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Should You Buy an iPad?
The iPad is not a small purchase. It's not just pocket change for many of us.
So you likely wonder, "What will that iPad thing do for me?"
On this page we'll follow long-time Mac user Steven Shmerler with his iPad thoughts and experiences.
The morning after buying my iPad, I woke in a panic.
I own a Mac Pro and haven't had a laptop in years but have always been on the verge of getting one even though I don't really need one at present. So I woke in a panic because I'd bought the top of line iPad with 3G and spent all that $$ totally forgetting that it was cheaper than a laptop and that I'd never be happy with just a Macbook and therefore would have bought a Pro if I did get a portable computer and instead of spending $850, would have spent $2500ish.
But I didn't know the power of the iPad yet...
That morning, I started downloading and using various apps and little by little I found that I couldn't STOP using and playing with it! What's amazing is that it is a TOTALLY new Apple experience as I don't have an iPhone yet (awaiting the long awaited Verizon model). I find that I can't wait to finish my daily work so I can play with my iPad. Or get in bed and play with it. I watch Netflix on it instead of my 55" HD TV that is in the same room starring at me over my knees!
I'm reading A LOT more too:
Newsday, 2 Mac magazines (Mac Daily News and MacLife), ABC News daily, financial magazines, etc.
I'm doing all kinds of stuff I didn't regularly do before and am loving it.
On CNBC news (on the TV) the other morning they were talking about how if Steve Jobs would split the stock then a whole new level of investor, like me, could afford to buy the stock, blah, blah, blah, and then they talked about the new AppleTV and looking to the future of people cutting their cable TV in favor of TV on demand via AppleTV at 99¢ a show, and then they said in regard to iPads how people can't keep their hands off theirs. And it hit me how true it was. I take it with me everywhere I go. I feel naked without it, so to speak. I NEVER thought THAT would happen. When it first came out, I thought it was too big and silly. Just a big iPod Touch that no one would want to lug around. WRONG WRONG WRONG, I admit now.
I even can make VOIP calls with my iPad, and stream my music and videos from my Mac Pro!!
It's the best Apple purchase I've ever made, user experience-wise. I'm having fun like I used to when I got my very first computer: a Mac SE. I, like many, sat in front of it 12 hours a day, not to mention all the time spent at user group meetings, seminars and Mac events.
The reviewer on that financial TV show I mentioned earlier said that Apple had raised the bar such that hardware had to "delight" the customer to succeed. So well said. And baby... I'm delighted :)
Just how magical is the iPad?
A seven- year-old autistic boy who had never spoken a word in his life suddenly said, "want pad." At this request, his parents gave him his iPad. Later that same day he said mum, dad, and his brother's name.
Whether it's the simplicity of the iPad in general or it's one particular app, clearly this boy was so attached to it or wanted it so badly that it created a pathway or crossed a hurdle in his mind and opened a door to a new level of communication. We'll keep you posted if we hear more.
Favorite Apps
CloudBrowse
The rift between Steve and Adobe is well known and as a result Apple devices don't support Adobe Flash in order to force the issue that Adobe migrate to HTML 5. But if you really need to view a Flash site use CloudBrowse which connects to a browser in the cloud that does support/play Flash web pages. CloudBrowse doesn't run as fast as Safari, but if you need to see Flash, it's a life saver.
ETRADE PRO 
The ETRADE app is pretty cool, but missing a lot of the features that you get if you're logged in to their website. So for iPhone and iPod Touch it makes sense, but for iPad this app is cool for quick info, but if you need to do more then you'll probably want to use Safari and go to ETRADE.com
IMDb 
This is a must have app if you're in the Film/TV biz or just a fan and need to know about a show or actor.
Netflix 
The Netflix app works incredibly and over WiFi and even 3G. The best review I can give it is to imagine me in bed with my knees bent, iPad against them streaming a Netflix movie with my 55" LED TV just over my knees only 20 feet away!
OpenTable 
This app allows you to connect to participating restaurants and then to get a seat for a reservation. The only thing that is lacking is that you can't search for types of restaurants at present like "sushi" or "Italian" but you can search on a restaurant if you know it's name.
Pages 
Pages along with Numbers are 2 must have apps if you are going to do any word or spreadsheet processing. Pages is great in many ways. It's quick and easy and intuitive and they give you a bunch of templates and if you have pictures saved on your iPad, and you're using a template with pictures on it, you can easily swap out the sample image in the template for a photo on you iPad. Amazingly easy. Then you can save the page as a Word doc and email it to yourself for printing or to whomever. Simple.
Pandora 
This is the same great functionality as on many DVD players and via browser for internet radio based on you choosing a group like "Grateful Dead" and then Pandora will play commercial free non-stop GD music or however many other "stations" you create. Cool.
SoundHound 
Shazam is a cool app that you can sample a song being played over the radio or your TV, stereo, etc. and it will identify the song and artist. SoundHound does too, but additionally you can sing to it in your own voice and it will identify the song, or you can just say the artist's name or the song title to get more info about either.
StarWalk 
With it's GPS StarWalk shows you the night sky above you. So at night if you can see the stars with your eyes, you can launch StarWalk while outside and you'll see all the starts above you on your iPad screen and any constellations all named and easily viewable. Great learning aid and just plane astonomylogical fun!
StreamToMe 
This is a Godsend especially if you have a lot of movies and/or music on your computer hard drive and want to listen to your music on your iPad either via your WiFi or anyone's WiFi or your 3G. You need to install StreamToMe on your iPad and ServeToMe on your computer. In the server app you designate your movie and/or music folder(s) and while linked to your WiFi router, assuming your computer's linked to it too via WiFi or ethernet, you'll be able to access your content from within range of your router. To access your content from 3G or another WiFi rounter/hotspot you have to leave your computer running and follow the instructions to allow your iPad to access your computer through your router so you can get to your content. Once set up and logged in, you can listen or watch your content from anywhere in the world. This is cool because you can now get a smaller sized iPad as opposed to worrying about having enough space to load your content on to your iPad. Stream it instead!
Todo 
Todo Is an excellent to do app with a fun and pleasing interface and alerts too!
Truphone (VOIP) 
This blew me away. I didn't know my iPad could be a phone. Well it can. Using Truphone, your iPad's mic and speakers, or plugging in earphones with a mic, you can make VOIP calls over the internet just like on your computer. Awesome.
WritePad 
This app translates your handwritten words to digitized text quite amazingly accurately. It takes just a little getting used to, but not much. It's great if you need to take notes like for class, a meeting or seminar as you can write faster than you can type on an onscreen keyboard. It also has a translator and will translate your text to just about any language you can think of!
YellowPages 
YP does a host of things for you. It will find a business or location and pinpoint it on a map with the address and phone plus it lists it's ranking in reviews 1-5 stars. Plus on the bottom of the screen are a ton of icons for anything you can think of from theaters to coffee, banks, pet stores and more! YP asks to ID your GPS location so it can find the businesses in your area. Awesome.
Editor-in-Chief Deborah Shadovitz
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Website by Deborah Shadovitz.