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Walt Mossberg travels to Paris with iPad instead of laptop

Walt Mossberg, personal technology journalist for the Wall Street Journal's All Things Digital, posted a column yesterday about using an iPad on a "working vacation" to Paris.

Mossberg decided to forgo his usual laptop on a 10-day trip to Paris, relying instead on his iPad, a smartphone, and a small digital camera. He found the experiment to be a "pleasant success," noting that he had to carry much less weight, got better battery life, and had an instant-on computer. In the meantime, Mossberg stated that he was able to pretty much do everything he'd be able to do with a laptop -- with a few exceptions.

While he admits that he would be able to write long documents on the iPad without an accessory keyboard, Mossberg is waiting for the multi-tasking capabilities of iOS 4.2 on the iPad, which he believes will better fit his need to switch quickly between notes and other documents while writing. Mossberg noted that he advised a CFO he met at an airport a few days after returning from Paris to keep her existing computer, as editing huge spreadsheets would be much easier on a powerful laptop than an iPad or other tablet.

How about you? Have you used your iPad to partially or totally replace your laptop on a business or pleasure trip? Leave us a comment below.