Using an iPad2 with a wireless keyboard for travel?

[Bestwifeever]

Just go retro--get a cheap little Garmin or Tomtom for your navigation needs and take the non-3g iPad out of the process.

 

[Meadbh]

Just go retro--get a cheap little Garmin or Tomtom for your navigation needs and take the non-3g iPad out of the process.

Actually, I agree. Less driver distraction and real time data.

 

[explanade]

I have to tell you, the iPhone 5 navigation is way more slick than my Garmin.

If I don't have to pack a Garmin in the future, that will be a big win.

I think the iPad Mini which they're going to announce next week may be a pretty good GPS device (though maybe not so easy to mount, perhaps too big a screen for the driver to use -- different story for kids in the back).

 

[Pharmmgr]

Have you considered a Mac Air? I've have and love the iPad, using it right now I prefer a more classic laptop design for work type stuff.

http://www.apple.com/macbookair/

 

[Nords]

Thanks for everyone's iPad suggestions. I think this is going to work out just fine. Ironically in a week I'll be right back in the Houston airport next to the Brookstone store where I first saw the Bluetooth iPad keypad and wondered if this would work. Then I'll be able to do a side-by-side keyboard comparison.

You can perhaps save a screen of something like Google Maps from a desktop, as a PDF, and load it onto something like iBooks or some other app. Which will open PDF files.
You can even zoom in and out but it will be pixelated as you zoom in. You can take a series of screen shots at different zoom levels to show more detail.
Even without a GPS chip, iPad may be able to give a good approximation from wifi networks.
For instance I have a wifi iPad 3 and it gives a pretty good location from my wifi network and those of my neighbors. That is how Find My iPhone tracks iPads, iPod Touches, even MacBook pros.

Or you could take the screenshots of maps from any ipad mapping app - the screenshots automatically are saved as photos on the iPad. Just hold down the power and home buttons at the same time for a few seconds and the screenshot is saved in photos.

I'm trying all of these options, and we'll see how connectivity works between Houston & San Antonio. It's only a few inches apart on the map-- how hard could WiFi coverage be? But I'll also have old-fashioned hard-copy analog charts to plot a hand DR if necessary.

The "Pages" word-processing app is exactly what I need for writing up blog posts and e-mails. It's not going to work for the Great American Novel, but that's not why I go on travel. I should be able to take notes on USAA talks, though, and write it up as the day goes on. With photos, too!

I was also able to figure out how to load all my PDFs and eBooks on the iBook shelves. Why they consider "eBook" to be in a different collection from PDF, and hide the PDFs in a separate place, I'll never understand.

The biggest "problems" I have are remembering Mac keyboard commands (instead of Windows keyboard commands) and getting over my phobia about touching the screen. Maybe that's why it's called a "touch"screen...

 

[explanade]

I believe eBooks are formatted so that each page will be consistent across apps, devices, maybe to the book.

PDFs are not formatted so the page breaks may be all over the place.

 

[Nords]

Well, the iPad2 with a Logitech wireless keyboard was a raging success. I've already lost them.

Our Houston residence only had broadband through an Ethernet cable, not a wireless modem, so that was a bust for the iPad. (I couldn't get the iPad to receive the Ethernet Internet data over an ad-hoc peer-to-peer network. It could see a laptop P2P broadcast just fine, but the laptop wouldn't act as a wireless router.) This points out the benefit of having a 3G iPad, even if it's just to make sure that you can do backups.

But in San Antonio (with hotel WiFi) and at USAA (with huge WiFi broadband for 25 bloggers) the iPad did great. I was able to type 100 WPM on the keyboard, and I could switch effortlessly among applications. At one point USAA was demonstrating a small quad copter in the room (roof-inspection tech). I was able to quickly snap a few photos then keep typing. I could post to Facebook and tweet and do all the other things that bloggers do during a conference. (I wonder how we listen to the speaker?) Battery life was great-- during an eight-hour day I'd still have 30-40% left without a charger. I could also walk around with the iPad (no keyboard) as a camera or a rough notepad. That'd probably work better with a stylus for handwriting, but I didn't really need to take notes on my feet.

However my downfall was... our daughter. Her Macbook has taken a huge beating over the last three years of high school & college, and it's already on its second (third?) hard drive. The clamshell magnets no longer automatically put the laptop to sleep when you close the case, and the battery is running awfully hot. It still works, but it's on the warning track.

She naturally saw Dad's iPad/keyboard as the solution to her problems. Light, rugged, no hard drive, long battery life, easy to take notes or snap photos. She "borrowed" it for a project meeting and a couple of classes, and she was hooked.

While we were waiting at the airport for the flight home I stopped by the Brookstone store where this whole idea got started six weeks ago. Their keyboard/case is $150+tax, a bit more than the Logitech keyboard + iPad2 case. Functionally they were about the same, but I like the way that the Logitech keyboard is the same size as the iPad screen-- the two of them form a nice clamshell when you close them. The Brookstone case has a sheet of metal for the keyboard's magnetic feet, so it's heavier.

I'm not traveling again for at least three months. Now we're starting over with Craigslist, looking for an iPad2 with or without a case...

 

[ERD50]

However my downfall was... our daughter. Her Macbook has taken a huge beating over the last three years of high school & college, and it's already on its second (third?) hard drive. The clamshell magnets no longer automatically put the laptop to sleep when you close the case, and the battery is running awfully hot. It still works, but it's on the warning track. ...

She must be rough on them - my kid's & DW's 4 ibook/mac-book/mac-book-pro have lasted longer than that w/o many problems (one MBP is just 2.5 years old). They are careful with them, not a scratch on them.

If the battery is warm, check the "Activity Monitor" - I noticed a couple times that one was trying to access a printer network that wasn't there, and it was eating up a ton of CPU. Kill the process and all was fine.

-ERD50

 

[explanade]

So you're looking for another one?

iPad Mini has better camera and Siri. And maybe by spring they will have a new model and drop the iPad 3 to the price of the iPad 2. Or further drive down the prices of used iPads.

Also there have to be cheaper keyboards. They may not come in clamshell cases though. I did see a Philips or one of these cheap brands at CVS for $30 once.

 

[braumeister]

For about $20, I bought a nano router, a tiny box that plugs into the Ethernet connection in a hotel room and creates a wifi network I can use with my iPad.

Simple to set up and basically bulletproof.

TL-WR702N - Welcome to TP-LINK

 

[Nords]

So you're looking for another one?
iPad Mini has better camera and Siri. And maybe by spring they will have a new model and drop the iPad 3 to the price of the iPad 2. Or further drive down the prices of used iPads.
Also there have to be cheaper keyboards. They may not come in clamshell cases though. I did see a Philips or one of these cheap brands at CVS for $30 once.

I'm seeing 16GB iPad2s for $275-$300 around here. I doubt I'll find a cherry deal like the last one, but I'll do "good enough". Maybe the latest iPads/minis are driving prices down, or maybe people are raising cash for Black Friday shopping.

There are definitely cheaper keyboards, and they are certainly cheaper. I'm glad that I had a chance to test drive several before I bought.

For about $20, I bought a nano router, a tiny box that plugs into the Ethernet connection in a hotel room and creates a wifi network I can use with my iPad.
Simple to set up and basically bulletproof.
TL-WR702N - Welcome to TP-LINK

Thanks-- I have an old router laying around but $20 is a great price. I bet it's a lot lighter than packing 100' of CAT-5 Ethernet cable, too...

 

[FIREd]

While we were waiting at the airport for the flight home I stopped by the Brookstone store where this whole idea got started six weeks ago. Their keyboard/case is $150+tax, a bit more than the Logitech keyboard + iPad2 case. Functionally they were about the same, but I like the way that the Logitech keyboard is the same size as the iPad screen-- the two of them form a nice clamshell when you close them. The Brookstone case has a sheet of metal for the keyboard's magnetic feet, so it's heavier.

Based on your experience, I bought the Logitech wireless keyboard on Amazon (on sale). I like it a lot. The clamshell design is a plus and the keyboard is very functional.

 

[Nords]

Based on your experience, I bought the Logitech wireless keyboard on Amazon (on sale). I like it a lot. The clamshell design is a plus and the keyboard is very functional.

The only thing I miss is the "PgUp", "PgDown", "Home", and "End" keys that I have on my laptop & desktop. But I was learning to live without them.

I apparently was adapting to the iPad faster than I thought. I'm still reaching out to touch the screen on my desktop, which just puts fingerprints on it.

I'm seeing 16GB iPad2s on our local Craigslist from $275-$300. Maybe we'll do a little shopping this weekend, or maybe I'll wait until early 2013. No travel plans until February.

 

[HFWR]

I apparently was adapting to the iPad faster than I thought. I'm still reaching out to touch the screen on my desktop, which just puts fingerprints on it.

How can you tell an Aggie has been using the word processor?

From all the correction fluid on the monitor...

 

[Katsmeow]

I apparently was adapting to the iPad faster than I thought. I'm still reaching out to touch the screen on my desktop, which just puts fingerprints on it.

I mostly use my desktop but have an iPad3 that I use mostly to read books and do some web surfing. The other day my daughter brought me her notebook computer to show me something and I need to scroll so I immediately put my finger on her screen and couldn't figure out why the window wasn't moving....

She finally took pity and told me that it wasn't a touchscreen....

(I'm thinking of getting a new notebook sometime soon and may actually go for a touchscreen now that I've gotten used to it).

 

[Nords]

Here we go again!

A friend brings his iPad 2 to meetings of our investment group. He's always tapping away at the touchscreen with his Amazon stylus, looking up websites and data, and doing other tasks. He mentioned how productive it makes him, and I told him my iPad story.

It turns out that he originally bought a 16GB WiFi-only model and then bought an upgraded model with 3G and more memory, so he was interested in selling his first one. He parted with it for only $225 and threw in an Airport Express. Score!

Now to repeat the steps in posts 1-90. But I'm not sure that I'm ready to buy the keyboard until they go on sale after the holidays.

 

[explanade]

I think by next year, if they upgrade the iPad Mini to Retina display, the Mini may start outselling the full-sized one.

Even despite the inferior screen, some people are trading in their full-sized iPad for the Mini, because it's so much easier to carry around and use in bed.

If you're doing a lot of typing and using it always with keyboard in clamshell mode, a light laptop like the MacBook Air may be a better choice.

The advantage of the iPad is that you hold it in your hands, while sitting back in couch or lying in bad. I recall a survey someone cited where they saw peak usage of iPad right around when people went to bed and in the morning when people would wake up. So a lot of people have it bedside.

 

[audreyh1]

I confess, I am one of those bed iPad people. It comes with its own nightlight! You know what I mean. Good for waking up in the middle of the night and reading a bit, although that seems like a bad habit.

My charger is on my nightstand for a good reason!

 

[Meadbh]

I confess, I am one of those bed iPad people. It comes with its own nightlight! You know what I mean. Good for waking up in the middle of the night and reading a bit, although that seems like a bad habit.

My charger is on my nightstand for a good reason!

+1

And I agree with explanade , a MacBook Air is a good choice for on the road computing. Not cheap though!

 

[Nords]

IThe advantage of the iPad is that you hold it in your hands, while sitting back in couch or lying in bad. I recall a survey someone cited where they saw peak usage of iPad right around when people went to bed and in the morning when people would wake up. So a lot of people have it bedside.

I'll be one of those people. The page size of a PDF fits on the screen in a font that I can easily see with reading glasses.

 

[W2R]

I don't enjoy my iPad in bed, because for me it is too, too heavy. Ugh. Besides, I don't go to bed until I am ready to sleep.

But I do like my iPad right before bed, when I am getting sleepy and want something lighter than my laptop while curled up in my easy chair.

 

[Gotadimple]

+1

And I agree with explanade , a MacBook Air is a good choice for on the road computing. Not cheap though!

I travel with a netbook. I have to tell you, the transformer weighs as much as the computer! When you haul that around in a day bag, it begins to drag on you. Conversely, my Nook Simple Touch is nothing to lug.

So beginning to think about a tablet to replace the netbook for travel.

-- Rita

 

[photoguy]

I believe eBooks are formatted so that each page will be consistent across apps, devices, maybe to the book.

PDFs are not formatted so the page breaks may be all over the place.

I think you have these two reversed. Most eBooks are in ePub or similar format which have reflowable content. I.e., if you increase the font size, the text is automatically reset on the pages, re-wrapped around images, etc. With PDF, everything is fixed-layout and all you can do is zoom in/out.

However, some vendors have started to introduce fixed-layout ePubs. But these are generally proprietary (e.g, Apple's version is not compatible with Amazon's or B&N's) and may only work on certain devices.