Ed-Tech list members,
I got the iPad 2 on Friday. I used the original iPad since the day it came out, almost a year ago If you are thinking about getting one, here are my thoughts.
I have my iPad with me all the time. I absolutely love it. I read books and magazines, watch videos, surf the web and run apps on it.
The iPad 2 adds little to that capability. I can still do all of that. The major difference in the hardware is weight (a bit lighter), speed (a bit faster), size (thinner), the addition of cameras (front and back), and the new Apple cover (magical experience, really).
If you have an iPad, there is no need to upgrade unless you NEED the camera. The weight, spped, and size improvements are incremental. I am not excited by the camera, either Since most people with an iPad already have a smartphone that will run a Skype app, videoconferencing isn't that big a deal, in my opinion. But it may be for some people, especially those who travel a lot and have small children, or those with family a long distance away.
The surprise, for me, is the new cover. It attaches magnetically to the side of the iPad 2. It is only a front cover. There a magnets in the corners so it doesn't flap open in a bag or a purse. AND (drum roll) the iPad 2 turns off/on when the cover closes/opens. This changes everything.
I am reading DIY U: Edupunks, Edupreneurs, and the Coming Transformation of Higher Education by Anya Kamenetz on the Kindle app on my iPad. If I need to stop reading, I close the cover. When I open the cover I am instantly looking at the page I was on before. I use Zinio to subscribe to MacWorld, PC World, and PC Magazine. When I am reading a magazine the same close/open action works perfectly.
Some may think this is a small difference. But it is a major experience change. It remind me of the first time I attached a disk drive to a computer so the computer could now run multiple programs without restarting. Or when I first experienced the Internet through a web browser and formatted multimedia material was accessible even though it wasn't on a CD on my computer.
This is one of the user experiences that the Kindle hardware has delivered since day one. If all you want the iPad for is reading books, a Kindle is a better choice. But for those of us that want more, and get an iPad, adding this experience through Apple's cover is a real game changer.
Apple makes both a plastic and leather version and they both come in multiple colors. I got the red leather one. I like it.
The cover doesn't protect the back of the iPad. My solution for that was a cheap ($12?) slip case that I got at Bed Bath and Beyond. Ugly looking, but I keep it in my shoulder bag. I can slip the iPad in and out easily, so no one sees the bag. I would guess there will be back covers out soon that are designed to work with the new Apple front cover.
There are 18 different models of the iPad 2: three memory sizes, three wireless configurations, and two colors. My general recommendation is the 32GB WiFi only version in black, for
I have the 64 GB but I can only fill it up if I put multiple seasons of multiple TV shoes and movies. That is so many hours of video I couldn't watch it all in a month. So the 32 GB would be fine for me, and I am a heavy user. Most people would probably be fine with the 16 GB model. Only video really eats up memory. Books are no problem, even on the 16 GB model.
I have the WiFi only version. That means that I can get to the Internet on campus using WirelessCanes. I have a wireless network at home, so I can use it there. McDonalds, Starbucks, and lots of other locations have wireless networks that are open to the public, too. That covers at least 90% of the times I might want to access the Internet using the iPad. I have an iPhone so I can use that all the time, using the AT&T 3G cell phone network. You can get an iPad that works on AT&T or Verizon. It costs $130 extra to get that capability built in. But then you have to pay to use the network. I don't have an iPad with 3G, so I can't tell you the monthly cost. Nothing is always less than something, so I chose to not get this feature, and it has not been a problem for me. Your decision should be based on where you will be using it.
I got black because I watch video a lot, and I would rather have a black border than a white one. The white iPad looks very nice, and if it wasn't for the video aspect, I might have gotten it. Wide screen videos have a black blocks above and below them in order to fill up the screen. A white border would make the black blocks more noticeable. So I went with black.
These are the three choices you need to make on the basic hardware. Then you can add on a case, at extra expense. The Technology Product Center at UM sells iPads, and may have some in stock. There are NO educational discounts for iPad purchases. (There was a 10 pack at $5 or $10 off per machine, as I recall. They are not in individual boxes, just packed together as a set. If you need that many, contact the TPC to find out if that is still available.)
Steve Jobs described the iPad as the beginning of the "Post PC" world. Since you MUST have a computer in order to activate and maintain an iPad, this is a bit of a stretch, but an iPad is NOT a PC; you really need to experience it to feel the difference.
Bill Vilberg, 786-250-2255<tel:786-250-2255>, <
http://iacinfo.org>
http://iacinfo.org
