Designing for the iPad – or any other tablet

Friday, April 1st, 2011

It’s rare that a book comes along that profoundly changes the way I see the world. I shan’t bore you with a list here but my latest revelatory experience came from an unexpected source.

I fully acknowledge that the iPad, in either guise, is a superb piece of design and the £399 price tag for the base version of iPad 2 is extremely competitive compared to the prices of other tablets, or even the launch price of the original iPad. For me, however, I simply cannot justify the cost and don’t fancy the prospect of being locked into the Apple/iTunes dimension (knock another £100 off, on the other hand, and I’d grin and bear it!)

My interest lies in developing Android smartphone applications and apps for credible Android tablets (should any emerge), so you might imagine that a book called Designing for the iPad would hold little appeal for me. Indeed, it’s a sign of my desperation for any guide to Android tablet development that I was prepared to give it a go. I’m glad I did – it is without doubt the best tech book I’ve read in the past couple of years.

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Novatech nTablet review: first look

Wednesday, October 27th, 2010

The tablet trend is in full swing and while we’re used to seeing these machines sidle up to the iPad with either Windows or Android in tow – we’re trying to block the JooJoo, with its proprietary, Linux-based OS, out of our minds entirely – devices that include both of these operating systems are rarer beasts.

Despite their relatively scarcity, the Novatech nTablet seemed instantly familiar – and a few minutes with the device revealed why. While it has a shiny Novatech logo along the bottom bezel, it’s actually the same device as the ViewSonic ViewPad, which we examined back in September. (more…)

Where is Spotify for eBooks?

Tuesday, October 26th, 2010

The eBook market should be booming. Prices for readers have never been lower and there are plenty of services available. Yet somehow the model just doesn’t seem to work – and the reasons seem horribly familiar.

The publishing industry’s current attitude is like a flashback to the music industry as it was dragged, kicking and screaming, into the digital age.

We’d all love access to hundreds of books and travel guides in a lightweight, easy-to-read device with a long battery life, but I also want a decent selection of books at a fair price, with the same level of freedoms offered with a paperback. That’s where the services from everyone from Amazon, to Apple and Barnes & Noble fall over.

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Why I prefer Ubuntu 10.10 Netbook Edition to the iPad

Monday, October 18th, 2010

If you’ve been following my Twitter feed, I must apologise for my rather uncouth language the other week. I was trying to get something done using an iPad (specifically, testing the Parallels Desktop 6 remote access app), and was finding the whole process intensely frustrating.

I should admit that I come to the iPad pre-irritated by Apple’s attempts to swaddle the thing in a wholly unearned sense of awe. A “magical, revolutionary device”? Please: the telephone was a revolutionary device. It’s like when some 20-year old would-be Apprentice declares “I am the best manager you’ll ever meet”: I want to smack him twice, once for the arrogance and again for the delusion.

And once I started actually trying to use the iPad, I hit practical irritations too. I couldn’t find the download I wanted on the website (all such links being sequestered away in the App Store); I really couldn’t get on with the keyboard; and, now I’m used to Android with its “back” and “search” buttons, I felt lost in the OS and its apps, scared to press a button for fear of never finding my way back. (more…)

Free Apple iPad: no thanks say workers

Thursday, September 23rd, 2010

You might have thought that bribing your workforce with a free Apple iPad would be a good way to get them motivated. Guess what? You’d not only be wrong, but you would be ‘I’ve just wasted a bleedin’ fortune on iPads that nobody really wanted’ wrong according to a survey of more than a thousand office workers.

The organisers of the 360° IT Infrastructure Event (ironically enough, a name that totally failed to motivate me into attending this week) asked office workers about the technology that would motivate them into doing a better job. Perhaps somewhat surprisingly, only 1% said an Apple iPad. A 57% majority kicked in with a boring old new laptop while 35% wanted a new desktop (who are these people?) and a slightly more tuned-in 21% wanted a smartphone. But, and it has to be worth repeating myself here, only 1% said an Apple iPad.
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Apple iPad in-depth: as a work tool

Friday, June 11th, 2010

Using the iPad as a work tool really depends on what you’re planning to use it for. If you use Flash in any capacity that rules you out. If you edit video that’s another no go. Manage databases? It’s probably not for you either. In fact, the list of jobs the iPad isn’t suitable for is actually quite long. (more…)

Apple iPad in depth: for Mac lovers only?

Wednesday, June 2nd, 2010

Though to the outside world I may appear to be a Mac lover, I’m really not. Despite some, shall we say, compelling evidence in the photo above, I generally use my Macs and then discard them when they’re too old. I think that probably makes me more of a Mac philanderer.

However, I’ve been asked whether iPads are really just for Mac lovers. And the answer is a decisive no: the iPad requires no previous Mac experience or love whatsoever. Sure, some of the applications are similar – even the icons are identical – but that is where the similarity ends. (more…)

Apple iPad TV ads start already…. on the BBC

Tuesday, June 1st, 2010

Few will be surprised that the Apple iPad has started getting heavy promotion on TV, but more than few eyebrows might be raised that the free advertising is coming courtesy of the BBC.

Since the Monaco Grand Prix a fortnight ago, F1 presenter Jake Humphrey has traded in his normal clipboard for the Apple tablet. Now whenever Jake’s on screen, he’s seen brandishing the iPad, with the Apple logo embossed on the back of the device being beamed to millions of viewers worldwide.

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Buying an Apple iPad: a very personal shopping experience

Saturday, May 29th, 2010

Alan Stonebridge is a staff writer on PC Pro’s sister title MacUser. Despite this privileged position, 6am on Friday morning found him queueing to buy one of the first Apple iPads on sale in the UK. Here, he shares the unique shopping experience.

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Apple iPad in depth: the travelling experience

Friday, May 21st, 2010

I have a large laptop bag that will probably look rather familiar. It’s black, well padded, has more pockets than I know what to do with – but I’ve been very happy with it for the year or so I’ve had it. In this bag I carry my laptop, spare battery, charger, assorted paperwork and a plethora of other stuff. Fully loaded it weighs about 7.3 tonnes and, after a day lugging it about, leaves indents in my shoulders.

And since my Apple iPad arrived I’ve only taken the bag out once. (more…)