What's Not To Like About New iPad? 617
Hugh Pickens writes "With 3 million sold over the last week what's not to like about the new iPad? Michelle Maltais at the LA Times does a good job of putting together a compendium of gripes about the new device, justified or otherwise. Most people thought that Siri on the new iPad was a gimme; instead it has a scaled back version — dictation. 'If you want Siri, buy an iPhone. Plain and simple.' The new iPad is a little heavier than the iPad 2, thanks to the better graphics processor and more powerful battery. At one-tenth of a pound heavier that really doesn't sound like much, but it can start to matter if you hold your iPad in one hand for long periods or have any kind of repetitive stress injury. Apps designed for Retina display can be up to five times bigger and it's not just a problem for owners of the new iPad. Legacy owners of the original and iPad 2 who have these apps get to feel the pain too, since updates aren't device specific." The list continues, below.
"The hot-selling device can reach up to 116 degrees during intensive use, according to a test by the Consumer Reports. PCWorld tested 43 tablets and found that the third-gen iPad takes the longest — almost six hours — to fully recharge its battery. You'll love the blistering speed of the 4G iPad, you won't love blowing through your monthly data allotment in just 24 hours if you use streaming video. A number of customers have been complaining on the Apple Support page about a weaker Wi-Fi connection that in some cases will hold a connection for only a few minutes. And last, whatever you do, don't drop the new iPad. From waist height, the damage to the third-gen iPad is fairly extensive. 'Only a small portion of the screen survived.'"
of any of these, only the battery thing means much (Score:5, Informative)
I have one, the charge times are quite slow. To be honest, too slow. Don't get me wrong, you can live with it, but it does also matter in some situations. And on top of that if you decide to just use your buddies' iPhone charger instead of the included one, you could charge it all through the work day and only pick up 25% charge or something. With the iPad 2, the iPhone charger was an acceptable back-up plan to the stock charger in a pinch. Unless your battery was almost completely dead the iPad 2 would charge completely off an iPhone charger overnight.
The weight isn't really any different, the reason it's so uncomfortable to hold for long periods is the same as any other iPad, there's simply no good way to hold it without blocking or touching the screen.
The drop situation is the same for all iPads, even if you drop tested an older one and got different results, you just got lucky on the old one. The screen is a huge expanse of glass on any iPad, you have to be careful.
WiFi has been the same on the iPad 3 as the 2. I even used mine side by side with a 2 for a bit and the results were the same.
Re:of any of these, only the battery thing means m (Score:5, Informative)
It's got a 43Wh battery, that's nearly twice the capacity of the iPad 2, and about 1.5 times the capacity of the 11" MacBook Air.
Re:"1/10 of a pound" (Score:0, Informative)
Google is wrong. You cannot convert weight to mass.
Re:Fragmentation (Score:5, Informative)
For me the fragmentation comes down to whether it has a camera or not. As an owner of a original iPad, I was more and more disappointed at apps that didn't include me: many photography apps, and some games just wouldn't work. GTA3 wouldn't work without crashing before I even finished the first mission.
This will only get worse as people who are developing apps aim their performance goals at the newer devices. It's similar to when you try to put a new windows on your old machine - sure, it "works" but it is slower because you're still running on old hardware.
Re:of any of these, only the battery thing means m (Score:4, Informative)
What it really means is that Apple has hit the limit for the amount of current they can put through their proprietary connector. They've already exceeded the spec for what's allowed through the USB end of their cables. A lithium based battery should be able to be fully charged within 2 hours, absent such external constraints.
Re:Coming Soon (Score:4, Informative)
The $599.00 android tablets are $200.00 overpriced.
How about the $400 Galaxy Tab 10.1 (lighter, bigger screen and nicer to use IMHO than iPad v. any)?
Re:Fragmentation (Score:5, Informative)
Android is a nightmare for (game) developers. So many wildly varying specs, some missing major features (no FPU, no multi-touch!)
iOS has been a lot nicer, with only 3 screen resolutions to support, and all devices with FPUs, multi-touch, and PowerVR GPUs. But the new iPad is a big change, with it's huge resolution, making universal apps less practical.
Re:of any of these, only the battery thing means m (Score:5, Informative)
and 1/2 the power the battery my laptop has and it operates for 8 hours on a charge and takes 2 hours to fully charge while using it.
Using a 3 pound 'brick'.
Physics, folks. It runs your life.
Re:"1/10 of a pound" (Score:2, Informative)
Re:Fragmentation (Score:2, Informative)
Incorrect –note, pt, not px. Apps target 320x480pt, even on retina displays, it just happens 1pt == 2px, all you need to is provide images with the same name but @2x appended, and your app will work out of the box. Similarly, with the iPad, add @2x images (which probably exist already due to iPhone), continue to do all your UI work at 1024x768 points, and everything is hunky dory :)
Re:Best Part is.. (Score:5, Informative)
Apple refurb [apple.com] products have the same warranty as the original product, and for the iPad that also includes:
Re:Par for the course? (Score:5, Informative)
Of course there's no BT profile for BT microphone headsets and mice. This is consistent with Apple practice.
- A microphone headset would let you make private calls with VOIP apps, which might mean less calls on your iphone, or even not need your iphone at all if properly implemented.
Only problem with your conspiracy theory is that it's complete and utter bullshit, since the iPad 2 and up do support HFP: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT3647?viewlocale=en_US&locale=en_US [apple.com] along with every other profile the latest iPhones do except Phone Book, since it can't actually dial a phone.
You can use a BT microphone headset with Skype / Facetime just fine.
Re:personally (Score:5, Informative)
Overpriced, proprietary, fragile, hot, hyped! (Score:3, Informative)
Apple's products overwhelmingly try to lock you into their marketplace and keep you out of the innards of their devices.
Many lower end Android tablets can be converted to a main stream Linux distribution (with a little work).
In practice, "zero gravity" means (Score:5, Informative)
part of the confusion (Score:5, Informative)
I'd bet part of the confusion is people charging via the USB port on their computer vs a wall charger.
USB ports on a computer are limited to 500mA, wall chargers are typically around 1000mA, though some I've seen go up to 2000mA.
So, someone who is saying "gee this takes forever" is likely the person who is charging via their PC.
The capacity I have seen listed for the iPad3 is 14000mAh. If you were to do a dead battery to fully charged via PC only, it could take almost 28 hours. (though batteries charging rates are not linear)
Re:Par for the course? (Score:5, Informative)
It is for any kind of drawing/graphics app. As it stands, on the multi-touch devices, you can only 'draw' or 'paint' with the resolution of a six year old with a box of crayons. Even if you buy a third party stylus, which do exist. They have a big spongy end like a crayon.
Granted, graphic apps are not something the Apple tablets are designed to do. But people like extensible features so they have more control over their gadgets. Apple clearly doesn't like that.
Isn't all this Apple-Hate getting a bit tiresome?
Actually, there are lots of styli that are finer-tipped from Adonit, Kensington, Addesso, "RooCase" (who has a cool one with a "finger-size" at one end, and a very fine tip at the other), and also ones from about a zillion nameless Chinese companies (but don't let your utter laziness in not spending the 30 seconds on Google, like I just did, stop you from spreading tiresome lies) ; but if you saw what the guy from AutoDesk drew in 90 seconds [youtube.com] on the iPad with his finger, you'd STFU about the "six-year-old" crap.
A poor craftsman blames his tools.
And I dare say that, far from being "restrictive" or "controlled", the iPad has been one of the single-most "enabling" devices to come along in quite some time.