what do you do with your ipad?

[June2009]

heya!

I've been looking at the kindle and dh suggested I get an ipad instead as it has more functions than just reading a book on.
What else do you use your ipad for? The rice difference is quite big so I have to make sure I would be using it for more than just reading books iyswim.

thanks!

I use it for everything. I use it as a mini laptop. It's great and so portable!!

do you have the 16 GB or 32GB? just wondering if the difference is really noticeable and if anyone has already ran out of space.
I'm thinking if you can download films doesn't the space run out really quickly?

does it have a sd card clot to add memory to?

that should say "slot, not clot"...
I'm going to have a better look on the apple site.

I have the 32gb but only because DH bought it and he always goes for the biggest! I would have been happy with the 16GB. No SD card slot.

I have a 32Gb
I use it all the time.
Mn and Internet, books, games for the dcs, solitaire, magazines, organizer , shopping lists and reminders....
I have only had it two weeks.

Biggestbproblem is everyone nicks it. And it does odd spelling correcting thing...

Flippen heck I lie DH bought the 64GB.

Oh the spell correction had led to some funny messages!! Kids love it, I hide it.

It is the nirvana of shiny things, I love love love mine and polish the screen every evening before bed!

I use it for all that Pag mentions and for keeping dd amused.

I have the 16gb and haven't run out of space but to be fair it's only a couple of weeks old.

Yes, I too am a big fan, and have never had an Iphone. Also a laptop replacement for me and so much nicer to use - portable, doesn't get hot.

You do still need to be able to connect it to a PC or Mac, like you do with an ipod to upload music / photos etc, so doesn't completely do away with my laptop which I now only use for work.

• General web surfing
• Magazines on subscription
• Child distractor
• Watching stuff on Iplayer
• Portable digital photo viewer
• As an Ipod, speakers are good enough to play background music

Get a bigger one, false economy getting the smaller one, especially if you have or get to have large Itunes or photo/film library.

So far have managed without a SIM card and (stupidly expensive) data-plan, as only download stuff/use web on wi-fi at home.

Can you get word processing and spreadsheets on Ipad, and can you print from one? I'm hoping Santa will bring me one.

I spent about an hour finding free books. I click on my library sometimes and look at all the books.

I LOVE the expandy thng ( I have all the technical terms) . If I leave the house without my glasses I can still read or use the Internet. So brilliant. And get good close ups of frocks in vogue ... All lovely

Yep you can print as of yesterday!

I'm off to speak sternly to dh for only getting me the 16gb

It doesn't have an SD slot but you can get an adaptor for SD cards so you can download photos directly

I have the 64Gb - have lots of Dr Who & Buffy episodes on it, it's about half full.

I have a lot of games, mostly word/puzzle type rather than action type, also a lot of books both on iBook & the Amazon Kindle app - and of course I MN on it.

I also have an app called Sound Note which records as you type and when you play it back and touch a word it jumps to that point in the recording - really useful for meetings.

Can I just ask -has anyone updated to ios 4.2 yet and did it go smoothly?

What is this word processing of which you speak?

It has the bubblevwrap game and if you click on the ads on vogue it links you to the prada website and it Winnie the pooh talking books...

Spreadsheets. Pah

Pag, you make me laugh on a regular basis. In a good way of course.

You're absolutely right though. I've got a perfectly good laptop for all that worky stuff.

I want the shiny gorgeousness that is the iPad, even if it's just a big iphone.

Rusty, I, or to be fair dh updated for me, last night.
No problems at all.

I am now printing and multi-tasking like a pro!

Not sure if you are still deciding June2009 but if you are and your budget can stretch then I definitely recommend the iPad.

It is without a doubt the gadget of the year.

It is one of those devices where you truly will not appreciate it until you own one for a few days.

I have the 16GB model and have filled only half of it. I have lots of films, music, apps & books. I took it on a business trip to London the other week instead of my laptop. Made life so much easier.

The beauty of it is the fact its instant on, light (compared to a laptop) and battery life is about 8 hours use. This means I only need to charge it every couple of days.

My friend warned me that as soon as I get it, i'll lose it and he was right. Despite initial resistance from the family over the price, the GF and the kids all love it and most of the time I get it back when its low battery.

It's SO easy to use that our 3yr uses it regularly. He navigates the menus, chooses the games he wants. It's great! Unlike a PC where he's constantly demanding this or that.

Finally Angry Birds HD is a must have app. Arguably worth the price of the iPad on its own!

you can switch off spelling correcting in Settings, pagwatch

One more question, how do you connect it to your pc?
Is there a way you can have all your mp3s on your pc and access them from your ipad without having to copy them?

The same way you connect an iPod really. Ie. it comes with a cable and you connect it to any USB socket and you install iTunes (free) onto your PC.

When you say without having to copy the MP3's, do you mean play the MP3's on the ipad wirelessly, without having synced them? There are ways to do this but I wouldn't recommend them. The iPad does a brilliant job of syncing MP3's with iTunes. Why change? To be fair I rarely listen to MP3's on my iPad. Too busy twiddling with other apps!

Tonight is a case in point why i am totally converted. DD was babysitting, so I lent her the iPad to take with her. It had 30% charge left. She babysat for 5 hours, ok she wasn't on it solid but she watched a film, a TV show and surfed the web for some time. It still came back with juice left in it. Try doing that with a laptop!?!?

so I am now the proud owner of an ipad :) thank you for your help deciding on it!

someone on here mentionned they had spreadsheets on theirs, which app did you download? and can you get word/powerpoint as well?

I've used Documentstogo but that's £10 and i resent paying for it.

I've heard Numbers is a good excel compatible spreadsheet but again its a tenner.

There are some free ones but they don't seem all that.

Don't forget that you can use Google Docs for free and it works with the ipad.

To be honest I've never really wanted to edit a spreadsheet or write/edit a word document on my ipad. It's way too cumbersome.

I have just downloaded evernote for the ipad and promptly added it to my iphone and imac as well. It is truly amazing. Truly truly amazing. I think its actually going to change my life.

It basically just lets you make and tag notes. But you can sync them all wirelessly so write shopping list on ipad and then view it on your iphone when in the shop. I also took a photo of a recipe and tagged it so i can check the ingredients remotely as well. You can cache webpages and take voice and text notes. You can also create 'notebooks' to share with people eg you could have a project and a to do list and tick items off so the other person can see what you have done. Also its free!!

Get it!

Angry birds also amazing!

I've just downloaded iDisk, which is on my Macbook and the iPad, and syncs everything - contacts, calendar, documents, notes so if for example I add something to my diary on the iPad it will automatically update on the laptop, it's fab. Now all I need is an iPhone! The iPad is great, I use it far more than I thought I would when I got it. And Google Earth with the touch screen is just incredible.

I just got mine for Christmas, so haven't done a lot yet.

It is great for reading newspapers. The Ipad apps are really well-designed.

It's also good for watching Iplayer - great for getting on with cooking etc, while still watching TV.

If you are used to an Iphone, you will find it a much easier version. The battery lasts for days rather than just a few hours of the iPhone.

Can anyone recommend any apps to help my 5 year old with reading and Reception-level maths? I have searched online but keep getting American versions; does anyone have any British versions?