Nerve Endings Firing Away

I finally got an iPad; the generation 2 model. We had bought an iPad when it launched first last year but my wife, Ash uses it primarily as her at-home computer and so for all practical purposes, it is hers. I had the Kindle and Instapaper app synced to my accounts and she would let me use it at night once she was done playing Solitaire.

I bought the iPad primarily for reading and checking Twitter/email occasionally. More importantly, I hope it keeps me away from my computer in my den when I get home. A year since the iPad launched has given developer enough time to come up with some amazing apps; Flipboard, Zite, and Instapaper are just few of them. I also got the Smart Cover which definitely is impressive with its ‘magical’ magnets but I admit that it takes getting used to folding it just right when you are reading or using the iPad. Thanks to Andy Inhatko’s tips, I’ve managed to find just the right way to fold the cover so you can hold the iPad comfortably. The hardware is excellent and handling feels just right. The speakers are powerful and loud enough so you can hear music across the room although I prefer to AirPlay them to our Bose Speakers via Apple TV. The camera is not that great but I don’t assume I will be using it for still photos and it fares well in better light. Now I just need people to FaceTime with :) Here’s hoping my brother and parents get an iOS device in India so they can see our kid more often.

I decided to get the iPad on the weekend and had it on thursday. So how did I manage to get the iPad so quickly when there are long lines everywhere and the website says, 3-4 weeks for online orders? Once again, Best Buy to the rescue. I had gone in to look at iPhone cases when I decided to check out the floor model. When I asked the salesman if they had one in stock, he told me that they had it in the morning. But almost instantly, he gave me his card and asked me to email him my phone number so he could text me as soon as they got a new shipment. I emailed him as soon as I got home and his text arrived yesterday afternoon. Although I got to the store within the hour, I was lucky to get the last available one. ^[1]

As with my Mac, I’ll soon write about the apps I use on a regular basis. Right now, there simply are too many although I’m disappointed that magazine apps still cost as much as you would pay if you bought them at the newsstand. I’m waiting for the reduced price subscription plans. Even if it costs the publishers almost nothing to ‘print’ the digital versions, I’m willing to pay as much as I would pay for the print subscriptions.

Footnotes:

1. I had ordered one online on Monday, just in case. Delivery date was April 30th. I cancelled the order as soon as I got back with the one I got in store. [↩]