On the iPad

[coraa]

I've had a few people ask me whether I want an iPad, and I've generally said 'no' without thinking too hard about it. Having now thought about it, I've figured out why.

(Note: This has no bearing on whether you should want, or get, an iPad. If you want one, get one! And I hope you enjoy it very much! I just don't. But people are different, you know, and that's okay. You can want one and get one even if I don't want one.)

1. E-ink. Having read on e-ink devices, I'm not going back to reading books on a non-e-ink screen. I get more eyestrain reading on my iPhone or laptop, especially in strong light, than I do with my e-ink ereader. (The iPhone, being a touchscreen, is particularly bad because fingerprints show up with astonishing clarity in strong light.) So there's that: the iPad is not a replacement ebook reader for me, becuase I want an e-ink screen on my ereader.

But more importantly....

2. I'm not getting a larger-than-a-phone multifunction device that doesn't have a real keyboard. Probably three-quarters of what I do on a computer relies on typing, often a lot of words, often very fast, via touch-typing, and for that I want a "real" keyboard. Otherwise I'll spend a lot of time going, "Well, I could do that, but it'd be easier to wait until I have my laptop with me...." Which defeats the point.

Which raises the question: what are your non-negotiables for portable electronics?

Comments

[coraa.livejournal.com]

Yes: for people who don't do as much, well, writing as I do, it probably isn't a concern. If you can tap out a search query, an e-mail, or a tweet on it, that's probably enough for a lot of people. But I write on my computer devices and I write a lot, and if they aren't optimized for that, it's going to be a tough row to hoe.

...And yeah, it's funny, I've heard how big and heavy the Kindle is (somewhere between paperback and hardcover weight, I think), but the iPad is both bigger and heavier (I think about twice as heavy). Which is fine! I'm not going to tell anyone they don't want it. But it's not exactly teensy for an ereader.

[coneycat.livejournal.com]

I'm not going to say anyone who wants one and can afford it should not have one, but it just looks far too large to be something I want. If I have to use it at home because it's too heavy for me to carry around, I might as well stick to my laptop. (Which is an Asus EEE and therefore very light.)

Mind you, I'm like you and do a lot of writing, thus the laptop. And now that I've discovered how useful a smartphone is for all kinds of stuff, I can't imagine carrying that as well as an e-reader.

But I'll be very interested in what my friend thinks of the iPad.