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As an android Fanboi, I was torn between getting the wife an iPad, or transformer prime.
She's got an android phone which she gets on well with, but reviews seemed to point towards iPads as e choice if you're not massively into 'fiddling' with it...so I got her an iPad....
I must say that it s VERY easy to pick up and get going with. Net browsing, YouTube, and kindle are all very straightforward.
What I am impressed with is the ease by which our google calendars (all of them) sync and are visible on the native iPad calendar, as is using gmail on an apple product.
I've yet to transfer video files onto it as, tbh, our laptop is a hateful thing and after having played on the pad, I shudder thinking about picking it upo again!i do miss having a full keyboard, but can touch type on the on screen as fast as I could on a normal one - having small fingers helps I suppose!
In all fairness, I was a bit 'anti apple' just for the sake of it, and although the iPhone is much more costly that android phones, the tablets seem to be pretty evenly priced (though this is an iPad 2).
The long and short of it is, I'll have a bit more of a play and see how it fairs out, and I may even be temped to sway the way of the fruit As time goes on!
Lack of USB/sd probably will become annoying, but hey oh.....
DrP
It does seem very odd that Apple dont include a USB or SD slot, its the one thing that annyos me about it.
You can plug the camera kit in and get that feature but its still a bit untidy.
The keyboard must be pretty impressive if you typed that in 10 seconds 🙂
How well does that kit function as a stand alone USB/ sd? I.e. does it only work with photo apps, or can you transfer files 'into't the iPad via it (for example, can I transfer videos from an external hd onto the iPad with it?)
DrP
Mail and Calender integration with Exchange also works really well - they've really made it very easy to use!
Mail and Calender integration with Exchange also works really well - they've really made it very easy to use!
If you are connecting to Google Calendar, GMail and Google Contacts then it is better to do it as Exchange anyway, via Google Sync:
http://www.google.com/mobile/sync/
That way you get full Push support
I bought an android tablet a few months ago and loved it....until I got an iPad through work. Let's just say the android doesn't come out of sleep mode much nowadays.
Which android tablet?
DrP
I'm very anti iPhone but very pro iPad. Is that allowed?
[i]How well does that kit function as a stand alone USB/ sd? I.e. does it only work with photo apps, or can you transfer files 'into't the iPad via it (for example, can I transfer videos from an external hd onto the iPad with it?)[/i]
I've only tried photos - what's nice is you can store your photos "on the iCloud", install the iCloud agent on your PC and files are automagically downloaded to each device.
I think it would do videos, not sure about other files though as it uses the iPad's interface for photos/vids.
I'm very anti iPhone but very pro iPad. Is that allowed?
It is in my World!
DrP
Acer iconia, had the USB, expandable memory, hdmi out etc which swayed my decision. None of those features ever got used.
iPad is faster, slicker and I find it as easy to type on as a normal keyboard in landscape....awesome bit of kit.
[url= http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2010/feb/01/ipad-therefore-iwant-why-idunno ]charlie brookers review[/url]
can I transfer videos from an external hd onto the iPad with it?
I just copy videos to my iPhone over my wifi using the AcePlayer app.
It picks them up from my Windows Media and lets me copy them to the iphone to watch later or just stream them from the server.
🙂Apple excels at taking existing concepts – computers, MP3 players, conceit – and carefully streamlining them into glistening ergonomic chunks of concentrated aspiration
they are nice but too pricey for me im afraid, like most other apple products.
How well does that kit function as a stand alone USB/ sd
It doesn't. It only plays with some very specific things such as reading photos/videos from an SD card or some (but not all) USB music/midi adapters will work without problems. It doesn't provide a general USB interface as far as I know. You can't just plug a USB keyboard in for example (or at least it doesn't work with those that I have tried)
I am thinking about getting fiancee one. She has a PC (not a mac). How does she get things such as pdfs from the laptop onto an iPad? I have never used one.
Cheers!
Simon
How does she get things such as pdfs from the laptop onto an iPad?
Either via iTunes (where you can drag files from your PC onto the appropriate apps) or probably more practically via [url= http://db.tt/BH43Url ]DropBox[/url] or one of the many similar free services that provide cloud storage.
can I transfer videos from an external hd onto the iPad with it?
you can put a film onto an sd card and the Ipad will import it straight into the photo album from where you can play it.... but i think you'll not get FF or FW with this method.
Either via iTunes (where you can drag files from your PC onto the appropriate apps) or probably more practically via DropBox or one of the many similar free services that provide cloud storage.
That's shocking. Is it not possible to have a cable that goes from one to the other? Would she have to email everything? How do people use external hard drives? Is this possible?
That's shocking. Is it not possible to have a cable that goes from one to the other?
Yes, that would be the first option: "via iTunes".
Connect with a cable* and use iTunes on the PC.
*(Or sync over wifi).
DropBox
No use from work - banned.
Is it not possible to have a cable that goes from one to the other?
Yes, that would be the first option: "via iTunes"
And if say I'm in a meeting and someone has a load of PDFs on their PC (assuming they don't have itunes), can I just drag drop them via a USB stick or SD card (via the dongle)? OK email is an option, but the last such PDF was 44Mb.
No use from work - banned.
They banned DropBox but are quite happy for you to copy stuff onto your personal phone, USB stick or SD card?
Gotta love corporate IT policies.
can I just drag drop them via a USB stick or SD card (via the dongle)?
Dunno about the SD card dongle cos I don't have one.
Emailing is probably the most straightforward - 44Mb isn't much for most modern email like GMail etc. You could even use something like http://sendtodropbox.com/ to email stuff to DropBox.
Failing that you could use an app like [url= http://www.olivetoast.com/files/ ]Files[/url] which lets you connect to the iPhone/iPad over wifi and drag files onto it from and Windows PC or a Mac.
And if you [i]need[/i] to transfer via USB then you could use something like [url= http://www.digidna.net/products/diskaid ]DiskAid 5[/url]
There's lots of apps like AirSharing for swapping files via wifi, it just gives a URL to use as an ad hoc network.
Interesting stuff. Why would I need a 32gb machine over a 16gb? I don't use a laptp for movies and stuff (BBC iPlayer though) and don't bother much with music these days, so do I [i]need[/i] 32gb?
iPad apps tend to be larger than their iPhone counterparts. But, no, you don't [i]need[/i] 32Gb.
My iPad turned up about a week ago and ive noticed the tiniest white speck under the screen, but in front of the display. It's only noticeable when it's off, but Apple are sending a new one by courier
my first dealings with Apple customer services and I can't fault them
The only thing I don't like about Apple is then tend to forget about users with older products eg my iPad 1 is slow as a dog now either as a result of their latest iOS SW or possibly web pages are just getting so large that you need an obscene processor to render them....
I saw a comparison of the ipad 2 vs 3 in the Apple store on Saturday.
1. Startup time for apps was noticably faster on the 3
2. Font rendering (reader app) was amazing on the 3, with no edge pixelation at any zoom level. Looking back at the 2 it seemed a bit low-res by comparison.
Other than that, they seemed identical. (are the cams better on the 3?)
Rick- you might not need it now but you will soon enough. Classic obsolescence.
Rickos: if you really don't intend to watch (or film!) movies on it, you're not putting music on it and you don't intend to slap your entire photo collection on it then you probably don't need the 32GB (or 64GB) one.
The only thing I don't like about Apple is then tend to forget about users with older products
Really? Missus' 3GS phone is still working just fine with the latest iOS.
They usually support at least two generations back, which seems pretty reasonable to me given you can't support everything forever.
Typing on my new iPad.......
DrP!
If it helps, my iPhone battery died at the weekend.
I walked into the Apple shop last night with the phone and walked out less than ten minutes later with a brand new iPhone, no arguing, no filling out forms, no trying to blame me or having to spend three weeks without a phone while it gets repaired.
"No worries sir, we'll replace that immediately", and they did. Then I got home, plugged it into my computer and after another ten minutes had exactly the same configuration I'd had on my old phone without any pissing about.
Obviously all this is possible because they've harvested all my personal data and stored it somewhere that I have no control over but nevertheless, that's a pretty awesome result.
they've harvested all my personal data
I'm pretty sure all your software configs are saved within a backup on your computer hard drive? I guess it may also be on the 'cloud' associated with your account too? I have only got an iPod touch and only going from what I thought was happening on my frequent resets of this. (One of the first 2G's and getting a bit ropey now.)
If I had the money I'd buy Apple every time.
[i]I'm pretty sure all your software configs are saved within a backup on your computer hard drive? I guess it may also be on the 'cloud' associated with your account too?[/i]
I don't consider software configs to be personal data. Apple aren't interested in that stuff, they want to know where I go, what I spend my money on, what's keeping me interested in things, that sort of stuff.
Why would I need a 32gb machine over a 16gb? I don't use a laptp for movies and stuff (BBC iPlayer though) and don't bother much with music these days, so do I need 32gb?
Not got an iPad (or indeed iPhone), but both my phone and tablet are starting to bump up against their capacity limits, meaning I have to start uninstalling things 🙁 Get the higher capacity model, it's surprising how fast you can fill these things up!
Get the higher capacity model, it's surprising how fast you can fill these things up!
Looking at the usage on my [i]nearly full[/i] 32GB iPhone I have:
6.3GB Music
5.7GB Movies + Videos
and all the rest is apps, including some quite big ones:
948MB Infinity Blade (game)
762MB The Settlers (game)
591MB Reeder (RSS app)
491MB Secret of Monkey Island 2 (game)
479MB navfree (satnav)
408MB Tiger Woods PGA Tour (game)
370MB Daily Mail Ski and Snowboard (magazine)
238MB SkySafari (astronomy app)
146MB Dictionary (app)
101MB Civilisation Revolution (game)
100MB iBooks
So yeah, I guess if you are going to use a lot of apps then it still pays to go for the largest storage you can afford.