Survey finds people eager to 'work on the go' with iPad, we wonder what line of 'work' they're in
By Darren Murph 
posted March 24th 2010 5:21PM
posted March 24th 2010 5:21PM
posted March 24th 2010 5:21PM
Apple iPad
Apple iPad 3rd-gen
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@buchhla Please, show me a $300 netbook with better battery life, 10" screen and that weighs 700gr.
@iName The iPad is a tool. Procrastination is an action. It is related to yourself.
@jarek "Oops, device flat on table so you can't see what you're typing."
I can't believe you wrote that. When you write with a pen on a paper how do you see?
@Sofabutt I see what you mean, but those 2 devices (ipad and modbook) are supposed to fit different needs, I think.
@liquidmonkey You really don't know how a survey works?
@MarcusMaximus 3DS Max on an Atom processor and a 10" screen with 5hour battery (probably less when using 3DSMax)??? Are you sure about that?
@NYYstateofmind It is not that expensive you know.
@Eislasaz I would say it depends on your line of work.
@fourthletter "That is a very breakable screen"
That is a fact or what?
"and I wouldn't consider any tablet as portable."
700 gr is pretty portable you know. It's one DSLR.
@Hydra pad + keyboard is still less heavy than most 10" netbooks out there and you have he option not take the keyboard when you don't need it.
@ilovememymusic " Or people whose job revolves around the Apple App Store."
You are seeing the appstore as what it is now. Soon there will be apps made exclusively for the ipad (like iWork) which will change the game a lot.
@jakey "I fail to see how that is revolutionary. That is the idea of the MID as well as a bunch of other tablets in the same vein that came before the iPad (meaning using the same exact idea of a mobile platform both in hardware and software). Maybe the iPad will finally be the one that breaks through (using Apple brand power), but I kind of doubt it."
Revolution means "a sudden, radical, or complete change", which the MIDs failed to achieve. If the iPad does it, it will be revolutionary.
@Aku While I agree to some extent with you many of the points you make are quite arguable.
- it connects to your computer via USB. Will this port be open for other uses - we will see?
- multitasking - I think you should be able to open 2 documents side by side the same way you open multiple pages in Safari
- having an additional keyboard gives you the option not to take it with you when you don't need it
"Lets not forget all the applications that will never get ported to the iPhone/iPad due to hardware limitations."
This, I completely disagree with. What are those limitations? Check how much software you have for the ipod/iphone.
@Aku So we sit and wait or we buy something?
@Let1me1in Why not use iWork? You can export in office formats.
@Wesscoast Made my day. lol.
@fluffyrobot I am with you here. Photography. While I have no problem reviewing my pictures on the 3" screen, it eats battery. So by buying the iPad I would save on buying a second battery and more SD cards.
Also it would be great if Apple makes some light version of Aperture for the iPad.
@InnocentEd You clearly do not understand what advertising is for.
@dfreeindy "Your use of the quote suggests that these users plan on buying one."
I don't see it.
@summerboy18 Wait for 3g, you get 3g and GPS for 130$ more.
@trashoner Everything gets hacked, often more than Apple's stuff. What's your point?
I don't think that I would try to author much on it but I would absolutely use it while travelling, for taking notes in meetings, and for delivering presentations via Keynote. If I am going to be desk-bound, however, then I'll continue to use my current notebooks instead.
If by working you mean reading/ browsing the web, listening to music, and buying crap I dont need...wait a minute! That DOES sound like work!
@Aku Fair enough :) But I'll buy.
@Aku "I trade CFDs/Forex, I do MM and work in LS/FF as well."
Well, with your list of software the iPad looks not so appealing. I will use it mostly for my photography and some notes... if there are decent apps. We'll see.
@summerboy18 The good thing about the 3G version is that it doesn't require any kind of contract. You buy it just in case, and who knows, it might actually become useful. Like the DVD burner in your computer.
@abugida But thinner :)
I'm willing to bet Apple will, before too long, release a keyboard with integrated CPU and storage running Mac OS X, that will display to the iPad. The idea would be to use the iPad as a "light" interface for non-intensive things, and tether it to the powerful keyboard for heavy duty work.
Surely a windows tablet would be better for work? Wouldn't android tablets be better when apps for work on a tablet screen are released?
I guess by "work", they meant answering work e-mail?
So why did I order an iPad? To do bar inventory! I'll use Numbers and import my Excel sheets over. I had to buy a netbook back in December because my MacBook battery died yet again! I wanted to wait for the iPad but needed something then and there! When the iPad arrives (9 days) I'll sell my netbook and suffer a 8% loss on the purchase price (already have sale lined up). I'll also use it for a morning e-mail station and to check this site and a few others like it...with my morning coffee! This keeps me out of the Bat Cave and allows me to actually get the dishes done! So I'm actually going to first and foremost use this for work! It has everything I need for the work I'll be doing on it! It is a niche item and it will be a productive niche item for me!
@John H "you just can't do as much with the iPad, and the things you can do with an iPad you can't do as quickly as you can with a notebook." For now. I think there will be enough apps soon to cover all possible uses. Or at least I hope so :)
Not planning on taking any books for my next school year. iPad, iWork, Keyboard Dock. Note taking, sorted.
You would rather look like an, eehm, a** if you would tell the truth that Internet is the only thing to do as iPad 'work on the go'. Therefore, you just respond that you will to 'work on the iPad' instead of saying: jerking around over the Internet.
That's what polls are about: the result, and the result only.
@rollacosta You just got way out of the price range we are talking about :)
@jarek Tried. No problem.
@Atkins Also it is a 10" screen. The virtual keyboard will take some good part of it and the words you type will be close enough to your hand.
I would rather use the Entourage Edge for work.
If it weren't for some design flaws (my opinion) in the iPad it would be much more usuable in a work environment.
- The screen is 4:3 ratio. While most print is 3:2 ratio, like A4 paper and camera photos. A 3:2 or 16:9 ratio screen would also have been more pleasant when watching wide screen video. It baffles me as to why a device created primarily as a book reader and heavily as a multimedia viewer does not have the correct screen dimensions.
- If Apple added the facility to export files via USB (maybe you can buy an app to do this with the usb dongle, but it should come standard) then people could easily back up their work on the go. Sure, MobileMe and cloud backups are an option, but not if you have several gigs worth of photos you want to backup in a hotel room.
To me it seems as if Apple could have single handedly wiped out the netbook market with the iPad, but won't because they chose to cripple their devices again.
My opinion is that the release of the Iphone 4.0 software will have a bigger imapact on the market than the release of the iPad hardware itself.
"but we're just not sold on the iPad being a bona fide work machine as-is" - I agree. Unless your work just requires you to check and reply to your employees' emails. I can't imagine iPad being able to perform when doing the heavier multi-tasking activities.
Amy Cameron
BuildMySiteforFree.com
I'm a creative director and digital strategist. I've been planning on buying a laptop to allow me to give client presentations, untether myself from my desk and still be productive. I waited to see what iPad could do.
With the exceptions of video editing and graphic design the iPad covers everything I need to do:
create and give presentations
create and send documents
surf the web
check email
update my social networks
research
listen to music
read books, newspapers, magazines
While I can't do Photoshop or Flash work, I do have apps that allow me to sketch ideas. I also can't load Final Cut or AfterEffects onto it, but I can do advanced video wireframing with ReelDirector. I can do rough ad and publication layout, even rough web design.
Oh yeah, when I'm not doing "work" I can play games, instantly load the latest episodes of ABC shows or Netflix movies. I can read any one of the 40 books i've downloaded from Barnes & Noble, Amazon, or Apple.
I love how someone commented on the author's inability to do math, and rather than correct or retract, they merely removed the data that revealed the statistics as obviously erroneous. Can we please see a retraction or the real number accompanying the statistics please?
I posted this comment in another article but it relates to this one too.
I'm a systems administrator at a University in Dallas, TX. This past week I was on call and I made it a point to only use my iPad 3G for support, if that was possible. As of today I never had to turn on another computer for anything, my iPad worked perfectly. 99.9% of everything we use has a web GUI. For the one server that requires Java I just RDP back into my box on campus. The only situation I could see where I would have to rely on something else is if I needed to console into a Cisco router or switch. I've found a serial-to-30 pin connector but there is no app to support it and I'm tired of riding the jailbreak roller coaster. I'm not sure if Apple would ever allow something like that in the app store but I can dream!
Hey, I'm a flight controller at Heathrow Airport. I use Flight Control HD on my iPad to land all the planes! Works great! Hardly crash any planes anymore.