I got an ipad for my birthday today - which I was very pleased about as I spent thirty minutes playing with one in the Apple Shop yesterday. I love the fact that I'm one of the first people in this country to own one!

***First Impressions***
Okay.....its sexy - as we have all come to expect from Apple. The back of the iPad is silver with a black Apple logo on it, and the front is shiny black with a function button along one side.

It is very lightweight, just 0.68kg (1.5 lbs) and very thin (0.5 inches) and actually looks like a large iPhone. Its quite impressive to see how small they have made this product and the convenience this would offer to anyone who needed browser access daily while on the move or while travelling.

Along the sides of the iPad are very small buttons to turn it on/off and to control screen locking and volume. There is also a discreet headphone socket and an Apple socket to connect your iPad to your computer, iPhone, USB, keypad or mains.


***Setting up***
The iPad comes with instructions that basically tell you that you need to connect your iPad to a device that has the latest version of iTunes downloaded onto it. I didn't have an iTunes account and it was a bit pain to have to set all of that up when I was so keen to just get on and play with my new toy! However, literally as soon as I'd downloaded iTunes and connected the iPad to my laptop the set up was completed. It only took about 15 minutes in total.

***Usability***
Its very lightweight so its easy to use either by holding it or sitting with it on your lap - or to have flat on the table.

If you are familiar with Apple, Safari and the iPhone then using the iPad is simple since it appears to be exactly the same system. I would say that internet connection seems to be faster, as does scrolling.

The keyboard is touch screen and, again, if you're used to using this then its fairly fast - but it would take some getting used to if you're not used to using a touchscreen keyboard. Apparently, you can buy a plug in keyboard to accompany the iPad.

I imagine I will use my iPad mostly for accessing the internet while I'm on the move and also to upload photos, download books and music to when I'm traveling. As I said, Safari on this product is very quick and its easy to flick between favourite webpages by using the bookmarks function.


***Applications***
There are a number of applications which have been configured for the iPad, but there are many which haven't yet been configured for the iPad screen. However, that's not to say you can't use the iPhone apps, its just that they either show up at an iPhone size on your screen or you press the x2 and the app will enlarge to fit the screen.

I've already downloaded one of the books apps and I have started reading The Count of Monte Cristo.


***The Display***
The screen is 9.7 inches (diagonal) and has a widescreen LCD format. For those of you au fait with the technical jargon, the display is 1024-by-768-pixel resolution at 132 pixels per inch (ppi). Anyway....for those of you (like me) who are less technologically minded, I can tell you that the display is wonderful.

Images are crisp, clear and vibrant. I've watched a couple of movie clips and I was very impressed with the visuals and with the sound.


***The Battery***
I've heard that the battery life is between 10-12 hours and this sounds about right to me. I used my iPad continuously for about 8 hours today and I have used 65% of my battery life in that time. The battery is obviously rechargeable by plugging the iPad into the mains (lead enclosed).


***Environmental Impact***
The packaging that the iPad came in was actually minimal and as there wasn't an extensive paper manual (online) this seemed environmentally sound. In addition to this, the LCD display is mercury and PVC free, with recylible aluminum and glass.


***Overall***
I've fallen in love with it. It's sleek, sexy and convenient. I guess it wouldn't be for everyone, but for someone who want's something fun and compact then this is the device for you.