Ok – this thing is much cooler than I thought it would be. Granted, there are shortcomings, but the pros far outweigh the cons. Since my last update, I’ve tweaked my synced content a little, downloaded some iPad “enhanced” apps and generally just used it a lot more. I figured that the WordPress app has definitely been updated for the iPad, because iPhone apps that haven’t been look fairly craptastic. Yes, you do have the option to scale them up (with the “x2″ button), but everything gets pretty fuzzy, including text. So I spent awhile determining which of my apps have been updated and making sure I could snag the newest versions where I could. Which leads me to my first gripe – the App Store.
Photo from Apple.com
While technically the App Store is about the simplest way I can think of to handle distribution of apps to iOS devices, its success could be (maybe already starting to be) its biggest downfall. With now over 150k iOS apps (including over 10k iPad ‘enhanced’ ones), finding good apps amongst the junk is starting to get a little overwhelming. Yes, I can easily see the “Top Apps for this…” and “Top Apps for that…” lists, staff picks, newest, browse by category and search, I still don’t find “viewing 1-30 of 2,112″ to be encouraging when I’m browsing around. I’m finding myself hitting the web and going to iPad/iPhone app review websites. And one other (non-Apple) annoyance – companies *ahem* EA *ahem* that treat the iPad versions of their apps as completely separate entities from the iPhone versions. So I shell out $10 for the iPhone version of Scrabble (which is now on sale for $3), and then I have to spend another $10 for the iPad version. I’m the first to agree the iPad version is awesome, looks great, etc. – but another full game? Seems like their gouging me a little. End rant.
A few additional observations. Pros: have I said how awesome this display is?; customizing the ‘desktop’ and lock screens is a nice touch; apps that have been written/upgraded specifically for the iPad look fantastic; the processor is blazing – fast enough to almost feel like the OS has multitasking; battery life has been stellar so far – still 40%+ after a good 6 hours or more of use; orientation switching is pretty much instant – no delay like on the iPhone (sometimes); scrolling through a 3000+ photo library is absolutely smooth, no stuttering or anything.
And a couple of cons: app that have not been updated for the iPad look pretty shitty; display is a fingerprint magnet (but really only noticeable when it’s off); app store can be overwhelming (see above); speaker could be a little louder; I still think this thing could be an inch bigger and still be successful.
Not really a con since it is being addressed in iOS4, but this interface will really benefit from the ability to create folders full of apps. At the start of day 2, I was thinking how great a camera would’ve been. But now I’m wondering if I would really use it that much. It’s a tablet, so I don’t see me holding it up to take a photo very often.
More updates and some app reviews coming later…
