Ipads overhyped or not ??

Lynton said:
not read the previous 119 comments........

i have always loved the ipad and played with one several times in the apple store.

to me it's always been a nice to have and a "cool tool" though could not justify needing one...

used a mates a month ago over the weekend... and was leaning more to it but could not justify one

Yesterday took the plunge... ipad3 - screen is awesome - 32Gb black...

however if you have a smartphone with allows tethering for no more £ then save yourself £100 and go wifi only.
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My app recommendation to you is.......the awesome.....Flipboard.
 
I'll download it, when I can prise the ipad out of Sharon's hands. Obviously I have the TP app on there already..
 
I personally think you can look at it two ways. Firstly if you look from a hardware point of view and value for money then ... Yeh maybe overpriced and over hyped.

But if you look at how an iPad impacts an individuals interaction with the Internet in terms of frequency, range of use and workflow then you have to say that change is worth the money and you can no longer argue that strongly about it being overhyped.

Technically it may not be the best tablet, tablets existed before the iPad but credit has to be given to apple on how much they focus on the users experience.
 
Ive just picked up a cheap tablet running ICS , and imo the whole tablet experience is over hyped - it will be quite useful for taking lots of documents to meetings (which is why i got it) but that aside, apart from using it as an ereader , i can't see anything it can do that my laptop can't do better

seems to me that the tablet (paricularly without 3G) is the least useful itteration - smart phones are clearly handy as you carry them everywhere, and laptops have the advantage of a big screen and a decent keyboard for writing , but tablets fall between two stools, too big to put in your pocket, too small to use for serious writing ... unless i'm missing something

of course its possible that an ipad would revolutionise my thinking on this, but its equally possible that it wouldnt , and to be frank i'm not minded to spend several hundred quid to find out
 
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Causal browsing, emailing etc. That's what it is better at than a laptop. The form factor making it Loungeware so you dot have to have an awkward laptop propped on the sofa arm or heating up your legs.
 
but I use my phone for email on the move or if i want to browse away from the desk - like i said tablet - jack of all trades master of none.

admittedly if i had a top end ipad with 3g , and one of those keyboards - it would probably replace the laptop - but it just isnt worth the extra cash
 
big soft moose said:
but I use my phone for email on the move or if i want to browse away from the desk - like i said tablet - jack of all trades master of none.

admittedly if i had a top end ipad with 3g , and one of those keyboards - it would probably replace the laptop - but it just isnt worth the extra cash
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But sat on the sofa surely you can see why an iPad would be better than a phone to check email and browse internet

the phone is good for when you leave the house. But when at home it's way better for digesting media on a tablet than both a phone and a laptop. due to its form factor and ease of use.
 
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if they were about £100 for a decent one would get it !!:D
but too expensive for me for what I would use it for, just using the net sat on the settee
I take my netbook on holiday and can upload a load of Canon raw files and edit them in photoshop, cant do that on a ipad
Pete:)
 
joescrivens said:
Causal browsing, emailing etc. That's what it is better at than a laptop. The form factor making it Loungeware so you dot have to have an awkward laptop propped on the sofa arm or heating up your legs.
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joescrivens said:
But sat on the sofa surely you can see why an iPad would be better than a phone to check email and browse internet
the phone is good for when you leave the house. But when at home it's way better for digesting media on a tablet than both a phone and a laptop. due to its form factor and ease of use.
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This is my current disposition :lol:, netbook on the sofa arm, trackball mouse, and I have a spare hand to pick my nose with, I just can't see how that form factor can be improved upon.
I mean the ipad is a book right ?, the very thoughts you are having about managing the use of a netbook, I'm having about the use of an ipad, I mean....what do you do, hold it in both hands, prop it up with a cushion or what ?
Since I'm not prepared to release one hand from its other duties of feeding my fat gob, scritching the dogs ear, tv remote actions or a mirriad of other essential functions, I don't see out of all the positive points put forward how form factor is one of them.
 
joxby said:
This is my current disposition :lol:, netbook on the sofa arm, trackball mouse, and I have a spare hand to pick my nose with, I just can't see how that form factor can be improved upon.
I mean the ipad is a book right ?, the very thoughts you are having about managing the use of a netbook, I'm having about the use of an ipad, I mean....what do you do, hold it in both hands, prop it up with a cushion or what ?
Since I'm not prepared to release one hand from its other duties of feeding my fat gob, scritching the dogs ear, tv remote actions or a mirriad of other essential functions, I don't see out of all the positive points put forward how form factor is one of them.
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:eek: I knew there was a reason I never bought one. Thanks for the reminder :D
 
joescrivens said:
But sat on the sofa surely you can see why an iPad would be better than a phone to check email and browse internet

the phone is good for when you leave the house. But when at home it's way better for digesting media on a tablet than both a phone and a laptop. due to its form factor and ease of use.
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Ah but i have a top end comfee swivel chair at the desk - thats where i sit when i'm home, drinking tea and logging on to TP or whatever - i hardly ever sit on the sofa so if i want to browse at home i use the laptop - if i want to browse on the move i use the phone

the only use the tablet gets is for documents in meetings or as an ereader (or playimng games while waiting for meetings to start)
 
joxby said:
This is my current disposition :lol:, netbook on the sofa arm, trackball mouse, and I have a spare hand to pick my nose with, I just can't see how that form factor can be improved upon.
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that's exactly my point. You have to take up your sofa arm with your netbook and use those horrible trackball mice. That's the worst form factor ever. you have to twist your body round to use it. With a tablet (not specifically an ipad, any tablet) there is no awkward trackball to use, it's all touch and gesture based.

If you want to keep one hand free then the tablet rests on your leg, otherwise it's in one hand and being used with the other. Put it on the arm of the chair too if you want, but the tablet is much more flexible, once you've browsed you can just chuck it behind you on the sofa top. no lids to close or repoen, it's instant on. Grab it again when needed.

Netbooks really are the spawn of the devil. the trackball or trackpad were things invented out of neccisity to make a device mobile but they really are a terrible human interface device.
 
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big soft moose said:
Ah but i have a top end comfee swivel chair at the desk - thats where i sit when i'm home, drinking tea and logging on to TP or whatever - i hardly ever sit on the sofa so if i want to browse at home i use the laptop - if i want to browse on the move i use the phone

the only use the tablet gets is for documents in meetings or as an ereader (or playimng games while waiting for meetings to start)
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you don't sit in the living room watching TV?
 
I don't need an iPad to watch tv in the living room... :) seriously I have no need to keep the TV open if it spews crap I'm not watching.

But I do use my iPads a lot, just don't get the tv&couch use case at all.
 
My daughter was given one by her university - staff perk - a few months ago. Still in the box while she tries to think of something to do with it.
 
vaizki said:
I don't need an iPad to watch tv in the living room... :) seriously I have no need to keep the TV open if it spews crap I'm not watching.

But I do use my iPads a lot, just don't get the tv&couch use case at all.
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You misunderstand. Nobody needs an iPad to watch tv. It's a general term to describe the situation when you are away from your main computer and want to casually digest media. Watching telly, cooking, chilling in the garden, having a poo. Etc


MartynK said:
My daughter was given one by her university - staff perk - a few months ago. Still in the box while she tries to think of something to do with it.
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Put it in a box an send it to me :thumbs:
 
joescrivens said:
It's a general term to describe the situation when you are away from your main computer and want to casually digest media. Watching telly, cooking, chilling in the garden, having a poo. Etc
:
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If I'm watching TV i want to watch tv - not browse the internet

ditto cooking, having a poo etc

if i want to browse in the garden i can just take the laptop outside
 
big soft moose said:
If I'm watching TV i want to watch tv - not browse the internet

ditto cooking, having a poo etc

if i want to browse in the garden i can just take the laptop outside
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Most people I know, including myself do multiple things at the same time. Having a poo often involves reading a book or magazine etc. Do you just sit still and poo without having any reading material?

As for the TV, often the wife wants to watch something i don't for at least 30 mins of the night - usually some crap soap, so that's when i'll broswe since i can still be in the same room and have a chat at the same time.

The only time I'll not check the odd email, fb, tp, footy site etc casually whilst having the tv on is if watching a film.
 
I have a pile of photography magazines in the bathroom

that aside i don't bother with Broadcast tv - we only use ours for watching dvds , so if i'm watching one then i wont be browsing or having a chat - if the wife is watching one i dont want to watch then i'll be using the laptop, probably in another room.
 
I have a MacBook which sits right next to me but I'll always reach for the iPad. The form factor and the fact it has a 10 hour battery and instant on - even quicker than waking a sleeping MacBook- makes it the casual browsing device of choice at all times.

To be honest I have no space for a laptop in my life anymore.
 
joescrivens said:
that's exactly my point. You have to take up your sofa arm with your netbook and use those horrible trackball mice. That's the worst form factor ever. you have to twist your body round to use it. With a tablet (not specifically an ipad, any tablet) there is no awkward trackball to use, it's all touch and gesture based.

If you want to keep one hand free then the tablet rests on your leg, otherwise it's in one hand and being used with the other. Put it on the arm of the chair too if you want, but the tablet is much more flexible, once you've browsed you can just chuck it behind you on the sofa top. no lids to close or repoen, it's instant on. Grab it again when needed.

Netbooks really are the spawn of the devil. the trackball or trackpad were things invented out of neccisity to make a device mobile but they really are a terrible human interface device.
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Well, I dunno, I just don't see any of that at all, you seem to be manufacturing problems that don't exist, at least not at my house anyway.
Take up my sofa arm ?, it just kinda sits on the end where normally there wouldn't be anything.
There is no twisting, I have no idea what is awkward about a trackball, best thing since sliced bread tbh.
Lids to close, can't remember the last time I closed it, but when I do I just close it and leave it there...on the arm....closed..:shrug:

If balancing a tablet on your leg is the very best solution there is, tablets seriously beat trackballs and netbooks for ultimate awkward naffness by a country mile.
In all honesty, I'm disappointed I'm not completely wrong, and that there isn't some magical user experience I have failed to consider.
Maybe form factor just isn't a strong point of tablet design when used in this particular situation.
I can see ultimate portability is a tablets A game, swanning round the house with a netbook and mouse would be...well, hardly even possible.
Its all very well talking about stupid touch & gesture rubbish, removing the need for a keyboard/mouse/input hardware, yet to use it you need an extra flippin hand.......ridiculous, but very portable...hmmm
 
joxby said:
Well, I dunno, I just don't see any of that at all, you seem to be manufacturing problems that don't exist, at least not at my house anyway.
Take up my sofa arm ?, it just kinda sits on the end where normally there wouldn't be anything.
There is no twisting, I have no idea what is awkward about a trackball, best thing since sliced bread tbh.
Lids to close, can't remember the last time I closed it, but when I do I just close it and leave it there...on the arm....closed..:shrug:

If balancing a tablet on your leg is the very best solution there is, tablets seriously beat trackballs and netbooks for ultimate awkward naffness by a country mile.
In all honesty, I'm disappointed I'm not completely wrong, and that there isn't some magical user experience I have failed to consider.
Maybe form factor just isn't a strong point of tablet design when used in this particular situation.
I can see ultimate portability is a tablets A game, swanning round the house with a netbook and mouse would be...well, hardly even possible.
Its all very well talking about stupid touch & gesture rubbish, removing the need for a keyboard/mouse/input hardware, yet to use it you need an extra flippin hand.......ridiculous, but very portable...hmmm
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Are you speaking from experience of having used a tablet for a period of time? Or are you just theorising without experience?

I've had laptops net books and tablets so my comments come from direct experience and extended use of all these devices. If you have tried and disliked then that's fair enough. It's not for you. But if you haven't then you can't really speak about what's better. Most people I know that didn't see the point of tablets used all the same arguments as you .... and then they tried it and saw the difference. It's not for everyone though, we all have individual ways.

How are net books selling these days compared to tablets?
 
neil_g said:
One thing will be preferred by one person and another thing for others.. No point bickering about it..

But trackballs? Eurgh.. :p
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Tell me about it.

The trackball was a device created purely out of a limitation with the technology at the time. Nobody in their right mind would create a device nowadays using that.
 
I've had an Asus transformer since release and the device is great.

I purchased an iPad a month ago, the device IMO isn't quite as good as the transformer and iOS isn't as good in a few ways to android. You then hit the apps store and android hasn't got a chance. The quality of apps on iOS is better by a mile. We took iPad and transformer on holiday to entertain, the transformer only for used to watch films as the games were so poor in comparison. My apple TV arrived yesterday which is very cool.

My transformer will be up for sale soon. Android has a very very long way to go in the tablet world, mainly in the store and attracting brands to the world of android. Windows 8 will quickly overtake android in the tablet world unless they do a lot of work on the store and the quality of apps.
 
no argument there neil - i use a wireless track ball mouse with my laptop (which i'm using on a desk)

the biggest problem i have with tablets is that i find typing on a touch screen really trying and slow - to the point that if i want to take notes on the move i'll just use a notepad and pen rather than 'notes' on a phone.
 
MartynK said:
My daughter was given one by her university - staff perk - a few months ago. Still in the box while she tries to think of something to do with it.
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So was I. It's really bloody useful in meetings (the number of times someone has said something to be wrong, and I could prove it with the power of google...). It's also really handy to show people presentations/research, project management, taking notes....

The only thing that I wish I could do is tether it to my Nikon and take photos with it. I do it all the time with my MBP, and an iPad is much more portable than a laptop..... Android tablets can do this.....
 
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joescrivens said:
Are you speaking from experience of having used a tablet for a period of time? Or are you just theorising without experience?
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Un-ashamedly theorising.

joescrivens said:
I've had laptops net books and tablets so my comments come from direct experience and extended use of all these devices.
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I'm afraid yer bubble of impartiality was busted years ago, so its not that straight forward.

joescrivens said:
If you have tried and disliked then that's fair enough. It's not for you. But if you haven't then you can't really speak about what's better. Most people I know that didn't see the point of tablets used all the same arguments as you .... and then they tried it and saw the difference. It's not for everyone though, we all have individual ways.
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Its not that I don't see the point of tablets, I don't think they would be a good replacement for what and how I use what I have now.
I don't need to drive a convertible to know I'm gonna get wet, regardless of the extras package on the car.
I can't get past 2 hands, for me at least, its a non runner....end of...:(

joescrivens said:
How are net books selling these days compared to tablets?
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I dunno...ask me one on ohms law, cable calcs or something..:)
 
joxby said:
Un-ashamedly theorising.



I'm afraid yer bubble of impartiality was busted years ago, so its not that straight forward.



Its not that I don't see the point of tablets, I don't think they would be a good replacement for what and how I use what I have now.
I don't need to drive a convertible to know I'm gonna get wet, regardless of the extras package on the car.
I can't get past 2 hands, for me at least, its a non runner....end of...:(



I dunno...ask me one on ohms law, cable calcs or something..:)
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If the deal breaker is 2 hands fear not. There are tons of ways to use a tablet with one hand. Lots of cases allow for resting it at an angle etc

The netbook sales question was a rhetorical one. They are dying.
 
amer369 said:
I personally think you can look at it two ways. Firstly if you look from a hardware point of view and value for money then ... Yeh maybe overpriced and over hyped.

But if you look at how an iPad impacts an individuals interaction with the Internet in terms of frequency, range of use and workflow then you have to say that change is worth the money and you can no longer argue that strongly about it being overhyped.

Technically it may not be the best tablet, tablets existed before the iPad but credit has to be given to apple on how much they focus on the users experience.
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Technically it IS the best tablet, by far. I've used a lot of the new Android ones and they pale in comparison to the iPad 3. Using the Android ones after seeing the beautiful retina screen, they just don't compare.
 
big soft moose said:
Ive just picked up a cheap tablet running ICS , and imo the whole tablet experience is over hyped - it will be quite useful for taking lots of documents to meetings (which is why i got it) but that aside, apart from using it as an ereader , i can't see anything it can do that my laptop can't do better

seems to me that the tablet (paricularly without 3G) is the least useful itteration - smart phones are clearly handy as you carry them everywhere, and laptops have the advantage of a big screen and a decent keyboard for writing , but tablets fall between two stools, too big to put in your pocket, too small to use for serious writing ... unless i'm missing something

of course its possible that an ipad would revolutionise my thinking on this, but its equally possible that it wouldnt , and to be frank i'm not minded to spend several hundred quid to find out
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The cheaper, small tablets are a different experience to the iPad IMO. Closer to a large phone than a full on tablet. I use the iPad for everything now, even photo processing, unless m shooting raw for a specific reason then I wait while the desktop cranks itself up, purely to save space on the iPad as I don't want to store or cloud raws.
 
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LCPete said:
if they were about £100 for a decent one would get it !!:D
but too expensive for me for what I would use it for, just using the net sat on the settee
I take my netbook on holiday and can upload a load of Canon raw files and edit them in photoshop, cant do that on a ipad
Pete:)
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Yes you can!
 
When the iPad was launched I bought one but it didn't suit my lifestyle requirements as my laptop catered for all my IT needs. But now as my life has changed I see the use for an iPad hence buying a 3rd gen model.
 
LCPete said:
Ahh I didnt know that, thanks :)
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You need to download the appropriate app of course!
 
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