06 February,2011 10:34 AM IST | | Sowmya Rajaram
After a year of anticipation and hype, the Apple iPad hit Indian shores last week. Every bit as cool and revolutionary as it's touted to be, it may not, however, replace your netbook anytime soon, finds Sowmya Rajaram
Make a big enough deal about a gadget, and people will queue up to get their hands on it, sometimes just to be part of that technological community. Ask Apple CEO Steve Jobs; he's been doing it for yearsu00a0-- creating a reputation for Apple as one of the most sough-after brands that tech aficionados want to be seen with. The iPad is a little bit like that. Revolutionary, uber cool, and literally the future of tablet computing, it makes you want to drop everything to pinch, stab, swipe and point your finger at that glossy screen.
The touchscreen interface works like a delight. Pics/ Nimesh
Dave
And with good reason. Straight out of the box, the 64 GB 3G+Wi Fi Apple iPad review model we were handed is a bonafide beauty. The construction is solid yet sleek, the multi-touch screen works like a dream, and commands are so intuitive, even certified tech doofuses will be merrily playing games and browsing the web like pros. In-plane switching (IPS) technology means, no matter what angle you look at the screen from, the display is rich, glossy, and clear. In one word, smooth.
App heaven
As iPhone and iTouch users well know, the apps make up the bulk of the Apple experience. On the iPad, apps have been redesigned to scale up to the 9.7 inch touchscreen. To maximise screen real estate, applications like email now open up to show your list of folders and mails on the left, while the bulk of the space on the right is devoted to your inbox. This is in landscape mode. And if that's distracting you, simply switch to portrait mode, and the mail you want to work on takes up the entire screen. Beauty. Similarly, the Settings app is also in split screen formatu00a0-- categories on the left and options within on the right, so you don't have to move in and out of categories every time you need to make adjustments. Definitely one of the best uses of the large screen.
No multi-tasking
Shame though, that that kind of multitasking doesn't ooze into general operations on the tablet. Just like the iPhone, the iPad too baffles you with its inability to allow you to multitask. If you are like us, a normal hour on a laptop means a chat window in the background, some music on VLC and some surfing, even as you work on a presentation. On the iPad, you can only do that with Apple's own applications, Safari, iPod and Mail.
So, if you want to chat on Skype while working on a document, you'll have to jump in and out. It all has to be done one at a time, which is hardly acceptable on a device that can and should be the future of computing. Even more frustrating are the push notifications that you'll have to constantly dismiss -- sure it only takes a second to hit ok and cancel every time you get an IM, but it's an annoyance that could easily have been avoided via a simpler multi-tasking experience; the way you'd get one on a regular laptop.
E-book reader
We haven't used the Kindle, so we can't compare, but it would be hard to fault the iPad on this count. It comes bundled with an iBook application that arranges books on a virtual bookshelf after you buy books from the iBooks store. It only takes a couple of minutes to get used to the idea of reading a book on an electronic device, but after that, it's like warm butter sliding on hot toast. We tried the default Winnie The Pooh bundled with the application, and came away impressed. The book looks and feels real, with rich colour display, and the page turning illusion is complete enough to thaw even the most militant traditionalist. Full marks here.
No camera, USB port, SD card reader, Flash
The biggest challenge with the iPad is transferring data in and out of the device. With no way to plug in a simple pen drive or a memory card, your only chance to circumvent that tight-fistedness is through iTunes and by downloading an array of apps, which takes time and energy. And frankly, that is the tablet's biggest minus point -- one that could be a deal breaker for a potential buyer.
Apple's stubborn refusal to support Adobe Flash, the standard that supports 98 per cent of video content on the web today is also frustrating. Log on to HBO and you'll be greeted by a blank screen, pretty much. And the lack of an integrated camera is unforgivable, given the screen's potential
iWork
Not having a simple way to transfer data in and out of the device means that to work on documents, you need to download apps Keynote, Pages and Numbers (the rough equivalents of Powerpoint, Word and Excel) to create matter on your iPad. On paper, that sounds simple enough, but consider this: Most likely, you work on Microsoft Word.
To import it onto your iPad, you'd either have to email it to yourself or store it in the cloud via software like Dropbox. Then, you'd have to be near a functioning Wi Fi connection to be able to access it from any one of these locations, open it in Pages, work on it, and repeat the process so that you can access the edited file in Microsoft Word the next time round.
Although the applications work smoothly, the process is too tedious for someone who wants to work remotely. Again, a potential deal breaker.
In the final analysis, owning the iPad will certainly ensconce you in the driver's seat as far as keeping in step with the future goes. And the ever-growing app store, the ultra-responsive touch screen and gorgeous display will give you hours of happy highs. The only question you need to ask yourself though, is whether you want to spend Rs 44,900 on a device that you will love, but don't really need, as yet.
