iPad – Frivolous Gadget or Serious Business Tool?

My best 40^th birthday gift in June was the much heralded iPad, a gorgeous piece of design that I knew I wanted, but wasn’t sure quite why.

A few months on and it has found a new place in my daily routine of browsing, but I keep getting asked the question ‘Why would I want one?’ by people who I talk to about the device, and thought I would explain the way it has crept into my daily life.

Firstly, I have to say that I bought it with the excuse of needing to keep ahead of media trends and the latest platforms for Apps, etc, but I always wanted it for leisure mainly, so didn’t have great expectations for it as a business device.

What I have found though, is that for certain uses, presentations, browsing live websites in meetings, watching video and quick easy handling of email on the move it is just superb.  I was already a convert to the iPhone (it seems that most buyers come through this obvious route )and this follows that device seamlessly but with the obvious benefits of its size.

I have one regular monthly meeting where a finance character thinks we should all print out a 33 page excel spreadsheet every month, kill a tree and then shred the mountain of paper after every meeting.  I now simply keep the required excel and .pdf files on an email in my inbox and access them on my iPad, scrolling rapidly to relevant pages, and with the added benefit of being able to zoom into any line or detail under discussion.

Could I do that on my notebook? Yes, but the battery life is triple (I get 9-12 hours of video playback, or 7 hours of browsing from mine), and the iPad takes just a second or so to launch email, saving all the hassle with my decent but still fiddly Acer notebook.

But it is at home I find that the iPad comes into its own.  Whether you just want to make sure you haven’t missed any crucial out of hours client emails, browse news websites or research anything that you previously did on a laptop then I now reach for the iPad every time .  I saw a phrase that described a trend towards ‘scatter cushion browsing’; using multiple web browsing devices  all around the home, and this is a good way to describe how it works its way into your home.

Right now, it will be on the dining room table where I left it this morning, or my wife might be using it in the kitchen to watch a You Tube demo video on recipes.  It is also often on the coffee table in the living room, and when I find an offer on an email that I want to show my other half, I will take it outside or to wherever she might be.  Its completely unhindered mobility, tactile search and beautiful screen makes it my favourite device for browsing. 

All in all, the reasons I now love the iPad are:

• 10 hour plus battery life feels like it never needs charging
• Lovely graphics make browsing easier, and who needs a keyboard?
• Huge video & music storage is great for journeys
• ‘Always on’ start up makes logging onto emails a really simple and quick task

I think that the FT’s App is a lesson in the way publications can utilise the net in years to come, and tablets, whether Mac (who have sold 3 million units and rising! ) or on any other OS will be in every home within five years, but it is still mainly a leisure device for me, but one I wouldn’t give back if you offered me a great deal of money.

Will the iPad change the world?  No.  Has it made mine better?  Absolutely.