iPad 3G Review

ByMike Moffit

When I witnessed the unveiling of the iPad five months ago, I immediately recognized the device as a way to satiate my desire to live in the future. So far, my 32GB Wi-Fi+3G model has delivered. My experience has brought me to look upon my 7 month old MacBook Pro as a dinosaur and to enjoy tapping on this 10-inch screen with the same excitement that I had 3 years ago upon making my first call with an iPhone. Multitouch is a truly magical technology.

I chose the 3G model because my cell phone plan is “grandfathered” and not worth the upgrade. I thought that a device which affords such mobility ought to be used with an internet connection that allows for such freedom. As an added bonus, the iPad’s 3G data plan lacks the 2-year contract that is so often expected when purchasing a cell phone or even a data plan for a device such as a MacBook. Likewise, the available rates are approximately half the cost of a comparable plan from either AT&T or Verizon ($15 for 250MB as opposed to $30 for 200MB). The unlimited data plan, which is now “grandfathered” offered a limitless supply of data for $30/month, but has since been replaced by a $25/month plan offering 2GB, with each subsequent gigabyte of data setting you back another $10. Before you get all up in arms about AT&T taking away your freedom to be a data glutton, AT&T would like to inform you that 98% of their current data plan subscribers fall into this category.

I decided to subscribe to the more capacious of the two plans, not knowing what my personal usage might be. I was glad I did when I quickly hit over a gigabyte of usage within a week and half of streaming NPR and watching a movie over Netflix using 3G. The process of subscribing to this service was painless. First, one need not be online via a Wi-Fi hotspot to initialize the 3G service. Everything happens right over the cell network. I typed in some personal info, a credit card number, and within seconds my iPad was activated. 3G has been extremely enjoyable. I have used it in Vermont, Massachusetts, and Connecticut without a hitch. While traveling, I appreciated the accurate and responsive GPS chip in the 3G iPad and using Google maps over 3G to locate a pharmacy and an address I hadn’t visited before.

There are a couple of things I’d like to share as an iPad adventurer and early adopter (one of over 2 million, at that). I am very appreciative of the extremely long battery life. I have found that it can easily be charged every other day depending on use. I can also say that I am pleasantly surprised at how great it is to have a truly portable computer. Mobility means slinging my iPad over my shoulder, hanging it off the door, or bringing it to the grocery store just because I can. You may have deduced that I have a case that could be mistaken for a man purse (something I would never have considered before the iPad). Another observation I might add is how much I do not miss the fan noise and heat I had come to expect from my MacBook Pro.

As a sales associate on the retail floor at Small Dog for the past 3 years, I can definitively say that I have never seen any product sell this fast. It seems as though many others share my desire to exist in the future.

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