janes

A much better comparison would have been between a G3 and a MacBook Air. At least the AIR is a Macintosh.
Yes this is a ridiculous comparison.
Hell the first iPhone 3 had about the same power as a G3. Most of todays PHONES have more power.

BTW once I did the first "sync" of my ipad. I almost never connect it to my computer.
I am able to save any and all documents created on the iPad (form drawings to photos to written documents to video files) either to my computer (without connection) or to offsite servers (ie cloud). It's easy.

If I were looking for a Laptop. I would buy one.
If I were looking for a Pad based computing device I would buy an iPad II.

The advancement in technology seems to surprise The author.
I can't imagine why.

My first PC was an Eagle PC with 640K of ram that took 4 days to draw the Mandelbrot set.
I have an iPhone +APP that will do the same thing in seconds.
Is that a fair comparison?
No just an illustration of the advancement of some parts of the technology in use.

Have no doubt folks.
Your future may include a home based computer BUT it will not function without a connection to the world of servers beyond your doorstep.

Everything from applications to music to media of all sorts will live elsewhere...and be available anywhere.
Your "desktop" will be with you anywhere and everywhere.
There will be no need for local storage of anything.
If you things have changed since 1994 just wait until 2024.
YMF

I find that my iPhone 4 and iPad 1 are roughly equal when benchmarking using gauage.
My iPhone is consistently Faster than those numbers posted above. This is both with and without power applied.

I can't understand why everybody is so obsessed with a verizon branded iPhone!!

How many of you verizon wireless users have ever been able to get a phone which did not come "verizon" crippled? Most I suspect.
The BB is a great example. everybody in the world who has a Blackberry has access to the GPS function. For a long time curve owners didn't it. Why because Verizon wanted customers to sign up for their crappy navagation.
Same with WiFi.

You all think the iphone on Verizon will be a free and open (such as it is) phone?

You think you will be able to talk and surf at the same time? Nope.

The cold hard reality is that while not perfect, ATT has improved a great deal. I have had both. Verizon for many years since way before they were verizon. ATT for almost 4 years. steady improvment (los angeles area).

I am able to initiate a call in hollywood and keep it going all the way to LAX without a drop. (it did not used to be that way)

Verizon wireless operates a ssytem which is totally incompatable with the rest of the world. So unless APPLE builds a CDMA + GSM hybrid (there are RIM phones with this) if you go to europe Mid east africa you will need another phone to communicate.

Going to Verizon and their LTE system being the flagship LTE phone makes some sense. Watch for Verizon "value added" features which already are available on an iphone.


Personally, I would like to be able to buy UNLOCKED iphones (like in many countrys) and be able to choose the network.
The cellular system in the USA sucks. We have too many carriers with too many standards. It is stupid.

Beleive me when the iphone goes Verizon there will be a DRAIN on bandwidth that they may not be prepared for, they will edit standard features and try to charge for them.
This will suck.
YMY

Micro short term Karma.

YMF.

Same here except it was more of a threat. Do this or lose access...
It was working fine before and after.
Gmail exchange is another thing altogether. It is periodically out and in out and in but generally gmail has become a lot better than it was on iOS4 release day.
Ymf

Arnan.
The whole idea of the bumber is to ISOLATE the antenna from grounding out.
If a person can touch the antenna then LESS energy will be transmitted. IF a person is touching the antenna it inhibits the receivers ability because LESS energy is going INTO the receiver.
SO APPLES exposed antenna is actually a design fault that is why they are selling the "bumper" in order to ISOLATE the antenna.
So how does the phone work without it. Well If you are in an area with good coverage the phone works because it is extremely sensitive to RF the cell towers are and have become extremely sensitive too. Generally they are sensitive enough to overcome signal loss due to attenuation (touching an antenna causes attenuation) BUT if you are in an area where you are a mile from a cell tower the tower needs to transmit using MORE power to reach your phone and your phone needs to transmit with more power to over come the LOSS.
Either way the bumpers make sense. from a design POV they are UGLY but from RF POV they are necessary.

This I suspect was a WAR inside apple between RF engineers and physical design. the compromise is THE bumper!!

RF especially cell phone RF at 900 Mhz up to 1.9 ghz and above acts strangly. even things like humidity can have an effect. walls steel buildings glass with metal coatings human bones, and of course OTHER phones on different frequencys all can have an effect.
Try using the phone with Bluetooth OFF and wifi OFF. have a look at your "bars" then.

Apple and their "fix" may be a simple as fooling us into thinking that reception is better than it really is by manipulating the way that we "know" the signal strength.
The "bars" and how they are shown can be completely adjusted by the phone and may not truly represent the RF reality.
The best thing you can do is re install your phone AS a NEW phone.
Get a bumper. if this does not have the desired effect demand a new phone.
YMF

it is a good thing UK VAT is included. Man you guys are taking it pretty hard aren't you?

Look those of you who say the iPad is not useful, really are not in a position to make such a broad generalization. The Ipad's utility, like a cell phone's is a matter of the end users need and ability to make use of the technology.
I am not sure that apple is trying to REPLACE anything, certainly NOT laptop machines. atleast not yet.
No they are looking toward a time when we do not have to carry around all of our data with us and are able to access it remotly from the cloud. Clearly content creation is not it's primary function YET. when you have a good writing application in the cloud you will be able to really write with it. when the concept of remote computing matures the iPad or somthing like it will be the defacto way to access the software as well as the content.
too many of you are hung up on the short view.
Apple on the other hand has it's eyes on the LONG VIEW. The Long View is that Apple will sell a hellofa lot of iPads. Others will come out with similar devices, our data will live elsewhere and so will the software we use to create it.
I am looking towards a future where (for example) OPEN OFFICE and ALL of it's functions are available to iPad or iPad like devices by a simple swipe of a finger. you will be able to create ANY kind of document or media that you can make on a PC except that you will never loose it and other people will be able to work on it too.
A lot of this is allready comming online NOW. This is BABY stuff compared to what we will be seeing in just a few years.
So hold on to your money if you must thete will be a better iPad out next year that you will not be able to resist.
Yaesumofo

Anybody who takes their iPad with them and doesn't grab a LOCAL data only PAYG sim card DESERVES to pay ATT's inflated rates.

http://cow.neondragon.net/index.php/pay-as-you-go-internet-data-tariffs-the-good-bad-and-ugly

It is just WAY too easy and inexpensive to get a PAYG sim.

I wonder what kind of deal Apple is setting up for European iPad users.
Why, once in place couldn't a visitor take advantage of that once inplace?
Apple would do well by all iPad users to arrange a roaming agreement.
Yaesumofo

I would like you to give this iPad to me.
Thank you.
James aka Yaesumofo

I would wait for the "next gen" iPhone to make any hardware changes if I owned a 3g (vs a 3gs) Why? because there is likely some very compelling new hardware.
My contract keeps me in an iPhone 3gs at least until the next iPhone comes out. NOTHING could get me to change hardware early.

Enjoy what you have. otherwise stop crying and start buying.
YMF