I decided to get an iPad. It was my first experience getting something from Apple on day 1. 

The experience was seemless and easy. I was home in less than 10 minutes once I got into the store.

Here are my initial impressions after setting it up and using it for about an hour.

Setup

The iPad surprised me when it offered to restore from my iPhone backup!  This was a great time saver as all of my apps and data could be ported over without too much trouble and/or typing. Some apps required me to re-enter passwords but for the most part I was up and running after the initial sync which took about 20 minutes, mostly due to photos and audio.

Sound

I played a video I had downloaded via one of my yahoo pipe video feeds.  Melissa Etheridge doing a ditty for Cable TV show-Nurse Jackie.  I was very impressed with the sound quality and volume.  Unlike the iPhone, the speakers on this thing almost make the iPad throb with bass.  Not too much to be uncomfortable but enough to make listening to music enjoyable even without hadphones.  I was very impressed here, mostly because I had _very_ low expectations.

Screen

The iPad screen as you probably know is strikingly sharp.  Photos and videos really come to life.  The screen of course shows fingerprints like nothing else but when the screen is clean and the resolution of the media is good, you're enjoying a very rich experience.

Apps

Speaking of resolution, this is an area where some apps are disappointing.  As I've been writing an iPhone app and using the iPad simulator, I had no idea at how poorly regular iPhone apps look when blown up to fullscreen [2x] mode on the iPad.  The text is almost unreadable it's so blocky and ugly.  The pictures below don't show how ugly it is when you're face to face with it.

YUCK. I sure hope all iPhone apps come out with iPad versions soon. It's really not much more trouble to resolve this issue and I'm pleased that so many apps are already at day 1 with iPad versions. There were a few notable exceptions though....Tweetie [I'm looking at you @atebits and @faceook ]

Aside from the resolution issue for old apps that haven't been upgraded, the selection of iPad apps is amazing considering it's day one.  A big surprise for me was Netflix.  Apparently you can watch movies and TV on your iPad with your Netflix account!  I'm considering reactivating netflix for just that reason.  Score one for netflix.

It's interesting as a software developer to see how some apps really shine when used on the iPad as opposed to the constrained iPhone. 

Evernote blew me away with it's performance on the iPad.  I'm a big evernote user. In fact, I pay for it!  I constantly complain about the iPhone app being crash-prone and slow.   On the iPad it flies and I'll definitely be using it more on that platform.  Of course, the first crash on the iPad was with Evernote but I'll still use it.  It's become a huge part of my workflow.

Maps on the iPad really shines.  Photos that are geotagged [e.g. taken with iPhone or put on a map at flickr] show up on a large map that fills the screen.  It really makes the utility of geotagging and any apps that are map-enabled evident.  Instead of the small iPhone screen displaying the map, you have a large useful map that is multi-touch enabled and responsive.

and speaking of speed...

Speed

The iPad really shines here.  The processor on this unit is 100 percent faster than the average iPhone.  Fully loaded, the iPad still responds lightning fast to user touch. It's a pleasure to use whereas I often descibe the iPhone as the iWaitPhone.

Keyboard

The onscreen keyboard was a big red flag for many early reviewers who felt it could be a problem.  I find it much more useful than the tiny iPhone keyboard.  Where the iPhone keyboard is cramped and error prone, the iPad keyboard is large and comfortable to use.  I find I make much fewer errors on it and can type much faster than on the iPhone [which isn't saying much really as I find the iPhone keyboard a chore to use].

Well that's my first read of the iPad. I can definitely say I"m very impressed with the device although the Apple case for it, not so much.  For $39 dollars I was very disappointed with the fit and value. I may return it in fact.  Any good case recommendations? Shoot them my way.

Back to x-Coding!