Why iPad?

[MattMJB0188]

I am interested in buying an iPad 2 and was wondering if I can get some SERIOUS input. No sarcastic replies please. I am a full time college student and currently own a 2010 MacBook Pro. I can see myself using the iPad in class or in between classes as its very light. My real question is, what do you people do on the iPad that differentiates it between a notebook and iPhone/iPod Touch. I will be getting the next gen iPhone whenever it comes out. Never owned an iOS device before. Played with them and love the feel to it. So can someone please enlighten me on what exactly you use your iPad for? Thanks

I had posted this on MacRumors but I have found their members to be extremely rude and arrogant. This website has a lot of very nice people. People who don't reply with a sarcastic comment.

 

[Alli]

The question is not "what do you do on the iPad that differentiates it from a notebook," but "what do you do on a notebook that differentiates it from an iPad." The iPad is not a replacement for a computer.

For instance, as a college student, you may have the opportunity to take some of your classes online. While it seems as though the iPad is made for this, you can't upload the files through Blackboard, or whatever proprietary service your school uses, so you have to go back to a computer.

The iPad is awesome if you want something to surf, do email, read ebooks, and play games. I wouldn't even advise it for textbooks, since highlighting and margin notations are just not the same thing in an ebook.

 

[MattMJB0188]

The question is not "what do you do on the iPad that differentiates it from a notebook," but "what do you do on a notebook that differentiates it from an iPad." The iPad is not a replacement for a computer.

For instance, as a college student, you may have the opportunity to take some of your classes online. While it seems as though the iPad is made for this, you can't upload the files through Blackboard, or whatever proprietary service your school uses, so you have to go back to a computer.

The iPad is awesome if you want something to surf, do email, read ebooks, and play games. I wouldn't even advise it for textbooks, since highlighting and margin notations are just not the same thing in an ebook.

Appreciate your response.

 

[Adawg1203]

I look at having my iPad as complimenting my MacPro. Initially, I thought the IPad was more novelty than a useful tool, but I have since changed my stance. If a lot of what you do is web based then, the iPad will be able to perform those tasks wonderfully. If you work a lot with Office or iWork etc then, you will have to set the iPad up to perform those tasks to be in sync with your computer. I can work with files on my PRO and send to my iPad to work on remotely. Which is nice since I only transport my iPad and not my laptop.

Now if you do not mind hauling your laptop around (which is what its for) then having an iPad may not make too much sense. However, I like leaving my laptop behind.

Another useful aspect for the iPad, is the apps. Having the ability to use apps is handy and something that isn't suited well for the laptops. So, there can be a strong need for owning an iPad. Also, its a device you can grow into even if you do not see the need for one right now.

Hope this helps.

 

[Calebswag7]

The question is not "what do you do on the iPad that differentiates it from a notebook," but "what do you do on a notebook that differentiates it from an iPad." The iPad is not a replacement for a computer.

For instance, as a college student, you may have the opportunity to take some of your classes online. While it seems as though the iPad is made for this, you can't upload the files through Blackboard, or whatever proprietary service your school uses, so you have to go back to a computer.

The iPad is awesome if you want something to surf, do email, read ebooks, and play games. I wouldn't even advise it for textbooks, since highlighting and margin notations are just not the same thing in an ebook.

I don't think this is too correct of a review for you man. As I have an iPad 2 and it's my only computing device for college, I use nothing else. The difference between a tablet and laptop is you can't create content on a tablet, only view it. As in writing software in not able to done. The benefit over a MacBook though to say is definitely the portability of how tiny it is. I love that. As for textbooks, complete mistake there, there's textbook apps where you can purchase your full textbooks if their available in ebook format like the kno textbook app of the kindle app, which offer all the advantages if not MORE than having the actual textbook. And for college there's AMAZING apps for organization, notes, classes schedules, everything. If you need a list of great apps to check out let me know, I can give you a bunch of great ones. For writing papers and spreadsheets and power points, they have the full iWork suite. Which can also synch with your iWork on your Mac. As for outside of college work, gaming is amazing in the apps, nothing is really quite the same as just holding a screen in your hand and playing a game like infinity blade. And the same goes for web surfing. It isn't explainable until you actually experience it, but holding a screen and navigating the Internet with your fingers is unmatchable. And your iCal and photos and main apps in the iLife suite work seamlessly in synching up your MacBook pro and iPad to hold and have the exact same data. And that will be done wirelessly once Icloud is released also. No plug in synching required. And for just about anything you want to do, honestly, you can find an app for it in iOS. I record music into GarageBand straight on my iPad 2, write songs. I make professional quality movies on it with iMovie. So those are both on there. FaceTime is GREAT when all your holding is a screen, it's like the person is right in front of you as to looking down at a laptop on a table in front of you. Yes a laptop can do more, and I love MacBooks don't get me wrong, but the user experience and portability and overall just design makes it super easy to take with you and creates an original way to view and everything that you've been doing on your laptop that you haven't yet experienced that you'll love.

Any more questions man just ask.


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[MattMJB0188]

Appreciate all the responses. I went ahead and ordered a White 16GB iPad 2. I actually started school today and found out this semester I'll have a lot of online reading to do and what better way to do it than on an iPad.

 

[uhanrodric]

Don't forget "Angry Birds". Almost a reason all it's own to have an iPad.

 

[Alli]

Let me know how it works for those online classes, and what app you use to highlight the textbooks you purchased to read on the iPad.

 

[MattMJB0188]

Let me know how it works for those online classes, and what app you use to highlight the textbooks you purchased to read on the iPad.

Haha ok, thanks.

 

[fire07]

I graduated this year. Most of my profs put readings online (pdf scans of various books and journals). I hated printing them out because it wasted paper and took up a lot of space in my various class folders (minimum 50-100 sheets per week), but I couldn't efficiently use my MacBook to read them - I wanted to annotate by hand, and the laptop took up too much room on my desk during class, as I also needed a notebook and sometimes a physical book (although I use a computer for EVERYTHING else, I found it easier to take notes by hand during discussion-based classes. Lectures were a different story). The iPad would have been a perfect solution - load the pdfs onto the iPad, use an annotation app to write my notes (with either a finger or a stylus), save the copy paper, and save the desk space. Unfortunately, I couldn't afford an iPad until I graduated. Now I use it to take inventory at work, read the paper or watch videos during my commute, do work on the train, and keep documents on hand and ready to present during meetings.