Underwhelming?

First off, by my sig, you can all tell I'm pretty much an Apple fanatic. In the last two years, I've gone from hating all things Apple, to pretty much embracing everything.

With that said, I have to admit something. I have the original iPad. It truly is a remarkable piece of equipment that has been used almost everyday since I've had it.

I happened to be out and about last night with my family, and wanted to stop in and see the "new iPad" to see the hype of the new retina screen and all it's other goodness.

While I of course noticed a large leap from the original to the new one, I have to admit that I really wasn't "blown away" by what I experienced.

Perhaps it was that I just had my expectations WAY too high for the thing. I don't really know.

I guess I'm just wondering if there is anyone else out there that shares my opinion?

Are you really THAT blown away by it or did it leave you a bit "underwhelmed"?

Of course everyone has their own expectations opinions...but there are at least 2-3 folks in this thread that upgraded from an iPad 1 to the "New iPad (iPad 3)...and they sounded pretty darn impressed!:

http://www.mac-forums.com/forums/ipad-hardware-accessories/269770-did-you-get-your-new-ipad-yet.html

- Nick

I upgraded from iPad 2 to iPad 3. The retina display is a much appreciated upgrade, but overall I'm not "blown away" as it were.

I moved from the original iPad to the new iPad and I love it. It is so much faster and the screen is incredible.

I would say if you had the original upgrade and if you have the iPad 2 don't bother. I suppose it really depends what you want from the iPad

Well this is my first iPad but I've always wanted one. Just seemed like a good time to buy one especially with the new improvements to the screen and processor. Not a giant leap for previous iPad users I would imagine. I would try and look at and research iPad 2 and iPad 3 side by side comparisons if you are still on the fence if you should upgrade or not.

I can't say I find anything underwhelming about the iPad 3's Retina Display. I don't know if I consider it a revelation though. It was about what I expected it to be, which is to say a vast improvement over the screen in the iPad 2. I've been through this before, going from the iPhone 3G to this iPhone 4. That said, there's certainly no way I would ever want to back to anything less than this.

One thing to consider is that the new iPad is still very much the same experience as the iPad 1 (and the 2). They all run the same operating system, and feature most of the same apps. Mostly, the hardware has just been updated and refined rather than redefined. Maybe that's partly why it didn't completely blow you away when you saw it.

I have had the original iPad for a year and a half and just got the new one last night. I'm very happy with the beefed up specs and better looking display. Not sure what new hardware features can be added to this thing, it is what it is. All they can ever do with a new iPad is beef up the specs so it runs more demanding software better. That is pretty boring in nature but Apple products just do what they do. I love my Apple products and will never give them up but when I get board with my home-built PC, I add something new to it. That is more exciting but it's not a Mac.

Well, for starters, I'm not sure that there is a mandate that every new revision of an Apple product has to, by law, "blow you away."

I upgraded yesterday from an original iPad to the new one. The screen improvements aren't so sharp I can see into the future, but I just spent my first full day with it and I can tell you that it is SO much more comfortable to read, and my photos just look phenomenal, so I'm very pleased about that.

Actually the thing I've been having the most fun with is Siri Dictation (which I hasten to add is not by any stretch perfect but is a lot of fun). I'm able to dictate emails and forum posts now which I wasn't able to do before and that's pretty neat.

iPhoto for iOS on the iPad is just --- amazing. It won't replace Photoshop, but it replaces nearly everything BUT Photoshop/PS Elements. I had some photos I was perfectly happy with as being really good shots and I happened to take them into iPhoto and just WOW. I love that it doesn't overwrite the "old" one either so you can double-check your work on a calibrated desktop etc later.

I didn't get the 3G/LTE version as I have no use for another monthly bill so I can't comment on that, but friends have said that LTE in their area is actually FASTER than their home cable modem. Wow again, though I'd hate to get hooked on using LTE!

Yeah, the display is immediately noticeably different but what's really changed is how comfortable it is with prolonged use. Adding dictation is going to make a lot of things I do now on my notebook (like what I'm doing right now) more doable than it has ever been before on my iPad. If I could get the Facebook app to let me "share" things I could see myself using the iPad much more than I currently do.

I was more blown away with the huge speed increase and weight decrease from the 1 to 2. That said, I'm not getting the new iPad. I'm going to wait until next year and see what that brings.

Love the original. Sticking with it.

For a new buyer, wonder if iPad 2 and resulting savings isn't the route to go.

I have just updated from the iPad which I had for almost two years. I find it as exiting as when I got the first one. Reading the morning paper on it makes it so much easier. Love the looks of my photos and also the ones taken with inbuilt camera it seems quite good. Yesterday I took the iPad across the street to my neighbor. It actually picked up my Internet over there, I found that amazing as the first one could not do that. All in all I am pretty happy that I got the iPad.

Wanted to share this link with people since there seems to be a lot of concerns.

CrimsonRequiem said:

Wanted to share this link with people since there seems to be a lot of concerns.

Click to expand...

Great article...it's a good reminder how to keep things in perspective!

- Nick

My display may have a problem

I have the original iPad 2 (TWO) and yesterday I purchased the new iPad 2 (NEW) at our local Apple store. When I got home and set it up I was immediately disappointed when it appeared the whites and blues in the Safari Browser of the NEW seemed to lack contrast compared to the TWO. The text was, of course, clearer on the NEW, but the blues were not a vivid and the whites were not as white as those on the TWO when compared side-by-side. I went to the settings on both iPads and set the brightness to full bright and “Auto Brightness” set to OFF. I compared identical photos and it was hard to tell but it seemed that contrast and vibrancy may be a little worse on the NEW. To give it a better visual test I went to a site where I could view Macbeth Color Checker Charts. I did this with both iPads and did side by side comparisons. I still think the TWO has better vibrancy than the NEW. I also think it is easiest to see when comparing the Safari Browser. I invite anyone who has both to do some similar comparisons to see if their NEW looks better than there TWO. Thanks for any and all who spend this effort. I may go back to the Apple store to discuss this with the Genies.If I do, I will report back.

Display Color Problem additional information

OOPS! I for got to mention that my Safari is set to "My Yahoo" as the home page. If your browser's home page is something other than Yaho you will not understand or be able to confirm my comments about the whites and the blues in the browser. Sorry.

CrimsonRequiem said:

Wanted to share this link with people since there seems to be a lot of concerns.

Click to expand...

Great article.

Definitely a good article, in my opinion. It's good to appreciate the technology items we already have--that we are fortunate enough to be able to afford. Just my 2 cents....

padeasel said:

I have the original iPad 2 (TWO) and yesterday I purchased the new iPad 2 (NEW) at our local Apple store. When I got home and set it up I was immediately disappointed when it appeared the whites and blues in the Safari Browser of the NEW seemed to lack contrast compared to the TWO. The text was, of course, clearer on the NEW, but the blues were not a vivid and the whites were not as white as those on the TWO when compared side-by-side. I went to the settings on both iPads and set the brightness to full bright and “Auto Brightness” set to OFF. I compared identical photos and it was hard to tell but it seemed that contrast and vibrancy may be a little worse on the NEW. To give it a better visual test I went to a site where I could view Macbeth Color Checker Charts. I did this with both iPads and did side by side comparisons. I still think the TWO has better vibrancy than the NEW. I also think it is easiest to see when comparing the Safari Browser. I invite anyone who has both to do some similar comparisons to see if their NEW looks better than there TWO. Thanks for any and all who spend this effort. I may go back to the Apple store to discuss this with the Genies.If I do, I will report back.

Click to expand...

It appears, you aren't the only one to notice, that the color temperature of the new iPad differs from the iPad 1 &2.

According to independent testing, the new iPad is far more color accurate than previous models. It now achieves 99% color spectrum, whereasthe previous iPad was only able to achieve 61%.

New iPad LCD showdown proves high-quality, steep power needs | Electronista

CrimsonRequiem said:

Wanted to share this link with people since there seems to be a lot of concerns.

Click to expand...

Teleportation?! Virtual sex?!!? I'm getting me one of them thar 'The New iPad 4 (2013)'s for sure!

I can't believe the rumour bot hasn't picked up on the virtual sex, yet.

Back on topic, kinda, I was going to sell my iPad to upgrade to the new iPad. But I had a change of heart and bought a MBP instead. Twice as much, but I felt the iPad would have left me still wanting a MacBook. Maybe in 12 months time I'll miss my tablet and get the next gen, but for now, I'm made up with the MBP.