Comments on: The iPad Goes to Alaska http://gigaom.com/2010/05/05/the-ipad-goes-to-alaska/ Sun, 19 May 2013 10:04:10 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.com/ By: Mark Horgan http://gigaom.com/2010/05/05/the-ipad-goes-to-alaska/#comment-438053 Fri, 21 May 2010 19:20:58 +0000 http://jkontherun.com/?p=62991#comment-438053 I agree with you. Having to setup devices in confined spaces is awkward and time consuming. When out I try and bring as few devices as possible and try and go for as much integration in my laptop as I can. For example I have a 500GB hard drive rather than carrying around a 2nd external hard drive. I don’t have integrated 3G, though tethering is probably less hassle than swapping a SIM card between devices.

]]> By: PRETHOUGHT http://gigaom.com/2010/05/05/the-ipad-goes-to-alaska/#comment-438052 Sat, 08 May 2010 02:55:43 +0000 http://jkontherun.com/?p=62991#comment-438052 Just to be masochistic, I setup my broadband card & mini10v hackintosh as a hotspot to the iPad fired up maps and went for a drive. It stutters while attempting to do triangulation and it occasionally asked me to make a figure 8 motion to reset the compass. Not what I call convienient. If your getting an iPad get one with 3G. If your road tripping you could buy a month service then cancel, it’s well worth the extra $130.

]]> By: Scott http://gigaom.com/2010/05/05/the-ipad-goes-to-alaska/#comment-438051 Fri, 07 May 2010 01:33:13 +0000 http://jkontherun.com/?p=62991#comment-438051 @thenikjones: I’ve just started using the iPad Dropbox app, and I find it to be a reasonably good solution so far, although to be fair all I’ve done with it is move PDF files into GoodReader. I wish that it preserved the filename in the transfer, instead of assigning a random string of digits, but that’s my only complaint.

]]> By: James Kendrick http://gigaom.com/2010/05/05/the-ipad-goes-to-alaska/#comment-438050 Fri, 07 May 2010 00:16:58 +0000 http://jkontherun.com/?p=62991#comment-438050 I am using SugarSync to do that very thing. The iPad version of SS is integrated with iWork apps and other third party apps. Works well for me.

]]> By: thenikjones http://gigaom.com/2010/05/05/the-ipad-goes-to-alaska/#comment-438049 Thu, 06 May 2010 23:33:52 +0000 http://jkontherun.com/?p=62991#comment-438049 ^^^ Scott,

I’m in the netbook camp as I like to use USB keys and copy pics from camera to USB keys for backup. The iPad is lacking here for me.

Anyway, that’s beside the point. I have a question I’d like to ask – how do you find working on files and getting them on/off the iPad? I have used DropBox on my Touch and found that it works but is just, well, kludgy and awkward. I’m very surprised Apple didn’t set something elegant up to complement the iWorks apps. My company won’t let us install iTunes on work PCs so, when using my netbook, I can do work using USB keys. How would I do this on an iPad? Not a loaded question, I’m genuinely interested – if the Gen 2 version had a front-facing webcam I would be tempted to get one.

]]> By: Scott http://gigaom.com/2010/05/05/the-ipad-goes-to-alaska/#comment-438048 Thu, 06 May 2010 22:23:37 +0000 http://jkontherun.com/?p=62991#comment-438048 Agreed. There will be Android tablets as well, of course, but it seems like everyone is making an Android tablet, which suggests that we’re setting up for another race-to-the-bottom situation where the only distinguishing characteristic is price. That’s a market no one wants to stay in for very long. (There are one or two genuinely innovative Android tablet designs, like the Adam, but I’m increasingly skeptical that they’ll ever come to market.) WebOS, on the other hand, could develop into a premium tablet that competes for high-end user experience with the iPad, and the resulting innovation will be good for everyone.

]]> By: Chris K http://gigaom.com/2010/05/05/the-ipad-goes-to-alaska/#comment-438047 Thu, 06 May 2010 21:08:22 +0000 http://jkontherun.com/?p=62991#comment-438047 Generally, I carry a Mifi because it’s a better solution than draining the battery of my smartphone just to keep my netbook running. (I also don’t travel with a BT keyboard at the moment.)

As for the netbook vs. iPad argument, well, I’ve used both, and the iPad’s weaknesses, while obvious, are more than made up for by a few things:

Higher resolution screen.
Faster wake-up time. While a sleeping netbook wakes up quickly, and a hibernating netbook wakes up quickly enough (especially when you use an SSD,) they’re just a little shy of instant.
Better portability. I hate to admit it, but thin actually does matter. I can carry the iPad around far more easily than I can carry a netbook.
Keyboard. (This one’s a little loaded…) The EeePC keyboards SUCK in terms of layout. The iPad keyboard sucks in terms of tactile response, as it has NONE. It turns out that the layout matters more to me than the feedback, though, as I was able to touch-type on a landscape-mode iPad right away. This becomes even more significant when I can choose to carry an even better keyboard if I want. While I can do that with a netbook, I’m still carrying the built-in keyboard, so I’m now ADDING bulk for usability.

Sadly, most netbooks are little more than cheap laptops in every sense of the word. The ultra-portable market hasn’t had a high-quality product with decent ergonomics since the pricepoint dipped below $1500.

]]> By: prethought http://gigaom.com/2010/05/05/the-ipad-goes-to-alaska/#comment-438046 Thu, 06 May 2010 19:24:41 +0000 http://jkontherun.com/?p=62991#comment-438046 That’s not true. They’ve had some bombs. Most recently the MacBook Air and the AppleTV. What sets Steve Jobs apart from the rest is the ability to throw all the chips on the table and take a big risk. The bigger the risk the bigger the reward.

Hopefully HP’s big gamble pays of with Palm and we’ll see those that use iphone OS and those that use webOS. Like Miller and Bud or Coke and Pepsi. Choice is always nice.

]]> By: Scott http://gigaom.com/2010/05/05/the-ipad-goes-to-alaska/#comment-438045 Thu, 06 May 2010 18:22:01 +0000 http://jkontherun.com/?p=62991#comment-438045 What that suggests is that the iPad owners you know have specific work that demands more computing power than the iPad provides, which says as much or more about the work they do as it does about the capabilities of the iPad. The definition of “real” work will be different for different users; I certainly have no problem using my iPad for real work.

]]> By: prethought http://gigaom.com/2010/05/05/the-ipad-goes-to-alaska/#comment-438044 Thu, 06 May 2010 16:29:17 +0000 http://jkontherun.com/?p=62991#comment-438044 I’ve been using the on screen keyboard and it works flawlessly. I rarely make a mistake and I don’t really look at the keyboard. I only wish you could re map the keyboard so more often used keys could be brought up as opposed to clicking the alternate keyboard all the time.

Like all things Apple you’ve got to love the instant on as opposed to pulling a Windows box out of hibernation.

Really all you need is a 3G iPad. Done.

Oh and “S” it is totally about the reducing the number and the weight. It’s about being able jump on in an instant and stop in an instant.

I used a mini10v running Snow Leopard and have to balance on my knee to type and hope I didn’t knock the broadband card out of place. Not something you could wip out and work and walk then put away. The iPad 3G is the new way of getting things done. The WiFi version is pointless not sure why Apple even offered separate option other than to make the starting price $499.

Pulling out a keyboard, firing up a MiFi on top of your computing device is not ultra portability. It’s masochism.

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