Apple iTablet/iSlate/iPad (NDA lifted)

[GreenGoo]

co-worker claimed it has already been jail broken. I didn't have time to look into it.

Pardon the dumb question, but are there benefits to jail breaking an iPad?

Well the guys my buddy was talking about are almost certainly doing it because it's jailed, rather than for a specific purpose.

[YellowKing]

I've been reading quite a bit on it and if you're into e-books the display is definitely worth the upgrade. Easily the closest I've seen to e-ink on a digital display. I used to get a little eye fatigue on my old iPad due to the softness of the text, but with the new iPad everything is crisp and crystal clear. Magic is right in that you can read web pages zoomed all the way out - I am continuously amazed at how tiny some of the font sizes I can read now without zooming. I know the Retina on the iPhone 4 should have numbed me to the fascination of this display, but the bigger screen real estate really does make it seem 10x more impressive.

There still aren't a ton of apps optimized for the new display, so I haven't really had a chance to test something that will push it. I'm not really interested in Sky Gamblers so I'll probably just be patient and wait for some killer apps. Right now just the e-book clarity, quicker performance, and more enjoyable web browsing experience have made it totally worth the upgrade.

[naednek]

wonder how this compares to the transformer 2

[Skinypupy]

There still aren't a ton of apps optimized for the new display, so I haven't really had a chance to test something that will push it. I'm not really interested in Sky Gamblers so I'll probably just be patient and wait for some killer apps.

Not sure it qualifies as a "killer app" (too niche for that), but Chaos Rings II looks awfully good on this new screen.

[RunningMn9]

Most of the apps I have installed have all been updated within the past week, alleging that they are optimized for the ipad retina display. I'm still a few weeks out from making a final decision, but I played with a friend's, and the display was glorious.

[Exodor]

I played with a friend's, and the display was glorious.

But it's just a higher res display.

[RunningMn9]

It is just a higher res display. That doesn't stop it from looking amazing.

[WYBaugh]

I knew ths day would come too soon. I have a less than year old iPad 2 64GB wifi. Should I upgrade? The screen is definitely important due to my eyesight but is it worth say $300 if I'm able to sell mine?

[EvilHomer3k]

I knew ths day would come too soon. I have a less than year old iPad 2 64GB wifi. Should I upgrade? The screen is definitely important due to my eyesight but is it worth say $300 if I'm able to sell mine?

Yes, it is. If you sell it for that please let me know. I would take it (assuming it isn't broken or beaten completely up).

[WYBaugh]

I knew ths day would come too soon. I have a less than year old iPad 2 64GB wifi. Should I upgrade? The screen is definitely important due to my eyesight but is it worth say $300 if I'm able to sell mine?

Yes, it is. If you sell it for that please let me know. I would take it (assuming it isn't broken or beaten completely up).

Hey EH. Sorry for the confusion above concerning the cost. Looking on ebay mine looks to be selling anywhere from $450 - $550+ depending on the seller. I was thinking if I was able to sell mine for $450 and pay an additional $300 above what I sell it for then would it be worth the extra expense.

[Kurth]

Returned the 16 GB one I got at Radio Shack on Friday and picked up a 32 GB version at the Apple Store on Saturday. This is my first iPad. I don't think I've ever been more infatuated with a piece of technology.

My wife: "If you could put that thing in a BabyBjorn and carry it around with you all day, I believe you would."

Favorite uses so far: (1) video via HBO Go and Netflis; (2) reading the New York Times; (3) taking amazing photos; (4) Ticket to Ride.

One more quick question, though: What are people doing for cases and iPads these days? I was going to get one of the Apple Smart Cases, but my folks picked up an iPad and case the other day, too (the one I returned to Radio Shack, in fact), and I'm not sure I love their smart case. Seems a little clunky when holding it it. Thoughts?

[EvilHomer3k]

Got it. You'd have to decide if it is worthwhile or not. Several people are staying put but some are switching over. At this time I think it is worthwhile if you do a lot of reading on the ipad. Web sites looks much better and kindle on the ipad looks much better as well. So far, games don't seem to have much benefit but it's early in the cycle for that.

[Carpet_pissr]

; (3) taking amazing photos; (

?!

Re: cases I highly recommend the Sena brand. Leather. Folio style. I have gone through three different cases and it my fave by far.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Kurth]

; (3) taking amazing photos; (

?!

Re: cases I highly recommend the Sena brand. Leather. Folio style. I have gone through three different cases and it my fave by far.

Yeah, I never thought I'd use it for taking pictures, but I find I'm taking much better shots with the iPad than I ever did with my iPhone 4. I think the greater real estate is helping me compose better shots. Because of the awkward form factor, I don't think it'll replace the iPhone as my main casual picture taking device, but I used it at my son's birthday yesterday and then down at the beach, and I was really impressed (and surprised) with the results.

I'll check out that case now. Thanks for the tip.

[Carpet_pissr]

Kurth:

Not sure if there is a size difference between iPad 2 and iPad New (whatever they are calling it), but here's the link, and it doesn't look like they have one for the new iPad yet (I am sure one will be out soon though, based on history):

http://www.senacases.com/apple/ipad-2-c ... lio-cases/

I like that one in particular because it does protect on the corners after dropping, and it also has two useful stand positions, both landscape and portrait. The one thing I don't like that I liked on other cases, was that it lacks the magnet to turn off the iPad automagically when you close it. Sounds like a gimmick, but in use is a great function.

Sena offers a magnet closing model, but the reviews were not great for some reason. Normally their stuff is very highly regarded.

[Ralph-Wiggum]

Returned the 16 GB one I got at Radio Shack

People still go to Radio Shack???!!

[YellowKing]

People still go to Radio Shack???!!

LOL. A friend of mine just got a manager position at Radio Shack and my first instinct was to say.... "Congrats?" with the question mark. I had to restrain myself and be nice though.

I bought a lime green smart cover for mine. Their color choices are atrocious. It was either black/grey (yawn, plus it makes it harder to find), Carolina blue (no chance), pink (I'd take this over Carolina blue), or lime green. They do have a sweet red one, but it is only available in leather which is A) expensive and B) I've heard stains really easily compared to the cheaper polyurethane ones.

I like it but did not realize it basically offered no protection whatsoever other than against screen scratches. It is a nifty little piece of design, and I find it comfortable to hold, but with a toddler in the house I may have to go find something a little more protective.

I loaded some comic books on it last night - the Dark Tower series. OMG. They look so freaking good.

[Carpet_pissr]

Returned the 16 GB one I got at Radio Shack

People still go to Radio Shack???!!

I often wonder how they are still in business. The only time I ever go in there is if I am too impatient to wait for some wire or cable I need for computer or A/V equipment, that I could easily and cheaply get online. That happens maybe every couple of years.

Surely there is some specific product category that is keeping them afloat...

[Kurth]

Returned the 16 GB one I got at Radio Shack

People still go to Radio Shack???!!

Yeah, yeah, I know. My first computer was a Tandy TRS-80 (lovingly referred to as a Trash 80), and I've never really forgiven Radio Shack for that . . . or their ridiculous prices for cheap electronics components and parts.

That said, for something like an iPad or iPhone, they actually have some pretty good deals from time to time. They're also not the first place the Apple fanbois hit, so if you want something at launch, you're chances of getting it without waiting in line is halfway decent.

Edited to add: The other thing about Radio Shack is that they seem to be all over the place. There's one in my small town's center, two in the towns next door to us, one a block up the street from my office in Boston (Financial Distric), etc. etc. So, there's a big convenience factor for me in not having to deal with the mall and parking and all that crap.

[Kurth]

Another question from an iPad newb: I'm about to buy my first ebook (Erik Larson's "In the Garden of Beasts").

Kindle for iPad?
iBooks?
Other?

What do you like best? What's got the better selection/price on books?

[$iljanus]

Another question from an iPad newb: I'm about to buy my first ebook (Erik Larson's "In the Garden of Beasts").

Kindle for iPad?
iBooks?
Other?

What do you like best? What's got the better selection/price on books?

Kindle for iPad allows you to read your purchase on most anything PC, Mac, Android phone, iPhone etc. and their prices are okay. The publisher, however, sets many of the prices a bit high on certain books compared to traditional paperback/hardcovers. That may be changing due to price-fixing investigations by the Feds. But the Kindle app is quite flexible since you can install it on the devices mentioned as opposed to iBooks. I read alot of books on my android phone as well as the iPad.

I have yet to try the kindle app on the new iPad (wife and I got ourselves an early anniversary present and pulled the trigger on the newest iPad yesterday and we're quite happy going from the original iPad to this one) but I hear that the display is so beautiful for e-books that if you were reading a story about unicorns shitting rainbows you would be covered in beautiful colors. Well, I hear it's a big jump in quality anyway and I'll try reading something on it tonight if I can pull myself away from playing Battle Academy. Liked the app on the old iPad.

[triggercut]

I prefer the Kindle app. I have a regular old-fashioned Kindle 2 that I can use if I'm outdoors in direct sun, so that's a nice option, but also having the ability to use it with my iPhone is nice.

Good options on the app too. Very flexible.

[hepcat]

I like the Kindle for books and iBooks (or Bookman) for comic books and game manuals.

[Exodor]

I prefer the Kindle app.

Me too.

I read Stephen King's "11.22.63" with the iBooks app. If I forgot to turn off auto-rotate and tilted the iPad I would end up on the wrong page after rotating it back - sometimes as many as 20 pages ahead of where I should be.

[Mr. Fed]

I have a first-generation.

There is no rational reason I need a third-generation.

But I has a sad.

[Exodor]

I have a first-generation.

There is no rational reason I need a third-generation.

But I has a sad.

Give the iPad1 to your kids. You know they deserve a treat.

[$iljanus]

I have a first-generation.

There is no rational reason I need a third-generation.

But I has a sad.

My wife used the original one for work and even though she hasn't brought the new one to work yet we rationalized the purchase by saying that her productivity apps would be more stable and quicker.

Do you use yours for any work related purpose? If not perhaps you need this newest one for...um, work!

[Freezer-TPF-]

I heard the casing on the original iPad gets kinda slippery after a few years and can sometimes just fall out of your hands, particularly when walking across concrete, tile, or other hard surfaces.

[deadzone]

I have a first-generation.

There is no rational reason I need a third-generation.

But I has a sad.

Exactly how I felt after seeing the new hotness compared to my aging 1st gen i-Pad.

My wife would more than likely beat me too if I bought one.

[YellowKing]

Kindle for iPad?
iBooks?
Other?

What do you like best? What's got the better selection/price on books?

I prefer the Kindle store but the iBooks app. Which means I'm SOL most of the time.

The iBooks app has one thing going for it which I absolutely love, and that is the feature that tells you how many pages are left in a chapter. I'm a "chapter a night" type reader, and knowing whether I've got 5 pages left or 75 is valuable information when it's bedtime. I really, really, really wish Kindle would implement this. Their page-turn animation is also way cooler.

Kindle typically has better prices, and I'm boycotting iBooks because of Apple's price-fixing garbage. iBooks is the reason you can no longer find brand new bestsellers on Amazon for $9.99 anymore. Every time you buy from iBooks, you're telling Apple that you appreciate paying $5 more per book and want to reward them for screwing the free market.

So I've been using the Kindle app pretty much exclusively, and the Retina update combined with the new display makes a world of difference. As pointed out before, it is by far the closest you'll get to the crispness of e-ink on an LCD display.

[RunningMn9]

I have a first-generation.

There is no rational reason I need a third-generation.

But I has a sad.

We are in the same boat. My PoopPad still works, but it isn't sexy. I made a deal with my wife. I'll save up for the new one (rather than impulse buying it), and she will inherit my old one. She is excited to get any iPad.

[GuidoTKP]

Two birthdays ago my in-laws got me the original iPad. Last birthday they got me an iPad 2. Every time I see them now I try to remind them that A) they are the best in-laws EVER; B) they are the best at finding gifts for me; C) traditions are what make life worth living ....

[EvilHomer3k]

I uninstalled iBooks as soon as I got my iPad 3. Kindle is available on other devices and iBooks is not. Plus, what YK said. I'd use nook to help Barnes & Noble but Amazon was available first and I got invested in it. Plus, it's cheaper and has other benefits (prime).

[ydejin]

I prefer the Kindle store but the iBooks app. Which means I'm SOL most of the time.

That's me too.

The iBooks app has one thing going for it which I absolutely love, and that is the feature that tells you how many pages are left in a chapter. I'm a "chapter a night" type reader, and knowing whether I've got 5 pages left or 75 is valuable information when it's bedtime. I really, really, really wish Kindle would implement this. Their page-turn animation is also way cooler.

That right there is the reason why I prefer the iBook app. I brought it up on Qt3 and no one else thought it was a big deal. I'm glad someone else agrees with me I use it for the same reason you do -- if I'm reading before bed, it's super useful to know how many pages are left in the chapter.

The other downside of the iBookstore is it locks you into the Apple eco-system. Whereas hopefully Amazon will port their stuff to everything.

[ydejin]

I have a first-generation.

There is no rational reason I need a third-generation.

But I has a sad.

I just replaced my iPad1 with an iPad (3rd Generation). There are some things that the new iPad does much better.

For starts, if you do a lot of web browsing on your iPad, the new iPad provides a much, much better experience. On the iPad1, there is only enough memory to remember a single tab, if you swap between tabs it has to do a reload. The new iPad has enough memory to remember all 9 tabs at once, allowing easy context switching. Plus, if you press-and-hold and use the "open-in-new-tab" on links, on the new iPad it will open it in a link in the background and when you switch to the new tab, it will be already downloaded and ready for you to read. On the iPad1, it will reserve tab for the story, but it won't download it until you switch to the tab. Also there's a fair number of websites that seem to crash for me pretty regularly on the iPad1 (Washington Post and the Andrew Sullivan's blog both come to mind). I think it has to do with their memory use and usage of JavaScript. That hasn't happened since I got the new iPad.

I've also got a bunch of apps that work much, much better with the new iPad, probably a combination of more horsepower and more memory. Darkhorse Comics App, for example had serious issues on the iPad1, and seems to work great on the new iPad.

Anyway, if you do a lot of web browsing it's pretty easy to justify getting a new iPad. That's especially true if you do web reading for work. You can also use the excuse that the new screen will be easier on your eyes.

[Freezer-TPF-]

So is there anything to this issue with the new iPad running too hot that is all over the news? Is anyone using it as a small portable cooktop?

[YellowKing]

I haven't had any issues with it getting hot, but then again I haven't put in any multi-hour sessions yet and I tend to turn it off when I'm not using it. I think the moral of this story is if you're getting burns from electronic equipment sitting in your lap, you probably need to take more breaks.

[Exodor]

My iPad1 never got even the slightest bit warm during use.

My iPad3 got noticably warm after about 30 minutes of RealRacing2HD. Not hot enough to burn but warm enough to make me avoid that corner of the device.


Someone compared the hot spot to the tear downs and it looks like there's nothing in that corner but battery.

[Boudreaux]

Our local Microcenter discounted their remaining iPad 2 16GB wifi models to $350, I could not resist. The extra $150 savings off the new iPad took it from unnecessary extravagance to moderately affordable. Now I just need to stock up on games and apps before my 4-day trip this weekend. Just having Facetime to videochat with my family while I'm gone will be nearly worth it.

[Mr. Fed]

So I said to myself "fuck it, my name's on the door."