iPad 2 a week in: Marvelous; not missing Android at all
By James Kendrick | November 10, 2011, 7:00am PST
Summary: The week I have spent with my new iPad 2 has proven how much better it is than any other tablet. Android is nice, but no real comparison.
I shared my reasoning behind purchasing the iPad 2 and have been asked by many how the switch from Android tablets (and the TouchPad) is going. I have been using the iPad 2 exclusively for the week I have owned it, and I can describe the experience best in one word marvelous.
The operation of the iPad 2 is fluid, fast, and glitch-free. I find I use the iPad 2 more often and for more things than I was using other tablets in the past due to how well things work. The iPad 2 is as good as others told me it would be, and I havent come across a single thing I dont like or that I wished worked differently.
The attention to detail in the user experience permeates the operation of the iPad 2 at every level. Turning it on is as simple as opening the Smart Cover, and shutting it down the same. The performance couldnt be better, with things happening instantly when triggered by an action. I see no lags nor herky-jerky operation on the iPad as I have seen on every other tablet I have used. To quote Sade the iPad 2 is a smooth operator.
The quality of the apps I am using is excellent, and more importantly intuitive. I dont have to figure out how to do something no matter what it is or what app I am using. The control interfaces are consistent from app to app, and things work the way I intuitively want them to work. I cant state emphatically enough how big a difference this makes in using the tablet. I concentrate on what I want to do, and not on how to make it so.
I am doing far more on the iPad 2 than I have done with other tablets. I do the tasks commonly performed on tablets web browsing, social networking, email, watching video, and reading content (both online and locally stored). I also do a lot of my work on the iPad that I never thought I would do.
I find the research I do for the the mobile beat I cover for ZDNet is more thorough because I can easily and seamlessly jump from angle to angle on stories I am writing. It is frankly liberating to research topics so thoroughly, strictly due to the way the iPad 2 works and the quality of the apps.
I can start writing new projects at a moments notice when the creative juices hit me. I can go from zero to full writing mode in seconds given the tools the iPad has available. It doesnt matter where I am or what I am doing when the mood hits. I am working on more stories than ever before.
I am not saying that other tablets are not good. I am simply stating that for me the iPad 2 is better than any other tablet, and by a wide margin. Sure, some folks will prefer other solutions and that is great if they work for them.
I can already hear the comments about the closed Apple system being a negative. And the ones about tablet X being the best thing since sliced bread. I am not disagreeing with them, but stating my own view based on actual experience.
I do believe that for me not only has the iPad 2 already proved to be the best tablet I have used, it is getting better the more I use it. I do not miss laggy, jerky scrolling in apps. I do not miss apps crashing with no warning. I do not miss trying to figure out where controls are for a particular app. I do not miss tablets crashing while sitting charging.
I will detail in a future article what apps I am using with the iPad 2, and the methods that are proving so effective in my usage. For now I will state that the iPad 2 is better than I thought it would be, and that was already pretty darn good.
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The real test of a "mobile" operating system's mettle is the tablet, the next step in computing.
By James Kendrick | November 10, 2011, 7:00am PST
Summary: The week I have spent with my new iPad 2 has proven how much better it is than any other tablet. Android is nice, but no real comparison.
I shared my reasoning behind purchasing the iPad 2 and have been asked by many how the switch from Android tablets (and the TouchPad) is going. I have been using the iPad 2 exclusively for the week I have owned it, and I can describe the experience best in one word marvelous.
The operation of the iPad 2 is fluid, fast, and glitch-free. I find I use the iPad 2 more often and for more things than I was using other tablets in the past due to how well things work. The iPad 2 is as good as others told me it would be, and I havent come across a single thing I dont like or that I wished worked differently.
The attention to detail in the user experience permeates the operation of the iPad 2 at every level. Turning it on is as simple as opening the Smart Cover, and shutting it down the same. The performance couldnt be better, with things happening instantly when triggered by an action. I see no lags nor herky-jerky operation on the iPad as I have seen on every other tablet I have used. To quote Sade the iPad 2 is a smooth operator.
The quality of the apps I am using is excellent, and more importantly intuitive. I dont have to figure out how to do something no matter what it is or what app I am using. The control interfaces are consistent from app to app, and things work the way I intuitively want them to work. I cant state emphatically enough how big a difference this makes in using the tablet. I concentrate on what I want to do, and not on how to make it so.
I am doing far more on the iPad 2 than I have done with other tablets. I do the tasks commonly performed on tablets web browsing, social networking, email, watching video, and reading content (both online and locally stored). I also do a lot of my work on the iPad that I never thought I would do.
I find the research I do for the the mobile beat I cover for ZDNet is more thorough because I can easily and seamlessly jump from angle to angle on stories I am writing. It is frankly liberating to research topics so thoroughly, strictly due to the way the iPad 2 works and the quality of the apps.
I can start writing new projects at a moments notice when the creative juices hit me. I can go from zero to full writing mode in seconds given the tools the iPad has available. It doesnt matter where I am or what I am doing when the mood hits. I am working on more stories than ever before.
I am not saying that other tablets are not good. I am simply stating that for me the iPad 2 is better than any other tablet, and by a wide margin. Sure, some folks will prefer other solutions and that is great if they work for them.
I can already hear the comments about the closed Apple system being a negative. And the ones about tablet X being the best thing since sliced bread. I am not disagreeing with them, but stating my own view based on actual experience.
I do believe that for me not only has the iPad 2 already proved to be the best tablet I have used, it is getting better the more I use it. I do not miss laggy, jerky scrolling in apps. I do not miss apps crashing with no warning. I do not miss trying to figure out where controls are for a particular app. I do not miss tablets crashing while sitting charging.
I will detail in a future article what apps I am using with the iPad 2, and the methods that are proving so effective in my usage. For now I will state that the iPad 2 is better than I thought it would be, and that was already pretty darn good.
----------------------------------------------------------
The real test of a "mobile" operating system's mettle is the tablet, the next step in computing.
The BLackBerry was in a app store loop so I couldn't really demo it, but the size doesnt appeal to me. The Sammy looks pretty tho.