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My iPad has just arrived and as I unpack it I thought I’d jot down a few notes of my first impressions.

• It’s smaller than I expected. Think US Legal size rather than A4.
  

  Web browser on iPad

• It’s exquisitely engineered and exudes quality. The brushed aluminium back, crisp machined edges, oleophobic glass screen; it’s simply perfect.
• It comes fully charged and ready to play. Much better than “plug in and charge for the first 12 hours”.
• I’m surprised it doesn’t come with a set of ear buds.
• It requires iTunes v.9 to be downloaded to your PC and synced before you can power it on. You couldn’t buy it, walk to a coffee shop and use it.
• It’s a nice weight. Light enough to carry easily, heavy enough to feel solid.

Powering on

• It’s fast. The screen rotates quickly and is silky smooth. Google maps pinch and zoom is breathtaking.
• The larger screen makes even iPhone Apps more immersive. The scaling is quite good too.
• It has no GPS or cellular radio, yet its location awareness pinpointed my location spot on.
• The home screen works in landscape mode, unlike the iPhone.
• There are very few Apps installed as standard – less than the iPhone.
• Browsing the web is unbelievably good, like no browser I’ve used before.
• Its the perfect device for watching YouTube, although HD  isn’t supported. The mobile quality video shows up on the larger screen.
• Surprised there aren’t stereo speakers given its size. Even the Nokia N95 managed to squeeze them in.
• There’s a handy physical switch to prevent screen autorotation if you wish.

The downsides

• iTunes. Something has gotta be done about iTunes. It’s like it was developed by a different company. I’ll save my rants for another day.
• The dock connector is on the wrong edge in my opinion. This is a predominantly landscape device, and the dock should allow it to sit this way.
• It takes a while to figure out how best to hold it.

iPad unboxed

After 24 hours

• It starts to feel a little bit heavier after using it for a while. I’d rather have weight and a metal case than a lighter plastic case though.
• There’s an astonishing number of iPad Apps already out there. Add to that the huge iPhone library and there’s a massive software library for it.
• A very few companies are charging a premium for an iPad App. Why? It takes no longer to develop. Are you listening Firemint? (Flight Control for iPhone = 59p. Flight Control HD for iPad = £2.99. Are you kidding me?)
• The overwhelming majority of iPhone Apps that offer a special iPad version offer it for free.
• There are a surprising number of websites that have already moved to HTML5, and so embedded video works. The BBC however still shows “you need to install Flash to view this content”.
• The oleophobic screen doesn’t seem quite as repellent as the iPhone 3GS, but it may be that you hold it more.
• The on-screen keyboard is surprisingly good to use once you’ve found a position that works. One handed typing is better than two thumbs for me. I wouldn’t want to write an essay on it, but that’s not what it’s for.
• The battery life is outstanding.
• The big battery takes a long time to charge with even a powerful iPhone adapter (which has double the power of USB charging). You really need to use the 10W iPad adapter.
• Push notifications continue to come through even on standby. My slight concern about no “push” without the 3G model has been allayed.
• Apps often have a different interface depending on the orientation to show more or less content, most notably YouTube. This works well.
• It’s very slightly less stable than iPhone but much more than a windows PC. I’ve had Safari crash once, and a couple of Apps. None have required a reboot.
• Instant-on is the way it should be. I powered on my laptop when I got home and went to make a coffee while it booted up.

Where did they put the computer?

I tried using it for taking notes in meetings; it’s a little less obtrusive than a laptop but can be more challenging to find a comfortable position. It came into its own when I sat in Starbucks to read the news, watch some video reports while sipping a coffee. I’ve always felt a bit of an idiot opening a laptop in a coffee shop, but this is more like reading a book. It feels very natural, enjoyable, and you really feel like you’re holding something special. People who try it out seem indifferent until they hold it for themselves. If I knew what evoked this tactile desire, I might be as successful as Jonathan Ive.

So is it an iPad or an iFad ? I wonder what people will use it for. Early signs for me are more encouraging than I thought. I think it might fill a gap in the same way that no one saw a need for a handheld mobile web browsing device 5 years ago, but now find very useful. It’s nicer to use than an iphone – in fact going back to the iphone for browsing the web at home feels like using a toy. The iPhone’s screen is necessarily small, but the iPads larger screen is much more comfortable to view. It’ll be interesting to see how much I use it in a month’s time. And maybe the battery will be flat by then.