I was a little disappointed when Santa didn’t bring me a Kindle for Christmas
I almost got the Kobo at Chapters last October but in my analysis the cons outweighed the pros.
As an avid reader and lover of shiny new gadgets, I envisioned an e-book reader in my imminent future, yet just going out and buying one seemed frivolous to me.

These days I don’t read as much as I used to; one of my goals for 2011 is to read more – one good book a month at least.
While trying to achieve this, I came to the sad realization that I don’t have any time leftover in my schedule for reading.
And even sadder is not being able to account for my time productively.

I was home from work one day last week, taking refuge from annoying allergies.
I didn’t go online or catch up on my soaps, I read a book instead, two actually… and it felt wonderful.
Reminiscent of those days when I’d lose myself in a good book and nothing else around me mattered.
I have a list, collected on Goodreads, of books I’ve been meaning to read; I started the list last year and I’ve just begun the first book on the list.

I’m hopeful; the kindle is an incentive to read more, the change in medium, the ease and a portable library – perhaps I will read more.
I was hesitant initially; I’d miss the smell and feel of the pages in traditional books.
I couldn’t bear not having a reason to go into the bookstore, I love bookstores!

And after all that, the Kindle still doesn’t guarantee that I’d read more, when the newness passes and I’m still not making time to read…

I’m currently reading One Day… it’s been on my list for a while, and now I’m racing to finish it before the movie comes out.

I had an Apple laptop at the turn of the (21st) century, a cute blueberry clamshell iBook – I spent a lot of time on it corresponding with a Tuareg man, I was certain he was my destiny.
I also started my first blog (a weird word back then), and discovered an amazing community of diarists.
I loved that little iBook even when it got buggy and crashed sometimes, and my biggest frustrations were software incompatibility issues and browser/website glitches.
In time I got a Dell laptop and somehow, and I’m not sure exactly when this happened – I became an Apple Hater!

Yes, I was an Apple hater.
It wasn’t the deep seething hate that consumes you; this was mild contempt with a dash of general indifference.
Like most ‘haters’ I thought Apple products were overpriced hypes with closed architecture.
It may have begun with the launch of the iPod, and the mass fixation that followed; everyone wanted one and proclaimed it an innovation.
My iriver MP3 player had all the features of the iPod plus a built-in FM tuner, yet no one raved about it.
Then the iPhone happened… I’ve ranted about the iPhone before so I won’t get into that.
I got the HTC Prophet (Windows mobile 5.0) a year before the iPhone debuted.
I loved my prophet! Probably because of all the time I spent on it – I joined XDA Developers and tweaked the heck out of that phone; it was as if I’d built my perfect phone.
The iPhone did not tempt me, as far as I was concerned my phone was superior to the iPhone.

Over the next several years I felt smug for not falling for the Apple hype, my laptops were Windows, (there was the Linux running Eee PC I used briefly), and my phone and mp3 players weren’t Apple.
With two pivotal incidents last year, I went from Apple-hater to owning several Apple products.
The first, was the announcement of the iPad, it was the first of Apple product that I felt was worth a little hype (not a whole lot though!), then I took one look at it and I had to have it – I envisioned many scenarios where it’ll come in handy.

The second incident came from dissatisfaction with my phone; I got the Google G1 phone (HTC Dream) in the summer of 2009.
It was exciting, new OS, open-source and all.
My issue with that phone was that there were no updates available for my hardware beyond version 1.5 (Cupcake), which basically rendered my phone obsolete three months after I’d gotten it.
Of course, I could have found cooked ROM and customized the phone to my specifications, but that wasn’t why I got the phone; I wanted a phone that I’d loved as is.
It no longer makes sense to me to pay money for a phone and spend ridiculous amounts of time tinkering with it (doing potentially illegal stuff), I’m not a developer, I just want a phone that works.

I could no longer deny the appeal of the iPhone, maybe I’m just getting old but I liked that it’s easy to use and works relatively well.
So I got the iPhone 4 in May of last year.

This Christmas I got a new MacBook Air to replace my aging Windows laptop, it’s going to be my primary computer – and this officially makes me a Mac user, I’m no longer a PC (except for work).

In the end there wasn’t a long drawn out decision to switch, and so far I love the simplicity and ease of use of my MacBook Air.
Maybe we’re still in the honeymoon phase…
I still don’t like iTunes, and I miss Live Writer – I haven’t found a worthy Mac version yet.

So I’m not quite the MacHead, it took me a decade to come around and i’m quite enjoying this switch.

This is the iBook G3, a blast from 1999

Not to be mistaken with iBooks, the e-book reader that debuted with the iPad.

Nostalgia is a weird thing really; these colourful clamshell machines were quite revolutionary when they came out.
There are some out there that still believe this little machine changed the game; It was the start of the fun and bubbly consumer laptop

Here’s the 1999 introduction video from Macworld 1999.
It’s kind of cute watching that video over a decade later; the crowd went wild at the mention of the handle.
And the specs… wow, technology has come a long way, and costs much much less.

Ten years from now, today’s shiny new gadgets are going to be vintage!
I still can’t get over the fact that it was considered lower priced at $1,599.00

So I went from being a non-Apple person to visiting two different Apple stores in two days while in New York.

I bought the iPad from the famed cubed store on Fifth Avenue; which is open 24 hours a day.

Upon activation I realized that the device was seriously limiting in content and Apps when logged in through my iTunes Canada account.

I couldn’t even download iBooks which is a free and major part of the whole iPad experience.

The iPad is currently only available (and supported) in the US; it doesn’t come to Canada (and the rest of the world) until late May.

While Apple isn’t discouraging folks in other countries from purchasing them (like it did initially with the iPhone) access to iPad Apps and content is limited to the US only.

A way around this is to open a US iTunes account (while in the US) using iTunes gift cards.

This isn’t exactly a secret; people do this all the time in order to get access to awesome US content.

During our time at the Apple store,  there were two guys from the UK, another guy from Canada and a couple from Germany all buying iPads, some were buying two each.

While in Chelsea the next day we skipped over to the Apple store to get our gift cards.

And since our hotel was unfortunately having some bizarre Wi-Fi issues, we set up our US iTunes account too.

Some Danish guy at the store bought a $1000.00 worth of gift cards, this is because you can’t buy US iTunes gift cards outside of the US.

Well, you could on Ebay and other questionable sources, but that’s another thing altogether.

So I guess the idea is to load up, fortunately for me I’m down in the States at least once a month.

The set up itself was easy and quick; then I downloaded a few more Apps, bought some books and just hung out at the store.

For a while I considered what it’ll be like to use the iPad exclusively, like this guy who is using it wholly for a month.

A lot of people consider it more of a consumption device rather than for production.

Which is true in a sense unless more production Apps become available, imagine having a full-feature Lightroom on the iPad.

I do almost everything on the iPad these days, emails, read blogs, books, videos, etc.

The only times I use my laptop is to edit pictures or write longer blog posts.

You know I didn’t know that Apple really had a ‘Genius Bar’?

I’d like to work in a place where my job title includes ‘genius’ even if I’m not necessarily a genius.

That way I can tell people at dinner parties that I’m a ‘genius.’

Everyone at the Apple store looks so happy, maybe it’s something in the hardware.

Did I mention how amazing the battery life is?

I can go two to three days of constant use before I get a low battery warning.

The battery life alone could count as magical and revolutionary.

I think it was Leo Laporte who said (during the iPad’s launch) that the real test of the iPad would be whether we’re still using it a month later, or reverted back to our netbooks or whatever device it’s meant to replace.

Two weeks on I’m still actively using my iPad, and I’m reaching for it more than I thought I would.

Oddly enough, I never intended to get the iPad…

I’m not fan of Apple by any means, I don’t have an iPhone, and I’ve never owned an iPod.

I toyed with an iBook G1 (remember those?) during the turn of the century and passed it on to Paul, who is a real fanboy.

Yet, I got the iPad on the day it came out.

I blame it on unusual circumstances – happenstance perhaps. It was an unusual day.

I’d spent the day traversing the city; I had breakfast in Soho, spent an unreasonably long time trying on clothes at Topshop and Madewell.

My sister and I joined the masses at Union Square Park, went to Macy’s to see the Flower Show and MoMA to explore.

We were on our way to Central Park when we came upon the Apple Store.

It was chaotic, people, news crews with vans, tall antennas and equipment everywhere!

I think we just wanted to stand still for a moment, because my sister agreed when I jokingly suggested we stand in line.

The line moved quickly, and the respite was nice.

Soon we found ourselves descending the glass spiral stairs into the store, inside was depressingly crowded.

I was peering over about a dozen people to try and catch a glimpse of the iPad.

My sister wanted to leave immediately, she said it was madness.

“This place is utterly nuts!” she said in her faux British accent mimicking my aunt Y.

I laughed and insisted that we at least touch it before we leave.

We stand around for a while, we’re almost about to give up and leave…

I make eye contact, smile and make a sad face at one of the blue-shirted employees; he smiles and makes a sad face back.

Moments later, he comes by and guides us towards a device that’s just sitting there, alone… crowd-free. “Enjoy!” he says.

Now, there’s something about the iPad that makes you really want one once you start playing with it.

It’s sleek, beautiful, feature packed yet so uncomplicated.

A few minutes browsing the web, iBooks, Apps, pictures, turning it at all sorts of angles;

I saw potential, beautiful potential – it was a different kind of computer and I wanted it!

I looked at my sister half-ashamed and I said forlornly, “I want one!”

She looked like she was about to cry, “Me too!”

My mind began racing… should I, can I? There’s minor panic, this isn’t budgeted!

I think about my ‘splurge fund’ – I was going to get a classic Burberry trench in Bicester on my next vacation to the UK.

I could skip a few meals, cut back on whatever…

“Yes, yes…” my sister chimes in “you could starve, and then you’d be known as the ‘skinny black girl with the iPad!”

I’m determined; I walk up to one of the blue-shirted employees and tell them I want one of those ‘magical revolutionary’ machines.

He walks me to the counter and we grab two 32GB iPads, it was a fast and satisfying transaction.

The first blue-shirted employee finds us, and we high five each other.

The End… for now

In my next iPad post I’ll discuss using the iPad in Canada or any place where it hasn’t officially launched, my thoughts on the lack of Flash, multitasking (for now), and a camera, Wifi vs 3G, blogging on the iPad and the curse of the early adopter.

I’ll also answer this pertinent question… has it replaced my netbook?