Apple iPad first hands-on! (update: video!)
By Joshua Topolsky 
posted January 27th 2010 4:48PM
posted January 27th 2010 4:48PM
- It's not light. It feels pretty weighty in your hand.
- The screen is stunning, and it's 1024 x 768. Feels just like a huge iPhone in your hands.
- The speed of the CPU is something to be marveled at. It is blazingly fast from what we can tell. Webpages loaded up super fast, and scrolling was without a hiccup. Moving into and out of apps was a breeze. Everything flew.
- There's no multitasking at all. It's a real disappointment. All this power and very little you can do with it at once. No multitasking means no streaming Pandora when you're working in Pages... you can figure it out. It's a real setback for this device.
- The ebook implementation is about as close as you can get to reading without a stack of bound paper in your hand. The visual stuff really helps flesh out the experience. It may be just for show, but it counts here.
- No camera. None, nada. Zip. No video conferencing here folks. Hell, it doesn't have an SMS app!
- It's running iPhone OS 3.2.
- The keyboard is good, not great. Not quite as responsive as it looked in the demos.
- No Flash confirmed. So Hulu is out for you, folks!
@LAY How would you hold it without touching the screen without the bezel???
@tdogdfw cmon, be real. First off, you haven't even SEEN the screen. Second, what netbook (coming in at $250ish is going to have a better screen?! The whole point is that they are cheap crap.
And horsepower, every demo I've seen online, makes the thing look fast! We won't know till we touch it ourselves, but get real. You are making statements that you can't possibly have any knowledge about.
@devitus Its only 1.5 pounds or around 630 grams, so no its extremely light
The only reason I would buy this is to show it off, but just too look at.
I think Apple has made a mistake this time..
@Nexus They did it again! Hype, hype, hype, and then it's sooo cool it has all these pinchy zoomy page turny things, BUT...
No mulitasking? Come on, I mean really. This is supposed to be a device that you use instead of computer, when you're on th couch or something. But how would it replace if it's only capable to do 1 measly thing at a time? It's ok if it's an e-book reader, you read with, that's what it's for, but this is supposed to be an über-gadget that dose everything. Taking that thought further... no flash??? Come oooon, I mean wtf!? This is supposed to enable you to browse the web with ease when you're on the john or something. Most of the websites out there employ flash in some degree, (sure HTML5 is coming but it's not wide spread) so how the hell are you supposed to view those sites with no flash support?
I'm not a fan of Apple nor it's products, because they live off of hype with no substance behind them, but I was waiting for this product to change my mind, to maybe get me to say: Good job, you guys, you really made something useful and cool that I would buy, but probably won't because it's too expensive...
Sorry but I have to say, YOU FAIL AGAIN APPLE!!!
Just like you did with the idumbphone. Sure fanboys will drewl all over the iPad, but even they'll have to face the fact that it' only a fancy shiny e-reader, that weighs more and is a lot more expensive than anything out there at this time...
@Nexus
I agree, give us our Flash and multitasking Steve! While you are at it, usb 3.0 for connecting external devices.
@TacticalTimbo
You really sum it up. A slight problem is that although I see logic of protecting other product line, it doesn't mean that I would fork out $ to buy 2 devices because sum of their functionality makes it usable - it is still 2 devices that do not have functionality I need. Simply, such logic do not work for me. This is Nth in a row of disappointments from Apple in last couple of years (iPhone with binding cell contract, Touch with no camera, new line of ugly powerbooks with limited connectivity and finally something that I was waiting for 3 decades - easy to carry digital replacement for paper pad and pen - that turns out to be catering for very average need and new apple (book) store - Newton was way more revolutionary once upon a time). I think this is enough not to fail for any of their next campaigns. I may get iPad shall it start having decent features but spotting their current trend in feature philosophy I doubt I will remain their sheep and money bag. Honestly, I expected better from Apple and iPad just proves the trend - Apple gained popularity momentum and with it started looking like Microsoft - selling FAIR ENOUGH products intended not to advanced user, but for very average user that is ready to fork out some extra $ because of self-image and low self-esteem. Good selling strategy Apple! "It just works (for your profit)!". Bow to the age of idiocracy!
@niZmo.... Why would people buy apps from the apple store when there's a free flash alternative? that's a big reason why there is no flash on apple's iPod etc.
@Chizzed actually, there are 3 options for gb: 16,32, and 64. Of course , they get more and more expensive...:P
@Alexandertron Think about the target market here. Its people who have a PC and use it browse a few sites, pay a few bills and listen to a little music - you know, your mom, that little old man across the street, that guy bagging your groceries. Now they can do all of that on a hot touchscreen for only $500. They are going to sell shittons of these.
@OwenV I don't either. It's just a giant iPod touch. It's sad that it runs the same software and everything. And the regular iphone/ipod touch apps that can run on it look weird running on that big of a screen and don't even fill the whole screen even on "full screen". I could by a dell mini 10 that can play games with better graphics, more storage, webcam, actual keyboard, a great screen, for a whole lot cheaper.
@zbi Well, I guess you neglected to consider that your hand needs to hold the device? Because if there was no bevel, while holding it, your hand would register as touching the screen.
But anti-mac posters look for anything negative to say.
@devitus
No Flash, No Multi-Tasking???? No Thanks!
@drh
The most expensive Harmony Remote is $400, and without built in IR, a iPad (like the iPhone and iPod Touch) will require an ugly accessory to be made functional.
I could see myself buying this for my mom, it just might be simple enough for her to use, but without Flash, it may not be all that useful.
@devitus Not so easy to use afterall, or the guy doesn't have a clue what's going on. They said anyone that's used an iPhone would know how to use this, looks like there are a lot of new gestures to learn.
The thing everyone is losing sight of is that this is a new niche product. Try comparing to a Kindle which sells for $259. Or even better a Kindle DX which sells for $489. Wouldn't you pay $250 more than a kindle (or $20 more than a Kindle DX!) to have an ebook reader that is far superior, with backilighting, with internet and mail access, with the GPS, photo viewing, etc, etc. If I was considering a Kindle (which millions of peopleare considering and have purchased) why wouldn't I spend an extra $250 to get all the extras that come with the iPad. At the very least, it makes a Kindle DX at $489 a completely useless device. And keep in mind, the Kindle app will work on the iPad so you would still have access to Amazon's library of Kindle books (which are cheaper than Ipad books apparently.)
@mjamestorch I'm sorry you don't have enough imagination to see how a tablet might have real-life application in the work environment. Clearly you don't work in the healthcare field. It is perfect for accessing an Electronic Medical Record in an exam room! And don't tell me a laptop is just as good unless you have tried to examine a patient and chart with a couple of unruly toddlers in the room. My office has broken 3 laptops that way!
If you can't think of any ways to use a tablet at work, why don't you watch a few episodes of Star Trek. Ray Bradbury clearly had a better imagination than you!
@Gigaflop "Why do people keep excusing the bezel?" Probably because it isn't that big of a deal? Seriously, who gives a shit about the bezel? There are plenty of reasons not to buy this device, that's just not one of them.
@Acey yeah, my HTC Hero can do more than this thing. Why would I need it? because of it's polished design? no thanks. Not for 500.
@darkazure HD2 all the way. this thing just..... sucks.
@OwenV
Yeah, i mean i like the idea, but it feels like Apple half-assed the development of the OS for the iPad. Lazy is the word for it, all they did was make an "iPhone on Steroids"
@devitus
Then they're expensive (cfr: Jurassic park
@zbi bezel is the new cowbell. It makes complete sense, it's the only way you could handle it without driving yourself crazy with accidental screen touches.
@devitus weighs 1.3
@devitus
Its just 1.5 lbs.
@niZmo: Yeah, HTML 5 will kill Flash...except it won't be finalized until 20-frieken-22. That's right...2022. I seriously doubt that if I had an iPad today that I'll be still using it or that it'll even be functional come 2022. Widespread adoption of the HTML 5 standards isn't even expected until 2012. Two full years away.
@Nexus No flash support = no ads, no spyware, no key loggers = buy
@Gigaflop Ok, nice idea. But what happens when you WANT to touch something at the edge, like oh I don't know.. say a scroll bar?! or the apps that are on he left, right, top and bottom?!
Face it, there ain't a way around the bezel, unless there were to be a smaller bezel that popped higher than the screen - would you prefer that?
Do you own a netbook with less non-screen-surface-area? I highly doubt it.
@niZmo I think my Milestone does the trick. Anyway, it would be nice to have one just for the sake of trying two worlds. Question: has anyone tryed the 3GS video editor? is it good? What can you do with it? Considering the extra MHz it has, could it be a nice "on the go" video editor?
@broli iPod on steroids you mean?
@niZmo
Steve said you should jump a bridge. Therefore you should :D
@tdogdfw
When you say you've seen netbooks with better screens you must be thinking purely about resolution, because the fact that iPad uses IPS panel means that on many criteria (viewing angles, color fidelity etc) it will blow pretty much every netbook's or laptop's screen out of the water.
So does it do multitasking?
@Flobin
sadly no,... i still cant picture this being the "netbook killer" I really dont...
@Flobin Yeah... now that they even want you to do some real work on this device (there's iWork now), multitasking is a must!!!
@Flobin
Does it do handwriting recognition?
Does it have a camera?
Does it have a thin bezel?
@Flobin
With Cydia I'm sure it does.
Serious does this thing serve any purpose? That keyboard dock looks like its attached by the forces of gravity and ready to be repelled by dark matter and magnetism.
@eGGnext How is this going to be used for work? You can't even connect it to a printer and having to connect it to a real computer to print kind of ruins the entire point of doing work on it...
@Flobin I can't believe this thing doesn't multi-task. I can't wrap my head around that, it's like Apple keeps taking us backwards in computer functionality and calling it simplicity. What ever happened to the days when a really elegant and simple solution was giving you the same functionality but in an easier to use way. This isn't simplicity it's truncation.
@avinash240 I would really like to see this with a scaled version of webOS.
And a thinner bezel.
@Flobin
Multitasking is everything. You can't listen to music and do anything, I guess I'll still need my ipod for that. And my imac for flash and real software, and my camera to take a decent picture, and my iphone to make a call. What does it do again???
@dswatson83 Its is an expensive eBook reader and iPod.
But as a Kindle owner, I can tell you can tell you that 1.5 lbs will get old after hours of reading.
This thing makes the HP Slate look pretty damn good about now...
@conscious
I really want an Hp tablet now
multitasking alone makes it worth while
@theoneandonlyradiostation
nah...Microsoft needs to speed it up with it's Courier, and show apple how its done.
@dswatson83
You do know there's an ipod app right?
mehhhh
@skyblaze
Indeed. BTW, what ever happened to that whole iPhone OS 4.0 thing. Anybody?
@erik1080
Summer
mehhh indeed