iPad First Impressions

I dropped by the Apple Store in Leawood today and played with an iPad tablet computer for a few minutes.

My first impressions, hands-on:


Good:

• Off-the-charts coolness.
• Zippy fast and responsive.
• Bright and loud, even in the bright light and noise of the busy Apple Store.
• The reading app, iBooks, was jaw-dropping. It made me want to sit down and read; the best reading experience on a computer ever.
• Web browsing looked fantastic.
• I tried a few games (like Flight Control HD) and the productivity apps (Pages and Numbers) and they look better than I had anticipated.
  

Not so Good:

• First thought: "this feels drop-able". My iPhone is saved from my clumsiness because I can wrap my fingers over the edge of more than one side, but the iPad is too big for that. I wouldn't want to walk around while using it (like a doctor or a salesperson might) but this could be fixed with the right case or skin.
  
• Just a little too heavy, especially for a child or an older person with arthritis. A case would make this worse. Instructions should read: Sit down before using. Hence…
  
• No comfortable way to use it while standing. This would rock if it were resting on your lap or on a table in front of you… but standing, chin tucked to my chest, holding it with one hand while tapping with the other just felt awkward to me.
• Typing with one finger: ugh; the keyboard is too big. Typing with two hands: cramped but doable; the keyboard is too small. I would definitely want one of the physical keyboards if I had to do any significant amount of typing to do. but you could probably get fast with a two-index-finger henpecking technique.
  

Conclusion:
I'll be looking to replace my laptop this summer… with another laptop. This first version of the iPad gets 85% of the way there toward replacing my laptop; almost but not quite. Maybe the second or third generation will be right for me.

On the other hand, I could see this being the ultimate home-school student device. Mom has a computer with an iTunes account while the children each have an iPad for reading, research, tests, homework, etc. The versatile iPad ($499) is cheaper than a laptop ($600-1,200) and could also replace handheld gaming devices (Nintendo DSi, $170; Sony PSP, $250).