New Apple iPad. (Apple)My new
iPad is going back to the store.
I paid $600 for the 32GB Wi-Fi model, and although I like it well enough, I don't think it's worth the money.
Before the Apple faithful take my head off, allow me to explain --
and to note that I'm keeping my original iPad. Also, I have such mad
love for my iPhone 4S, I want to cook it breakfast every morning. You get my meaning; this isn't just wayward iPad-bashing.
When Apple announced the new tablet, I was underwhelmed but intrigued. I'd skipped the iPad 2, so I figured I "owed" myself this upgrade. Plus, it would be a business expense; I do write for a blog called iPad Atlas, after all.
Mostly, though, I got caught up in the hype. After reading gushing
praise for the new iPad's Retina Display and blazing processor, I had to
see what the fuss was about.
The fuss, it turns out, was more overblown than a Kardashian wedding.
The screen? Yep, it's nice. Does it make my eyes leap from my skull and
dance a marimba cha-cha? No. Neither does it cure cancer or introduce me to supermodels, despite what some drooling bloggers intimated.
The new iPad is admirably peppy, though I never found my original
iPad to be slow. My kids enjoy messing with the built-in cameras, but
that's a luxury I certainly don't need. Using an iPad to snap photos or
video is like driving a monster truck to the grocery store:
uncomfortable and impractical (to say nothing of showy). The only thing
that I'll actually miss is big-screen FaceTime -- but for those moments I
can always Skype on my laptop.
4G LTE? Again, nice, but I have no need for it. And that
leaves...what? The new iPad is a little slimmer, a little faster, and
little easier on the eyes than the original. Not enough, Apple. I want
my $600 back.
As fate would have it, a Kindle Fire
arrived shortly after the new iPad. (It's a loaner, due back to Amazon
in about a week.) As you're no doubt aware, it's a hair less expensive:
$199.
Yes, it has a smaller screen, less storage, no cameras, no 3G/4G, no
Bluetooth, and so on. But you know what? I love the little guy, because
it better suits my needs.
For one thing, it's way more comfortable for reading. I consume a lot
of e-books, but I find the iPad too big and cumbersome -- especially
for reading in bed. The Fire is small enough and light enough that I can
lie on my side and grip it one-handed. (Shut up.)
I also like magazines, most notably Entertainment Weekly, Time, and
Wired. The app versions of all three work nicely on the iPad, but I like
the Kindle Fire (Android) versions even better. Maybe it's because I
was expecting a shrunken, ill-fitting stab at accommodating the smaller
screen, but the formatting is just beautiful. Reading these mags on the
Fire is a pleasure.
Music, movies, TV shows, games, apps -- the Kindle Fire excels at all
this stuff, just like the iPad. I'm streaming "This Is Spinal Tap"
(courtesy of Amazon Prime, an uneven but compelling service) as I type
this, and it looks exquisite. Granted, the paltry 8GB of storage limits
how much media I can take with me, but I'm mostly an around-the-house
user anyway. (That's why I get by just fine with Wi-Fi.)
I also like the Kindle's modern, media-centric, dare-I-say-sexy interface, which actually makes Apple's UI seem rather dated.
So here's the upshot: for one-third of what I paid for the new iPad, I can accomplish 95 percent of what I want to do with a
tablet,
and with a smaller form factor I find more appealing. Different strokes
for different folks, of course, but for me this is a no-brainer: I'm
returning the new iPad and jumping into the Fire.
Your thoughts?
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