iPad Road Trip Challenge

Aug

2010

Derek Walter, iPadNewsDaily Contributor
11:30 AM ET

The iPad is a great mobile device, but can it replace a laptop? I sought to answer this question while undertaking a 2,000 mile road trip through the Pacific Northwest. The expedition involved lots of checking in and out of hotels and navigating unfamiliar roads through Oregon and Washington. If the iPad could pull this off, it would never be left behind again.

For such a trip I would typically bring along my laptop because I have writing assignments to complete and it makes for a great travel resource. But finding Wi-Fi is often a pain. Plus, even when you find a network it is not always free or guaranteed to have a strong signal. For example, a downtown hotel in Portland offered Wi-Fi, but the signal died off on one side of the room. Or there was the chain hotel in downtown Seattle that charged the typical $12.95 per night for Internet access. Sure, it was free from the lobby, but who wants to schlep down 30 floors at 11:30 at night just to check on ferry departure times?

One of the benefits of the iPad was immediately evident: better map navigation . While the iPhone works fairly well as a navigation device, the iPad was superb due to the larger screen real estate. Additional details on the Google map were evident and my wife was able to seek out freeway off ramps or side streets much easier. It made scoping out Eugene, Oregon much easier given that many of the streets in this college town were one-way.

The GPS chip is only available with the 3G iPad, so this is something to really consider if you are trying to decide between a Wi-Fi only version and the 3G model.

The “always on” connectivity of the iPad is also a real plus. Even with the fairly rapid boot times of modern operating systems there is nothing as quick as being able to instantly turn on the iPad. And there is no need to turn it off during a long period of non-use to save battery life. I could charge it in the morning, not use it all day and begin use in the evening and still find it at 100 percent.

I especially enjoyed how much it lightened my messenger bag. For past trips the bag would get loaded up with a couple of magazines and books. Instead I downloaded a newly released book with the Amazon Kindle app and the newest issue of Sports Illustrated magazine. Plus all my favorite web sites and RSS feeds were readily available. It was Instant reading material in a light package.

The bulk of iPad use was engaged in looking up Seattle event information or mapping out locations with the Google Maps app. Web browsing on the iPad was always a pretty good experience, but it also exposed some of its weaknesses. For example while I typically do not miss Flash on the iPhone, it was more of an annoyance on the iPad as many non-mobile sites still use it. Also, heavy tab browsing users may get frustrated at the one-site-at-a-time style of Safari. However there are some good alternative browsers in the Apps store such as iCab Mobile or Atomic Web Browser.

Probably the biggest problem for anyone wishing to get work done on the road will be the lack of a physical keyboard. This was probably my largest struggle. Typing short messages or e-mails can be achieved with some practice, but long-form typing on the virtual keyboard is a non-starter. If considering taking the iPad on similar trips, the best solution is a Bluetooth-enabled keyboard or the Apple keyboard dock.

Along with typing, file management is seriously lacking with the iPad’s current operating system. If trying to manage files remotely the best solution is to store them in the cloud with an app like DropBox or Documents to Go.

So how well does the iPad replace a laptop? Better than expected, but it comes up short in too many areas to replace one if you need to do real work while traveling. But if you are not a workaholic like me and the next trip just involves sightseeing and relaxation, then the iPad is the ultimate companion.