The iPad Review I Didn't Plan on Writing

"You hurt me." - Burial, U Hurt Me

http://www.flickr.com/photos/korosirego/ / CC BY-SA 2.0

I'm not typing this on my iPad. In fact, I didn't plan to type this at all. There are hundreds of iPad reviews out there in the world and I didn't think my opinion would matter much at this point. But, I've found myself being a booster for the device in spite of myself and a couple friends asked for a more formal review so here we are.

That explains why I decided to write this but it doesn't explain why I'm not doing it via this device I like so much. And this is what most people are struggling to wrap their heads around: this $500 to $800 thing is not a creation tool. You can do that, sure, but that's not the primary function. It's primary purpose, for me, has been about moving my media consumption from being a very active, multi-tasking experience to a more passive, singularly focused, engaging and relaxing one.

It's a game boy for grown-ups. 

The activity I do most with the iPad? Read. I read blog posts either via google reader or instapaper. I read books. Right now, I have my first purchase from iBooks —Why New Orleans Matters by Tom Piazza—and my first paid book purchase from Amazon Kindle—Changing My Mind by Zadie Smith—that I dig into when I'm winding down from the work day on my couch (by the way, iBooks is a much more enjoyable experience than Amazon Kindle). I read (and listen) to stories via the NPR app. I read from BBC News. I read comics from Marvel. I read game recaps from NBA GameTime.

I also play games. I have Heavy Rain in my PS3 but I haven't played in over a week because Plants vs. Zombies HD, Pinball HD, and a host of games that I enjoyed on my iPod Touch but am enjoying immensely more on the iPad have stolen my attention.

And, yes, I also work on my iPad. I've stopped carrying wirebound notebooks and pens to meetings and use evernote for my notetaking (I also use it to prep talking points or materials for a meeting which made setting up for a presentation all the quicker). I store presentation files on dropbox and use GoodReader to cut down on paper and to always be able to reference materials a click away. I use Adobe Ideas to white board ideas when I'm away from my computer. These little productivity conveniences have proven incredibly useful. Sure, I could do the same thing with a laptop but a laptop generally requires a laptop bag, a charger, and a bunch of other accoutrement that I don't have to carry when I walk around with the iPad.

Lastly, I consume video. ABC's Player is excellent and the growing number of websites that are supporting video players that don't require flash is growing. Youtube and Vimeo are where I consume the most video and I haven't run into problems viewing. On youtube, I lose some controls I like when I'm viewing video via the web rather than the app (like favoriting) but because the iPad is a more passive experience naturally, I've found I don't mind much. I can save the favoriting for when I'm back at a workstation.

Here's what I don't do on my iPad:

1. Create — I don't make documents. I don't blog. I don't edit other documents. I don't manipulate photos or slides or crunch numbers. I also don't find myself really wanting to.

2. Listen to music — I still find my iPod better for this. I can and want to take my iPod (and my music) everywhere. I don't find myself needing to take my iPad with me wherever i go.

That's about it.

I bought the iPad on a lark. I got a larger than I expected tax return and after having a few weeks of iPad envy at work, I thought it was worth it to try out. I immediately found myself preferring this mode of consumption to my usual. When I sit at my PC or laptop to do all the things I've highlighted above, it feels like work. When I read blogs on my PC, I have a tendency to want to immediately tumble them or blog it, twitter, friendfeed, facebook it. When I browse the web or play games on my PC or laptop, I'm also checking email, IMing, twittering, and whatever else my mind has conditioned itself to do in this type of computing model. It doesn't allow me to relax. It doesn't allow my thoughts to settle down. It doesn't relieve stress.

When I recline somewhere with my iPad, the world quiets down. I read blogs and just...read. I make simple choices like, "Oh, this is long, I should save this and read later" or "Oh, this will make a great blog post later and star something" or "Oh, I don't care...skip it." The point is that it's always about that single activity: reading online content. The same when I play a game or watch a video. I don't get distracted by everything else I could be doing at the same time. I really don't have that option. And I appreciate the constraint.

So, this is why I recommend the iPad -- it is a throwback in an incredibly elegant way to consuming stories and being entertained. It turns the activities that I enjoy most in our digital age away from feeling like a job to get through and back into a distinctly different and pleasurable experience.

It simplifies my life. It relaxes me. And, it's super fun. 

If you have the opportunity, get one. You won't be sorry.

If you're interested in the Apps I'm using and recommend:

Reading/News:
iBooks
Instapaper
AmazonKindle
NPR
BBC News
NBA Gametime
EW Must List

Games:
Plants vs. Zombies HD
Pinball HD
Angry Birds
S.T. Action Pig
Bejeweled 2
Scrabble

Work/Productivity:
GoodReader
Evernote
Dropbox
Adobe Ideas

Video:
ABC Player

General:
Weatherbug
Twitterific
eBuddy Pro