The iPad is revolutionary

Originally published in GP magazine .

Written for GP magazine around 2010. This is the version I submitted - the published article may have been edited.

It’s just a big iPod. Don’t you look silly holding it up to your face to make a phone call? I’ve heard all the jokes, but it is just jealousy. The iPad is revolutionary. What Apple have done is understand that we don’t need a full desktop to take with us everywhere, and that your finger is the best input device.

I’ve used a variety of mobile devices, including armoured laptops and pen-driven smartphones, but they have all been slow and cumbersome, taking ages to come on and as complicated as my desktop. Many argue for netbooks, saying they have a keyboard. Well, the iPad is lighter and more portable than most netbooks, it looks cool and has great battery life - days go by without me charging it. I’ve even stopped taking the charger with me everywhere I go. The other killer feature is the App Store, through which there are hundreds of great apps that do pretty much anything you want and a few things you didn’t know you could.

Going through a routine I have developed when demonstrating it to people might be useful. It comes on instantly at the press of a button. I start by showing movies - I have several saved, and the screen is amazing and the sound good. I then pop into the photo app and flick through pictures, zooming in and out with a gesture, turning from portrait to landscape to show them off. I then move to the iBooks app and show the books you can download and read, and how great they look on screen. I then show a comic app that redefines the way comics are read.

Next, getting serious, I show the amazing calendar, email and contacts applications, all of which sync beautifully to NHS mail. I’ve never been more in control of my work, especially with a great Filofax-like to-do app that syncs across all my computers.

Then I show Evernote and Dropbox, both of which are free to use and, if anything, are better on the iPad than a computer. If you don’t know these programs, read my previous GP reviews - they are great productivity applications.

Finally, I show them the word processor and slideshow apps. The on-screen keyboard is a dream to type on - but there is a keyboard dock, and you can use Bluetooth keyboards if wanted.

This is the only bit where it slows down a little. As a Mac owner I’m used to Pages and Keynote, Apple’s equivalent of Word and PowerPoint. Both are great and can read and write Microsoft files, and have great features including one that allows you to connect your iPad to a projector with fancy features. But if you are addicted to Microsoft Office there will be some relearning needed, as there aren’t any Microsoft applications yet.

Lastly, I show some of the amazing games and a Disney read-along story that my daughters love - and not found on any netbook.

It’s a justifiable business expense - think about buying all your partners one.