Danielle Moss // The Blog: June 2010

Join us in a moment of silence for sweet baby Cohen.

Tuesday, June 29, 2010

Winner and some big news! Well, it's big to me!

Thursday, June 24, 2010

Where have I been the past week?!

Friday, June 18, 2010

The almost at 2000 followers giveaway!

Sunday, June 06, 2010

If you have stopped by my blog before, it is likely that you know about my love affair with all things Apple. From my computers to my iPhone and now my iPad...I love it all.

I am in no way trying to "show off" my new toy, but a few people asked me to write a review of my iPad, so here you go. Please keep in mind that I have not even had it for a full two days, so this is my "I just got an iPad and I'm having lots of fun seeing what it can do" review.

Me & my iPad.

I have the most basic wifi model, and am happy that I chose this one. I could not see paying more for the 3G, and then paying another $14.99 for a limited data plan or $29.99 for unlimited data each month. If the money is not an issue for you, I say go for the 3G. I would have, but I just didn't have to have it. I'm sure it would be fun though. My cell phone bill is expensive enough.

A few people mentioned that they were unsure if they needed an iPad but were considering it. I was the same way since it made its debut two months ago. Here is how I justified getting an iPad, and what I plan to do with it.

I design for a living. I am always connected to something. It just made sense.
I am moving 2000 miles away from my family, and will likely be doing a lot more traveling to come back for holidays, special events, and just to visit. Having an iPad will make traveling a lot more enjoyable.
I can carry books, movies, TV shows email, etc on one little gadget. I love that.
I can carry my portfolio wherever I go. I already have most of my scrapbook kit previews saved to my iPad.
I will be able to watch TV/movies in bed. Or anywhere, for that matter.
They were sold out, and someone happened to be returning the basic model {the one I wanted} at the exact moment I asked if one was in stock. It was a sign.
I love all things Apple.
I didn't actually pay for it. It was a gift.

Now let's talk about what this fun little thing can do. I'll start with a photo of my home screen. Pretty, isn't it? Of course, you can customize what apps are on the home screen, and can scroll to additional screens, just like you can with the iPhone.

Since the iPad came out, I said that I would start reading if I got it. iBooks is a great free app. The photo below is a screen shot of my bookshelf. You can see that I have Eat Pray Love and a complementary copy of Winnie the Pooh. To purchase a book, you simply click "store" {top left}, choose your book, and buy it. iBooks run about $10 each, and there are a few free books, too.

There are also apps for Kindle and Barnes & Noble. I have not tried out either one, but love my little iBook-shelf. I wish I could change the bookshelf design. That would be fun. You can display a list as well, and I actually prefer that.

Below is a screen shot of one of the pages of Eat Pray Love. I have to tell you about some of these features. You can see that "God" is highlighted. Why? Because you can bookmark the exact word you leave off at, and pick up right where you started when you are ready to continue. You can also click on any word and instantly see its definition.

And let's face it. Turning an electronic page is fun.

Movies! I purchased The Holiday starring Cameron Diaz for $10 on iTunes. Yes, I own the movie on DVD, but now I have it with me wherever I go. So when I fly to Chicago this month, I can turn it on if I decide to watch it on the plane! If you have your go to list of movies you can watch again and again and again, how perfect to have them with you when you're bored?

You can also rent movies on iTunes. For $3.99, you download the movie, and have 30 days to watch it from the download date. I did this on my laptop, but again, much easier to use my laptop for designing, and iPad for movie watching. From the time you start playing the rental, you have just 24 hours to finish, so you want to start it when you know you will finish the whole thing.

You can also purchase episodes of TV shows for $1.99. I would not ordinarily do this, but did buy an episode of Housewives when I went to Chicago in Feb. $2 for an hour of entertainment on a flight? Definitely worth it. I just purchased my 2 favorite episodes of Friends, as well. I would only buy things I know I can/will watch more than once.

You can watch in landscape mode so the entire screen is full. I just happened to have it this way.

Netflix. If you have a Netflix account and {like me} do not have a DVD/Blu Ray player that allows you to watch movies instantly, an iPad is a bit nicer than watching on a laptop. I can just curl up in bed with my iPad and select something off my instant watch queue.

The free ABC Player app is pretty fantastic. You can instantly watch any ABC shows that are available online. Last night, I watched part of the Bachelorette in bed. I will not have a TV in my bedroom in the new apartment, so this will be a fun feature to have.

Want to blog from your iPad? There's an app for that. You can even add larger photos to your posts. Not the same as blogging from a laptop, but much easier than blogging from an iPhone.

There are also lots of games, but I am not much of a gamer. I did purchase Words with Friends because it is $2.99 and I love scrabble. There is a pass and play feature that I played last night. You can also play other friends with the same app, no matter where they are located. Pretty cool.

Text+ allows you to text people from your iPad for free. Love it.

IM+ {I have the free version that shows ads because I would rather see ads and not pay anything} allows you to connect to any chat service, and shows all your contacts in one list. So if someone were pathetic enough to have Google Talk, Yahoo Messenger, AIM, and Facebook chat, they could connect to all of those at once. I'd never do that. No... ;)

I have found one flaw with the iPad. My iPhone now feels very awkward and insignificant. Much like the great Sketchers vs. Prada backpack debate, I like my iPhone, but I love my iPad.

All in all, I give the iPad a very enthusiastic 2 thumbs up & highly recommend it.