Confessions of an iPad user
I can remember watching the original iPad media event, "Cool device, but who the heck would really want one of those things."
Fast forward to the iPad 2 launch day, "Me, I want one of those things." and came home with a brand new 32G iPad 2, and absolutely love it.
That brings us to November 2011, I'm tablet name dropping to my girlfriend about the iPad, Android and PlayBook tablets. I've decided I'm going to get her a tablet for Christmas and I'm trying to get a feel for which one she wants. And yes, I'm guilty, I'm extolling the virtues of the iPad trying to lead her down the walled-garden path.
She will have none of that, for her, it's a PlayBook or nothing. She's a torch user. Forgive her, for she knows not what she does. OK I'll get her a PlayBook for Christmas. Her loss.
A few days later I'm on a somewhat long out of city drive and I get a call from her, "The PlayBooks are on sale for $199". Holy Crap, that's $300 off the regular price. Remembering the HP TouchPad fire-sale, I knew I would need to get one right away they'd be out of stock and I'd never get her one.
So I GPSed the nearest Futureshop, pulled in and headed directly to the tablet area. There were three 64G PlayBooks left and four salesmen talking with customers who were hmmmmming about getting one. Finally one of them cracked, the salesman unlocked a glass cabinet and pulled out a 64G PlayBook. There's my opportunity, I leaned over, "You may as well take out another one while your at it."
Got one, she'll be thrilled.
A couple weeks later I happened to be in TheSource and they had a 32G PlayBook. "Hmmm, that price is really too good to pass up, and my iPad really is to big and bulky to be portable. A 7" tablet has it's merits." I bought one for myself.
Well I absolutely love my new PlayBook. The bezel gestures make so much sense, I now hate that darned stupid iPad home button. Connecting to the PlayBook over WiFi and accessing the file system with Windows Explorer is to die for. Swipe to bring it out of Standby. And what is it with the iPad's silly single icon height for managing paused apps, there's a whole screen to use, like the way the PlayBook does it.
The thing is great, and it's portable.
I still use my iPad occasionally and chuckle to myself when I want to close an app by swiping up from the bezel, and then remember I need to press that darned stupid home button.
My PlayBook is quickly becoming my "goto" device.