iPad Review

16 May 2010 | Apps | by Andrew Pierce

Welcome to our review of the Apple iPad.

For those of you who are not sure what the iPad is, please have a look out introduction to the Apple iPad.

However, for those of you who wish to find out more about this amazing device, please read on.

OK – So where do you start? For a device that is nothing but one amazing feature after another, it is hard to find where to begin – but let’s take a look at the exterior first of all.

Size & Weight
You can’t help but look at this device and think big iPhone, but not so large that it feels awkward to use.

The Wi-Fi model weighs in at 1.5lbs with the Wi-Fi & 3G just a touch heaver at 1.6lbs. For everything packed in there, that is an impressive feat!

It is also not overly large being 9.5 inches high, 7.5 inches wide and just half an inch thick.

Display review
The 9.7 (diagonal) LED IPS screen give a level of clarity that is beautiful. You look at it and it seems to say quality’! Offering the same MultiTouch seen on the iPhone, the backlit glossy screen is just an absolute joy to look at and use!

Capable of delivering a resolution of 1024×768, this is not so large that you can’t see what is going on, or so small that everything is in your face’! This is still considered the optimum resolution that websites are built on.

You will also be pleased to know that the screen is oleophobic coated so unless you try really hard, you will not be leaving finger prints all over the glossy black screen.

There is also the ability to display multiple languages and characters simultaneously.

This screen is a pleasure to look at… and we haven’t even got started on the good stuff yet!

Wi-Fi & 3G
With two main models available, weight is certainly not a consideration, but how you are going to connect to the internet should be. If you never envisaged yourself taking this outside of the house, Wi-Fi is the obvious choice. However, for those times that you want to take it out and about (and you will do!), we think that the iPad 3G model is a safer bet. However, please remember that if you do go with the 3G model, there will be network charges to be applied to this.

You can have a look how much the different iPAD models cost

Both iPad models have Bluetooth as well so there should be no problems with how to connect to other devices.

Now for the technical bit:

Wi-Fi model

• Wi-Fi (802.11a/b/g/n)
• Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR technology
• UMTS/HSDPA (850, 1900, 2100 MHz)
• GSM/EDGE (850, 900, 1800, 1900 MHz)
• Data only²
• Wi-Fi (802.11a/b/g/n)
• Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR technology

Wi-Fi + 3G model

Sensors and Location Features

As you might expect, the iPad is very similar to the iPhone in its offering of sensors and location sensing features.

For the location, you have a digital compass, Wi-Fi with both models offering Assisted GPS and Cellular.

The ambient light sensor will ensure that the screen brightness is just right, based upon your current surroundings whilst the accelerometer will ensure smooth rotation and movement for all those applications that support the features that this brings.

Processor & Capacity
Will the iPad cope with everything that is thrown at is? Quite simply, yes! The iPad is powered by Apple’s own 1GHz low power, high performance A4 system-on-a-chip (SoC). Apple were a little clever in the design of the A4 chip by embedding the 256Mb RAM in the chip itself (the same as the iPhone). This had two major benefits:

• Cut Power Consumption
• Faster access to the RAM (reduced latency)

This is a huge part of why the iPad can give you almost 10 hours use from just one charge! Impressive by any standards!

Storage on the iPad is available as either a 16Gb or 32Gb with 64Gb being available as a flash drive. Either way, capacity is plentiful for most applications!

Audio & Playback iPad review

The sound, as you would imagine, is more than satisfactory from the iPad. With frequency ranges from 20Hz to 20,000Hz, you will get lovely clear and crisp sound every single time.

The iPad supports the following audio formats:

• HE-AAC (V1)
• AAC (16 to 320 Kbps)
• Protected AAC (from iTunes Store)
• MP3 (16 to 320 Kbps)
• MP3 VBR
• Audible (formats 2, 3, and 4)
• Apple Lossless, AIFF, and WAV

Absolutely no shortage of options! Music, games & movies should never be a problem for you.

Also, being an Apple, iTunes works effortlessly. Just a simple tap of the iTunes icon and you are away – buy or rent movies and music that you fancy wherever you have an internet connection! The iTunes store is overflowing with content – something for everyone including a huge selection of HD movies and videos. Take your entertainment wherever you go!

However, if you require, then there are a number of wireless speaker sets that will just add to the pleasure of owning and using the iPad.

TV & Video

First, let’s have a look at the technical aspects of what the iPad can offer.

It will support 1024×768 with the dock connector to a VGA adapter. Using the Apple Component AV Cable, you can run from 480p to 576p. Use the Apple Composite cable, and you can get 480i to 576i… We find this quite impressive and combined with this screen, gives a wonderful deep, rich, picture with amazing clarity!

In addition to this, H.264 encoding will allow up to 720p with 30fps, AAC-LC audio up to 160Kbps, 48Khz and stereo audio in .m4v, .mp4 and .mov video file formats.

M-JPEG is available up to 35 Mbps at 1280 by 720 pixels with 30 frames per second. Audio in ulaw, PCM stereo audio in .avi file format.

OK – that’s the technical stuff out of the way. What is it like in the real world? The iPad delivers a beautifully sharp picture that you can watch from many angles, thanks to the amazing screen. We noticed no evidence of ghosting with anything watched. As you would expect from Apple, they have this down to a fine art. You will not be sorry!

Accessibility
Like the iPhone, the iPad has a number of accessibility options to make it as user friendly as possible. These include the playback of closed-caption content, Voice Over screen reader, full screen zoom, white on black display and mono audio.

Applications – E-Mail

E-mail is simply wonderful! Depending on how you are holding your iPad, either landscape or portrait, will give you a different view. Landscape will give you a split-screen allowing you to work though and manage your e-mail effortlessly.

When you are ready to compose your e-mail, a single tap will bring up the on-screen QWERTY keyboard, which is something to behold. You might expect a touch-screen keyboard to be ineffective or overly sensitive. Let me assure you, that you are in for a pleasant surprise. Writing on the iPad is not only easy, but feels very natural.

Once again, Apple have gone something perfect!

Applications – Safari / Web Browsing

Full page web-browsing on a portable device is nothing new. However, there are many ways to re-invent the wheel, and the combination of Safari and the iPad work beautifully together! Rotate the iPad through 90 degrees, and the page will rotate with you and then expand to fill the screen again.

Apple always aim to make everything as easy and intuitive as they can – and this is no exception! Using your finger to use a combination of pinch and zoom, double tapping to enlarge or shrink and the thumbnail preview screen makes browsing the web a joyous task.

Applications – You Tube

100 Million clips a day are viewed on You Tube. That makes it one of the most heavily used sites in the world. So you would expect to be able to have access to this content on the iPad, wouldn’t you? Well, you do, and the way the content is delivered is nothing short of excellent! With content organized in a new and intuitive way, it makes finding what you want even easier than before.

You want it in widescreen? Just turn the iPad to landscape and your clips will follow suit. And now you want to share a clip with friends and family? Simplicity itself! Just by hitting the Share link on any You Tube clip, the iPad will open up an e-mail with the link already in there for you. All you have to do is decide who to send it to!

Applications – Photos

Time to look at your photo collection in a different and more exciting light!

Hands up all those that don’t really enjoy sitting at a PC, moving the mouse all over the place, double click to open, find the cross to close, find the next picture… All this whilst sat in the comfort of your office chair!

In steps the iPad. You are sat on the sofa, feet up with the iPad resting comfortably on your legs or hand. You effortlessly flick through your photos with your finger on the wonderful 9.7 screen; tap the screen to open a folder and flick your way through them. Tap to open a photo and pinch & zoom your way through the photo, which incidentally, is about the most natural feeling way to do this.

Looking at your iPad photos is now something you want to spend even more time doing!

Applications – iBooks / eBooks

Devices to read eBooks are nothing new really, but yet again, Apple have excelled themselves with the wonderful clarity made available to you through the LED back-lit screen. Vibrant white pages with deep black text make reading an iBook even more comfortable on your eyes than ever before.

Want to read in bed? No problem at all! A quick setting change will dim the screen so that the white from the page is less harsh. A simple tab again will bring you back to the book you are reading. When it comes time to turn the page, either forwards or backwards, just tap the side of the screen or slide your finger to slowly drag the page, giving you an even more natural feel.

There are many setting you can also change to suit your ebooks reading requirements or to make it even more enjoyable. For example, hold your finger over a word to bring it up in the dictionary or Wikipedia. Other manufacturers could learn huge lessons by looking at how Apple do things to make the user experience more enjoyable.

Applications – Games

If it is available for the iTouch, it is available for the iPad. You can now play all of your favorite games on a screen that really lets you make the most of what is on offer. The built in accelerometer does an amazing job if you want to get behind the wheel of a car in Real Racing HD, for example.

Smooth 3D graphics mean that you will be spending even more time than before immersed in them. Apologise to your friends and family in advance of buying an iPad

What is our overall impression of the iPad? Wonderful, amazing, astounding technologically advanced… There are a plethora of words we could use to describe this device but quite simply, there is nothing on the market that can touch it for sheer entertainment value and the way it delivers this to you.

The Apple iPad – Entertainment the way it should be!

UPDATE 1: Jailbreak iOS 3.2 by Spirit for Windows and Mac users

UPDATE 2: Fresh iOS 3.2.1 for iPad can be jailbreaked by Commex JailbreakMe 2.o Star

UPDATE 3: Install apps and games ipa files to iPad with AppSync for iOS 3.2

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