPad might Skype soon.

3)      The iPhone takes photos and videos; the iPad cannot.

4)      The iPhone connects via 3G or Wifi, while my iPad is WiFi only.

5)      The iPhone is a better platform for Doodle jump due to its smaller size.

The iPad compares favorably to the iMac and the HP laptop in a couple of important areas:

1)      Applications for the iPad are inexpensive and vetted to some extent by the Apple App Store.  Sure you can find a bunch of cheap or free utilities or games for regular computers, but installation is more of a project and viruses and malware seem to me to be more of a concern. The app store generates confidence so I worry less about the possibility of a worm that might wipe out my machine or my network while infecting all my friends.  This is a big benefit.

2)      The iPad is smaller than the desktop iMac or the laptop HP.  You can take it with you with little effort.  There is no need for a mouse and the battery is so good that you don’t need to worry with cords.  Plus, if you were to bring the charging cord it is small and has none of the transformer heft of the laptop’s charger.  The iMac is decidedly not mobile.

3)      The iPad caches a lot of information, so when you are out of WiFi range, you can still browse available content via custom applications. For example, if I go to WSJ.com on the laptop, I may still read a page or two when I’m offline, but the WSF iPad applilcation caches all the content as of the last time it was opened.  It is a neat feature.  I have free apps for USA Today, WSJ, and NY Times, and they all work great!

But the “real” computers hold their own in other areas:

1)      Anything that requires heavy typing, like blogging, is best done on a real keyboard.  There is a keyboard option for the iPad, but I don’t have it, and I’m not sure a keyboard wouldn’t defeat the purpose.

2)      Applications management is better on a computer that allows you to place things in folders.  This is coming for OS 4, which will be available for iPhone in the summer and iPad in the fall.

3)      If you simply must have Flash support, the iPad is not for you, but I’ve noticed iPad apps handling video without flash, so I don’t miss it most of the time.

Comparing the iPad to the Kindle is a bit of an unfair comparison because the iPad is so much more than a book reader, but I will compare a few areas:

1)       Reading in low light is an iPad win.  Reading in bright light is a Kindle win.  Since I have both, I just need to trade with Mrs. Hippo whenever the conditions change.

2)      Reading newspapers is better on the iPad.  Bigger, more colorful screens allow more of a newspaper experience, and I’ve found I am actually reading the paper more than the book reader functions on either device.

3)      I use the Kindle reader application on both the Kindle and the iPad.  Amazon has done a great job of making their reader available on multiple devices, and I can actually read the same book on the Kindle, the laptop, the iPhone or the iPad.  I haven’t downloaded a reader for the iMac, but I suppose there is one.  The iPad book reader application looks nice, but I’m an Amazon shopper, and all my e-books are in the Kindle database, so I see no need to switch unless content becomes an issue.  I will buy from Apple if Amazon doesn’t carry the title.

4)      The battery is a draw, sort of…I’ve found the Kindle battery will last forever if you turn off the wireless feature.  As a result, I only switch to wireless to download new books.  The iPad stays connected all the time (while near a WiFi hotspot) and it does not seem to hurt its battery.  Of course, with the Kindle off line, the battery is not a concern at all.  It will last for weeks.  The iPad in any mode will last a day, but not a week.

Overall, I’d have to say I love the iPad.  It is convenient and fun to use.  It does well what it does, and makes no pretentions in other areas.  It doesn’t make calls or take pictures, but my camera doesn’t make calls either.  The iPhone does both, but it is small and doesn’t do laundry.  What’s up with that?

Sincerely,

Mister Hippo