8 ms·

Neither is it for me. I'm sending mine back. Things I don't like: (a) Eye strain, (b)It doesn't provide enough utility for me to justify another device in my li

by akadien 17y ago

Neither is it for me. I'm sending mine back. Things I don't like: (a) Eye strain, (b)It doesn't provide enough utility for me to justify another device in my life, and I don't want another media consumption device. In short, it's another toy. (c) An awkward device angle when touch-typing and trying to read what I'm typing.

blhack 17y ago
What does the return policy look like?
- akadien 17y ago
  $50 restocking fee and two weeks to get it back to them.
  - profgubler 17y ago
    If there is a shortage you might make more on ebay.
    - jm4 17y ago
      Or India: http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601205&sid=ag8hKSw8uuu8 http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601205&sid=ag8h...
  - jrockway 17y ago
    Weird. Wouldn't it be free minus shipping if you had bought form Amazon?
troystribling 17y ago
That the iPad is consistently classified as a media consumption device seems an attempt to trivialize its significance by people who consider themselves power users. I agree that currently the use cases of most applications fall into this category, that it is expensive and I doubt you will ever do application development on a device of its form factor, but it is clearly not just a media consumption device. A few example applications are the two very nice musical instruments the Korg iElectribe http://www.korg.co.uk/products/software_controllers/iPad_iElectribe/sc_ipad_ielectribe.php http://www.korg.co.uk/products/software_controllers/iPad_iEl..., which sells for $10 while its HW equivqlent is around $450, and the MiniSynth Pro http://www.yonac.com/ http://www.yonac.com/ a fully functional FM synthesizer. Neither of these applications would have been possible prior to the iPad. Others are the drawing applications Brushes http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/id363590649?mt=8 http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/id363590649?mt=8 and SketchBook Pro http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/sketchbook-pro/id364253478?mt=8 http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/sketchbook-pro/id364253478?mt.... I also like the touch and hand drawing interface to OmniGraffle a diagramming application http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/omnigraffle/id363225984?mt=8 http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/omnigraffle/id363225984?mt=8. I think the majority of creative or power user applications will be for those with a complex control surface, such as the examples above. The large touch interface of the iPad is much simpler to use than a traditional mouse keyboard. Also when compared to Wacom drawing tablets http://www.google.com/products/catalog?hl=en&rlz=1G1GGLQ_ENUS240&q=wacom+tablet&um=1&ie=UTF-8&cid=1545184928933896623&ei=o5nES4G3EsL78Aax6bCtDw&sa=X&oi=product_catalog_result&ct=result&resnum=6&ved=0CDIQ8wIwBQ#ps-sellers http://www.google.com/products/catalog?hl=en&rlz=1G1GGLQ... it is competitive, at the iPad low end the iPad is about $200 more, though not quite as functional, the iPad does not have pressure or stylus tilt sensitivity but it is portable. If you are interested in developing these types of applications you have to have one. If you do not have one you will never see were the deficiencies are or know which problems to solve. The device as only been available for 10 days. I would expect it will take a year or two before the application space has been adequately sampled. Another obvious short coming, or opportunity, is with file synchronization and management. I am currently using dropbox, https://www.dropbox.com/ https://www.dropbox.com/ with ReaddleDocs http://readdle.com/products/readdledocs http://readdle.com/products/readdledocs, which works for reading. If documents are generated on the IPad you have to use iTunes, eMail or an application specific server for document synchronization. Neither of these is adequate. The typing problem you mentioned can be solved by a case that holds it an an angle, such as http://www.goincase.com/products/detail/CL57512 http://www.goincase.com/products/detail/CL57512. The number of viewing and use positions for the device is greater than that for a laptop. Also heavy duty typing can be handled with a bluetooth attached keyboard though for my needs the the onscreen keyboard has been adequate.
- crux_ 17y ago
  > That the iPad is consistently classified as a media consumption device seems an attempt to trivialize its significance by people who consider themselves power users. Not really. It comes from an idealism that technology (especially the internet) would, speaking broadly, shift our society away from a centralized model where the many are beholden to the few and towards something more distributed and egalitarian. If you cherish that goal, you're fairly likely to see the iPad as a step backwards -- it is not about the size of the step ("significance") but its direction.
  - akadien 17y ago
    For me, the iPad does not provide more utility compared to other devices I use to warrant carrying around and maintaining yet another device (Yad? iYad?). If it did or I thought it would, I would keep it. That it makes me physically uncomfortable is another factor. YMMV.
  - roc 17y ago
    I'd think if you truly cherish that goal (as I do) you'd have noticed by now that no single device or technology represents a step of any significance in any direction. It wasn't the existence of the internet that changed the creator:consumer ratio for the better. It was the use of the internet as such. And that use exploded thanks to any number of consumption-focused technologies along the way. Consider that even if no-one creates long-form text on an iPad, it's existence as a consumption machine might re-popularize the format and draw more creators to write for digital bookstores, shifting the creator:consumer relationship thanks to the ease of entrance (compared to dead-tree publishing). Or for a more proven example: consider the App Store. Reviled-since-inception by techno-freedom purists, its net effect has been positive for entire classes of software that are as-of-yet implausible via the internet. Though the store serves only these consumption-focused devices, the audience those devices attracted and the comparative low barrier for entry by creators has drawn creators and been a huge step forward. Windows tablets have had more pure potential to push the creator:consumer ratio forward for a decade and they've done essentially nothing. How useful is a world-view in which they're viewed as a step forward and the iPad a step back? All that aside, the core argument is still bogus. The iPad is getting a rap as a media consumption device solely because it's bad at text input without peripherals. Well, guess what? Any form factor is bad at some Arts without peripherals. And peripherals often dictate ergonomics. Keyboard/Mouse PCs suck at digital painting, a/v capture, a/v editing and any number of disciplines without peripherals. We don't pan them for not being a creative panacea out-of-the-box. And we certainly don't begrudge laptops their convenience, even though a digital artist has to lug around a cintiq to do decent work on the road, and is thus limited in use cases.
towndrunk 17y ago
I'm suprised you jumped in and bought one so quickly. Seems like "just another media consumpion device" could have been determined before purchasing.
- akadien 17y ago
  You don't know me, so why are you surprised? I thought I would like it and could use it, it's not working out, I don't expect it to work out, so I'm returning it. It's not a political statement.
  - nudge 17y ago
    He doesn't need to know you to be surprised by your point (b), which would be possible to work out without buying the thing. It is surprising. It is similar to someone buying a Porsche and then returning it because, among other reasons, it is a fast car. This is something you know before buying it. To return it to the dealership, saying "I don't like it, because it is fast", is quite surprising. Now, if you didn't know it was just another media consumption device - perhaps you thought you could also do some serious work on it - that would be different.
    - GHFigs 17y ago
      perhaps you thought you could also do some serious work on it If I can do work on the iPad, does that mean my work isn't serious?
swannodette 17y ago
http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1263033 http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1263033 If you are creative person (musician, visual artist, designer, writer), the iPad might very well be the first usable digital sketchpad for your medium. I tire of people saying the iPad is primarily for consumption; it's simply not true. It may not appeal to the computer hacker, but it certain appeals to many other kinds of hackers.
- mrkurt 17y ago
  I think it probably is primarily for consumption, as evidenced by the apps that it ships with. I have no doubt that visual artists can create pretty good work with one, but I think they'll generally prefer pen based interfaces. Especially if they have giant sausage fingers. :)
  - swannodette 17y ago
    I don't think it's primarily for anything. Apple doesn't ship any creative tools with OS X either. The iPad is what you think it is. I find it telling that geeks think it's primarily for consumption because they can't code in it- it's called tunnel-vision.
    - pyre 17y ago
      It also only can use Bluetooth to connect to devices. That limits one's ability to do things like edit HD video with it. It also limits the possibilities with respect to hooking a lot of things up to it (like musical keyboards, etc). Don't just assume the people are saying it's 'consumption-only' just because you can't program on it.
      - blasdel 17y ago
        It can currently import files from a camera via a SD or USB2 dongle
    - deleted 17y ago
      [deleted]
illumin8 17y ago
Sell it on eBay. They seem to be going for around $575+ for the 16GB model. It's not really a bad profit: getting paid $75 to play with a new toy for a week.
- mahipal 17y ago
  Careful! If he paid $500 + tax, then after eBay fees + PayPal fees + shipping costs, he's quite likely to take a loss selling it on eBay. It may still be less of a loss than Apple's restocking fee, though.
Bjoern 17y ago
You could always use it to upgrade your car. Getting a large display for e.g. movies, navigation etc. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rSnIXfoSU6I http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rSnIXfoSU6I

by akadien 17y ago

blhack 17y ago

What does the return policy look like?

akadien 17y ago
$50 restocking fee and two weeks to get it back to them.
- profgubler 17y ago
  If there is a shortage you might make more on ebay.
  - jm4 17y ago
    Or India: http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601205&sid=ag8hKSw8uuu8 http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601205&sid=ag8h...
- jrockway 17y ago
  Weird. Wouldn't it be free minus shipping if you had bought form Amazon?

troystribling 17y ago

That the iPad is consistently classified as a media consumption device seems an attempt to trivialize its significance by people who consider themselves power users. I agree that currently the use cases of most applications fall into this category, that it is expensive and I doubt you will ever do application development on a device of its form factor, but it is clearly not just a media consumption device. A few example applications are the two very nice musical instruments the Korg iElectribe http://www.korg.co.uk/products/software_controllers/iPad_iElectribe/sc_ipad_ielectribe.php http://www.korg.co.uk/products/software_controllers/iPad_iEl..., which sells for $10 while its HW equivqlent is around $450, and the MiniSynth Pro http://www.yonac.com/ http://www.yonac.com/ a fully functional FM synthesizer. Neither of these applications would have been possible prior to the iPad. Others are the drawing applications Brushes http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/id363590649?mt=8 http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/id363590649?mt=8 and SketchBook Pro http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/sketchbook-pro/id364253478?mt=8 http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/sketchbook-pro/id364253478?mt.... I also like the touch and hand drawing interface to OmniGraffle a diagramming application http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/omnigraffle/id363225984?mt=8 http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/omnigraffle/id363225984?mt=8. I think the majority of creative or power user applications will be for those with a complex control surface, such as the examples above. The large touch interface of the iPad is much simpler to use than a traditional mouse keyboard. Also when compared to Wacom drawing tablets http://www.google.com/products/catalog?hl=en&rlz=1G1GGLQ_ENUS240&q=wacom+tablet&um=1&ie=UTF-8&cid=1545184928933896623&ei=o5nES4G3EsL78Aax6bCtDw&sa=X&oi=product_catalog_result&ct=result&resnum=6&ved=0CDIQ8wIwBQ#ps-sellers http://www.google.com/products/catalog?hl=en&rlz=1G1GGLQ... it is competitive, at the iPad low end the iPad is about $200 more, though not quite as functional, the iPad does not have pressure or stylus tilt sensitivity but it is portable. If you are interested in developing these types of applications you have to have one. If you do not have one you will never see were the deficiencies are or know which problems to solve. The device as only been available for 10 days. I would expect it will take a year or two before the application space has been adequately sampled. Another obvious short coming, or opportunity, is with file synchronization and management. I am currently using dropbox, https://www.dropbox.com/ https://www.dropbox.com/ with ReaddleDocs http://readdle.com/products/readdledocs http://readdle.com/products/readdledocs, which works for reading. If documents are generated on the IPad you have to use iTunes, eMail or an application specific server for document synchronization. Neither of these is adequate. The typing problem you mentioned can be solved by a case that holds it an an angle, such as http://www.goincase.com/products/detail/CL57512 http://www.goincase.com/products/detail/CL57512. The number of viewing and use positions for the device is greater than that for a laptop. Also heavy duty typing can be handled with a bluetooth attached keyboard though for my needs the the onscreen keyboard has been adequate.

crux_ 17y ago
> That the iPad is consistently classified as a media consumption device seems an attempt to trivialize its significance by people who consider themselves power users. Not really. It comes from an idealism that technology (especially the internet) would, speaking broadly, shift our society away from a centralized model where the many are beholden to the few and towards something more distributed and egalitarian. If you cherish that goal, you're fairly likely to see the iPad as a step backwards -- it is not about the size of the step ("significance") but its direction.
- akadien 17y ago
  For me, the iPad does not provide more utility compared to other devices I use to warrant carrying around and maintaining yet another device (Yad? iYad?). If it did or I thought it would, I would keep it. That it makes me physically uncomfortable is another factor. YMMV.
- roc 17y ago
  I'd think if you truly cherish that goal (as I do) you'd have noticed by now that no single device or technology represents a step of any significance in any direction. It wasn't the existence of the internet that changed the creator:consumer ratio for the better. It was the use of the internet as such. And that use exploded thanks to any number of consumption-focused technologies along the way. Consider that even if no-one creates long-form text on an iPad, it's existence as a consumption machine might re-popularize the format and draw more creators to write for digital bookstores, shifting the creator:consumer relationship thanks to the ease of entrance (compared to dead-tree publishing). Or for a more proven example: consider the App Store. Reviled-since-inception by techno-freedom purists, its net effect has been positive for entire classes of software that are as-of-yet implausible via the internet. Though the store serves only these consumption-focused devices, the audience those devices attracted and the comparative low barrier for entry by creators has drawn creators and been a huge step forward. Windows tablets have had more pure potential to push the creator:consumer ratio forward for a decade and they've done essentially nothing. How useful is a world-view in which they're viewed as a step forward and the iPad a step back? All that aside, the core argument is still bogus. The iPad is getting a rap as a media consumption device solely because it's bad at text input without peripherals. Well, guess what? Any form factor is bad at some Arts without peripherals. And peripherals often dictate ergonomics. Keyboard/Mouse PCs suck at digital painting, a/v capture, a/v editing and any number of disciplines without peripherals. We don't pan them for not being a creative panacea out-of-the-box. And we certainly don't begrudge laptops their convenience, even though a digital artist has to lug around a cintiq to do decent work on the road, and is thus limited in use cases.

towndrunk 17y ago

I'm suprised you jumped in and bought one so quickly. Seems like "just another media consumpion device" could have been determined before purchasing.

akadien 17y ago
You don't know me, so why are you surprised? I thought I would like it and could use it, it's not working out, I don't expect it to work out, so I'm returning it. It's not a political statement.
- nudge 17y ago
  He doesn't need to know you to be surprised by your point (b), which would be possible to work out without buying the thing. It is surprising. It is similar to someone buying a Porsche and then returning it because, among other reasons, it is a fast car. This is something you know before buying it. To return it to the dealership, saying "I don't like it, because it is fast", is quite surprising. Now, if you didn't know it was just another media consumption device - perhaps you thought you could also do some serious work on it - that would be different.
  - GHFigs 17y ago
    perhaps you thought you could also do some serious work on it If I can do work on the iPad, does that mean my work isn't serious?

swannodette 17y ago

http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1263033 http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1263033 If you are creative person (musician, visual artist, designer, writer), the iPad might very well be the first usable digital sketchpad for your medium. I tire of people saying the iPad is primarily for consumption; it's simply not true. It may not appeal to the computer hacker, but it certain appeals to many other kinds of hackers.

mrkurt 17y ago
I think it probably is primarily for consumption, as evidenced by the apps that it ships with. I have no doubt that visual artists can create pretty good work with one, but I think they'll generally prefer pen based interfaces. Especially if they have giant sausage fingers. :)
- swannodette 17y ago
  I don't think it's primarily for anything. Apple doesn't ship any creative tools with OS X either. The iPad is what you think it is. I find it telling that geeks think it's primarily for consumption because they can't code in it- it's called tunnel-vision.
  - pyre 17y ago
    It also only can use Bluetooth to connect to devices. That limits one's ability to do things like edit HD video with it. It also limits the possibilities with respect to hooking a lot of things up to it (like musical keyboards, etc). Don't just assume the people are saying it's 'consumption-only' just because you can't program on it.
    - blasdel 17y ago
      It can currently import files from a camera via a SD or USB2 dongle
  - deleted 17y ago
    [deleted]

illumin8 17y ago

Sell it on eBay. They seem to be going for around $575+ for the 16GB model. It's not really a bad profit: getting paid $75 to play with a new toy for a week.

mahipal 17y ago
Careful! If he paid $500 + tax, then after eBay fees + PayPal fees + shipping costs, he's quite likely to take a loss selling it on eBay. It may still be less of a loss than Apple's restocking fee, though.

Bjoern 17y ago

You could always use it to upgrade your car. Getting a large display for e.g. movies, navigation etc. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rSnIXfoSU6I http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rSnIXfoSU6I