I like the device very much but it is not perfect. The thinner sides tend to hurt my hands if I hold it a long time. I prefer the chassis on the I-Pad 1. The blunt shape is more comfortable to hold.
In the previous post I talked about the Smart Cover at length. I don't recommend it. It tends to want to come off as you use the device and I prefer something I don't have to keep messing with. I have already mentioned how it doesn't want to stick to the back of the device with the magnets when you fold the cover back out of your way. It doesn't give you any cover for the back of the I-Pad 2 at all. I know that there is stuff back there you don't want to cover up, like a speaker and a camera. Despite this, I recommend that you look at some of the cases that are sure to be produced by non-Apple suppliers. The most important thing to me is still the fear of the slick back of the I-Pad causing me to drop it.
I tried the camera out today and found it wonderfully simple to use and the pictures and videos are excellent. All you have to do is tap the app icon for camera and this neat lens thing opens like a portal from a Star Wars movie. Then you see what the camera sees, appearing on your I-Pad screen. When you're ready,push the button with the red light above the action button which is used to turn the I-Pad on, and you have a picture. If you hold your finger on any object on the screen the camera will focus on that area. I have yet to discover how to zoom it. It was a joy for me to operate as I have an expensive camera here which cost almost as much as the I-Pad and I still can barely use it after five years.
On the screen with the camera are a couple of arrows in the top right corner. If you tap them the screen swings about and you are looking through the camera at yourself. This is super cool and dramatic the first time you do it. When it did this I went through the deal where I signed up for Facetime. This is the feature where you can chat with someone and ogle them at the same time. Very cool, I'm sure, although I don't have any one with Facetime who I can interact with. I suspect that this technology is the wave of the immediate future and will be on all new phones sold within a year or two.
All this activity led me into trying the video camera function and I found it just as simple and intuitive as the still camera function. After I tried this, it was time to use my just-purchased app called I-Movie. I made a movie out of a couple of videos, a few stills and a song within a few minutes. The whole thing was a delight to use. You would like it. I often make movies with a Windows program on my PC and I think that this system, like most things Apple, is easier to use, more old guy friendly, than Apple's competitors. I will say that I have not used I-Movie enough yet to make a good review.
I took a couple of pics with the I-Pad 2 camera that I plan on posting. One is of my faithful rainbow pig whom I have mentioned in the past. He sits atop my bookshelves and watches me as I write and blog. If you wind him up he will walk and snort and wiggle his nose. The other pic is of Smokey, a bear that was carved from a chunk of wood with a chain saw. Not by me. It was a gift.
A final word on the Smart Cover. Sometimes something is cool technically without being cool functionally. I think that the Smart Cover should be called the Semi-Smart Cover or the Not Dumb Cover. Perhaps the Not Quite Adequate Cover?
From the author's green retreat, I'm CE Wills.
Comments
Post a Comment