retroremakes
January 27th, 2010, 18:40
http://cache.gawker.com/assets/images/4/2010/01/500x_jbxk80z8.jpg (http://cache.gawker.com/assets/images/4/2010/01/jbxk80z8.png)One of the biggest lingering uncertainties about the iPad (http://i.gizmodo.com/5458292/the-apple-tablet-is-here-and-its-called-the-ipad) has been how exactly one uses it. Well, now we know, and it's surprisingly familiar.
As anticipated (http://gizmodo.com/5452501/the-apple-tablet-interface-must-be-like-this), the operating system is best thought of as an evolution of iPhone 3.0. That means that apps are running the show, with the same tray at the bottom and the same accelerometer capabilities.
To access the screen, you slide to unlock, just like on your phone. The display is practically identical (though biggie-sized, obviously), with a Home button situated at the bottom. You call up apps the same way you do on your phone, and they automatically go to full screen. You can also swipe through pictures and pages, again just like on the iPhone.
But how does it feel in the hand? Well, it's an inch thin and weighs just 1.5 pounds, so it's definitely easily portable. And since it's intended to be a portable device, it's got a pretty crazy proposed battery life: ten hours of video playback, and one month of standby charge.
A primary concern has been how the keyboard will work (http://gizmodo.com/5446652/how-will-we-type-on-the-apple-tablet). Our money was a split-screen keyboard, but it turns out they've opted instead for to copy the iPhone again here, with a keyboard taking up the bottom half of the display when called up. It's not meant for your thumbs, apparently—you're expected to type on it as you would a physical keyboard.
http://cache.gawker.com/assets/images/4/2010/01/500x_d0v1tt0j.jpg (http://cache.gawker.com/assets/images/4/2010/01/d0v1tt0j.png)
The music player is a "hybrid" between the iPhone and iTunes.
For web surfing, the page renders just like a browser, with navigation buttons on top. For email, you can bring a pull-down menu of the inbox .
http://ads.pheedo.com/img.phdo?p=1 (http://ads.pheedo.com/click.phdo?p=1) http://a.rfihub.com/eus.gif?eui=2226 http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/gizmodo/full?d=H0mrP-F8Qgo</img> (http://feeds.gawker.com/~ff/gizmodo/full?a=x_1ZaYSv6KE:p01JY-tShlU:H0mrP-F8Qgo) http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/gizmodo/full?d=yIl2AUoC8zA</img> (http://feeds.gawker.com/~ff/gizmodo/full?a=x_1ZaYSv6KE:p01JY-tShlU:yIl2AUoC8zA) http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/gizmodo/full?i=x_1ZaYSv6KE:p01JY-tShlU:D7DqB2pKExk</img> (http://feeds.gawker.com/~ff/gizmodo/full?a=x_1ZaYSv6KE:p01JY-tShlU:D7DqB2pKExk) http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/gizmodo/full?i=x_1ZaYSv6KE:p01JY-tShlU:V_sGLiPBpWU</img> (http://feeds.gawker.com/~ff/gizmodo/full?a=x_1ZaYSv6KE:p01JY-tShlU:V_sGLiPBpWU)
http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~4/x_1ZaYSv6KE
More... (http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/x_1ZaYSv6KE/how-to-use-the-ipad-interface)
As anticipated (http://gizmodo.com/5452501/the-apple-tablet-interface-must-be-like-this), the operating system is best thought of as an evolution of iPhone 3.0. That means that apps are running the show, with the same tray at the bottom and the same accelerometer capabilities.
To access the screen, you slide to unlock, just like on your phone. The display is practically identical (though biggie-sized, obviously), with a Home button situated at the bottom. You call up apps the same way you do on your phone, and they automatically go to full screen. You can also swipe through pictures and pages, again just like on the iPhone.
But how does it feel in the hand? Well, it's an inch thin and weighs just 1.5 pounds, so it's definitely easily portable. And since it's intended to be a portable device, it's got a pretty crazy proposed battery life: ten hours of video playback, and one month of standby charge.
A primary concern has been how the keyboard will work (http://gizmodo.com/5446652/how-will-we-type-on-the-apple-tablet). Our money was a split-screen keyboard, but it turns out they've opted instead for to copy the iPhone again here, with a keyboard taking up the bottom half of the display when called up. It's not meant for your thumbs, apparently—you're expected to type on it as you would a physical keyboard.
http://cache.gawker.com/assets/images/4/2010/01/500x_d0v1tt0j.jpg (http://cache.gawker.com/assets/images/4/2010/01/d0v1tt0j.png)
The music player is a "hybrid" between the iPhone and iTunes.
For web surfing, the page renders just like a browser, with navigation buttons on top. For email, you can bring a pull-down menu of the inbox .
http://ads.pheedo.com/img.phdo?p=1 (http://ads.pheedo.com/click.phdo?p=1) http://a.rfihub.com/eus.gif?eui=2226 http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/gizmodo/full?d=H0mrP-F8Qgo</img> (http://feeds.gawker.com/~ff/gizmodo/full?a=x_1ZaYSv6KE:p01JY-tShlU:H0mrP-F8Qgo) http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/gizmodo/full?d=yIl2AUoC8zA</img> (http://feeds.gawker.com/~ff/gizmodo/full?a=x_1ZaYSv6KE:p01JY-tShlU:yIl2AUoC8zA) http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/gizmodo/full?i=x_1ZaYSv6KE:p01JY-tShlU:D7DqB2pKExk</img> (http://feeds.gawker.com/~ff/gizmodo/full?a=x_1ZaYSv6KE:p01JY-tShlU:D7DqB2pKExk) http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/gizmodo/full?i=x_1ZaYSv6KE:p01JY-tShlU:V_sGLiPBpWU</img> (http://feeds.gawker.com/~ff/gizmodo/full?a=x_1ZaYSv6KE:p01JY-tShlU:V_sGLiPBpWU)
http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~4/x_1ZaYSv6KE
More... (http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/x_1ZaYSv6KE/how-to-use-the-ipad-interface)