Enterprise Business Applications for the ipad

http://www.cio.com/article/686362/iPad_Apps_Is_Apple_Courting_the_Enterprise_

Apple CEO Steve Jobs also sees the iPad becoming much more than a consumer-friendly media device—perhaps replacing laptops in the near future. In order to do this, development, distribution and management of enterprise iOS apps must be part of the equation.

Apple's volume purchase program is a good first step toward this goal: No company cares to process thousands of expense reports that have a few dollars worth of iPad apps.

guide to tablets

http://www.techrepublic.com/blog/tech-manager/an-executives-guide-to-tablets/6023?tag=nl.e106

The iPad is the 10,000 kg gorilla in the tablet space, despite Microsoft’s half-hearted attempts over the better part of a decade. The device has been hailed as “magical and revolutionary” by its creators and as ”just a big iPhone” by detractors, and like most debates, the truth is somewhere in between. The “big iPhone” jibe actually rings quite true, and for this type of device, it is largely an advantage. If you’ve used an iPhone, you’ll feel right at home, and if you haven’t, the learning curve is more of a speed bump than a mountain.

Frankly, I found the actual operating system underwhelming. Messages to alert you to a new email or other messages are just as bad as the iPhone (an annoying pop-up window, slated to be fixed in the next version of Apple’s iOS operating system), and two minutes after you pick up an iPad for the first time you may find yourself asking, “This is it???”

The Transformer, in particular, has a compelling price and an available keyboard that seems like an exec’s match made in heaven: take the tablet for your basic email, web browsing, etc., then pop on the keyboard when there’s real writing to be done. The unit also had a superior screen to the iPad, and I preferred it for reading books in the Amazon Kindle app,  even with its distended screen, which is narrower and longer than the iPad.

1979 Apple Graphics Tablet vs. 2010 Apple iPad

http://www.cio.com/article/603427/Face_off_1979_Apple_Graphics_Tablet_vs._2010_Apple_iPad
30-year-old technology struts its stuff beside today's state-of-the-art tablet computer.

Meet the tablets
The Apple Graphics Tablet (left) was released in 1979 and cost $650. It connects to any Apple II and can be used to draw images at a resolution of 280 by 192 pixels. The tablet draws power directly from the Apple II and cannot be used when disconnected.
The Apple II was originally designed to be used with televisions rather than computer monitors, but the Apple Graphics Tablet produced interference that could disrupt reception of television signals. A later model was identical to its predecessor except for one notable new feature: FCC compliance.


The Apple iPad (right) was released in 2010 in six models ranging from $499 to $829. Equipped with a 1-GHz A4 system-on-a-chip and a 16GB, 32GB or 64GB flash drive, it syncs with any Macintosh or Windows machine capable of running iTunes and can run thousands of iOS applications. Its resolution is 1024 by 768 pixels on a 9.7-in. LED-backlit glossy widescreen display.

Controlling the tablets

KansasFest attendee Loren Damewooddemonstrates each device's touch interface. The graphics tablet uses a stylus tethered to the interface card. A plastic overlay segments the tablet, much like graph paper does, to assist in drawing and to label specific functions. (There are more details about the interface card and overlay on subsequent pages.)
The iPad's capacitive touch screen neither requires nor supports peripherals, but it responds to multiple points of contact through the use of multifinger gestures.

Menus and icons
The overlay for the Apple Graphics Tablet provides a top row of function buttons that you can press with the stylus to issue software commands while drawing. Switching from straight lines to empty frames to solid boxes, changing colors and saving your work can be done with a simple tap.

On the iPad's home screen, a user-configurable row of application icons stays in the Dock at the bottom of the screen, offering a similar consistency for commands. Once a specific app is launched, these icons disappear, reappearing only when the hardware Home key is pressed.

Connecting the devices
The Apple Graphics Tablet requires the included expansion card to be installed in the Apple II. The tablet and the stylus then each connect to the card.
The iPad uses a standard USB cable to connect to a Mac or Windows machine and then syncs with iTunes 9.1 or later. For Internet access, some iPad models can use AT&T's 3G cellular service; all models are equipped with Wi-Fi and Bluetooth.

2010's Most Popular iPad Apps

http://www.cio.com/article/647063/2010_s_Most_Popular_iPad_Apps

10 apps that rocked iPad users' world in 2010
When the iPad celebrates its first birthday next month, it should raise a glass to Apple's (AAPL) App Store, which has provided users with an array of innovative applications. Late last week, Apple released a list of the 10 most popular iPad applications, with productivity apps making up the bulk.

Pages
Developer: Apple
Price: $9.99
Apple re-jiggered its word processing program for the iPad to optimize it for a large touchscreen. The program lets you create documents from a number of templates and send them to anyone using Pages '09, MS Word or PDF formats.

Keynote
Developer: Apple
Price: $9.99

Keynote rounds out Apple's major trio of in-house productivity apps as the company's answer to PowerPoint. This is the type of app that seems best suited for the iPad since it involves a lot of drag-and-drop formatting and it has relatively little typing compared with the word processing and spreadsheet programs.
GoodReader
Developer: Good.iWare Ltd.
Price: $2.99

Reading and editing PDF files is typically neither colorful nor fun. But GoodReader is aiming to change that (well, the colorful part at least) with this reader that lets you edit PDFs using bright colors and graphics. Among other things, you can create yellow "sticky notes" on the PDF for annotations, draw circles or rectangles around key passages and highlight entire paragraphs with bright colors.

Numbers
Developer: Apple
Price: $9.99

Numbers is Apple's basic spreadsheet application reformatted for iPad. Like other spreadsheet programs, Numbers lets you sort data and present it in several kinds of graph formats. The program's files are also compatible with MS Excel.

Angry Birds HD: Chillingo Ltd.

Price: $4.99 a popular game that lets you control an angry red bird that's trying to get its eggs back from a thieving gang of green pigs. And yes, while this sounds like a metaphor for communism, it's also an addictive and popular game that lets you launch birds from a giant slingshot and fire them kamikaze-style into the pigs' bases. Wait, why do birds need a slingshot to fly? Oh well, the game is fun regardless.

Glee Karaoke
Developer: Smule
Price: $0.99

Based on the hit musical-comedy series, this karaoke app lets you sing along to your favorite tunes on the show. The program anticipates that you won't be very talented, which is why it includes features such as pitch correction and additional harmonies. And if you're feeling really confident, you can even record your karaoke performance and post a video of it on Facebook or Twitter.

WolframAlpha
Developer: Wolfram Alpha LLC
Price: $1.99

The goal of WolframAlpha is to provide you with an insane amount of up-to-date information on just about everything. What encompasses everything? Well for starters, let's go with trigonometry, current weather conditions, historical weather conditions, up-to-date economic statistics, real-time astronomy charts, Olympic trivia& OK, you get the point. WolframAlpha wants to help you become the annoying guy at parties who always fact checks people with his tablet.



Pinball HD
Developer: OOO Gramprom
Price: $0.99

An arcade classic that's been redone for large touchscreens, Pinball HD seems like a perfect game for the iPad: It's large, colorful and doesn't involve any intricate controls. The game includes several pinball templates to choose from so you won't be playing on the same board over and over again.



Friendly Plus for Facebook
Developer: Oecoway
Price: $0.99

Friendly Plus is a platform that optimizes Facebook for the iPad and gives you access to full-screen photos, chat and more.



Starwalk
Developer: Vito Technology
Price: $4.99

And finally here's an educational astronomy app that can teach you about stars, planets and constellations with a gorgeous graphics display. The iPhone version of the program was named one of Apple's "Best Apps of 2009" and it's a safe bet that the iPad's larger graphics display will make it look even better.

15 Tablets That Could Rival Apple's iPad

http://www.cio.com/article/589760/Slate_Wars_15_Tablets_That_Could_Rival_Apple_s_iPad?page=5#slideshow

The iPad has captured many hearts and minds, but a fleet of rival tablets led by a separatist Android army is about to attack, armed with HD Flash video, multitouch screens, front-facing cameras, multitasking...even Windows 7. Let's take a look.


HP Slate
It wasn't the Courier tablet that many attendees hoped Steve Ballmer would pull out of his hat at CES in January, but HP's slate PC (don't call it a tablet!) is shaping up as a strong alternative to the iPad.

Fusion Garage JooJoo
The notorious CrunchPad-turned-JooJoo tablet has just started shipping, and—as you can see—the interface has come a long way from where it was when we tested a preproduction model back in December 2009.


Dell Mini 5 (Streak)
Dell is working on a "family of tablets," the first will be its Android tablet--called Mini 5 or Streak. This unit's 5-inch multitouch display is more pocket-friendly than the ones on most upcoming tablets, but it's also larger than the displays on most smartphones (yes, the Mini 5 can make calls).

Lenovo IdeaPad U1
As a laptop, the IdeaPad U1 runs Windows 7 with a 1.3GHz Core 2 Duo SU4100 chip; but pop the screen off, and the machine instantly becomes a multitouch tablet running its own widget-style Linux interface.

Microsoft (MSFT) Courier
One tablet that might match Apple in user interface innovation is the mysteriousMicrosoft Courier, a folding dual-screen device that's more of a pen and touch-controlled digital journal/eReader than a media tablet along the lines of the iPad.

 

Notion Ink Adam

Everything about this tablet screams innovation. Designed in India, the Adam uses a special multitouch-enabled 10.

Netbook Tablets
If you like the idea of flicking through Web pages or e-books by touch, but you don't want to give up your physical keyboard, a netbook equipped with a swiveling screen could be a good compromise choice.

ExoPC Slate
A Windows 7 device with a custom touch interface, an 8.9-inch multitouch screen, netbook-like specs, and Flash support--okay, you have our attention.


Archos 9 PCtablet
On paper, the Archos 9 looks impressive. Specs include a 60GB hard disk, Windows 7, a front-facing Webcam, Flash support, and a price of $549.

ICD Ultra
Innovative Converged Devices' 7-inch Ultra tablet is yet another upcoming pairing ofTegra 2 and Android, but ICD's offering will emphasize affordability. Its features will include 4GB of internal flash memory, HD video playback, and optional 3G.

Axiotron Modbook Pro
Ask Andreas Haas, the former head of Apple's Newton group, what he thinks of the iPad, and he'll tell you that "it's not a tablet; it's an extension of the iPod Touch." His company, Axiotron, is developing theModbook Pro—a touch-enabled version of the pen-based, professionally finished Mac tablets that the business creates by converting MacBook laptops.  

MSI Tegra 2 Tablet
MSI is best known for netbooks these days, so it's no surprise that the company plans to produce an as-yet-unnamed tablet. The prototype Android "mPad" shown at CES had a 10-inch touchscreen, a Tegra 2 processor, HD Flash support, and an HDMI output. The finished tablet will probably cost around $500 and may arrive later this year.

r
Asus Eee Pad
This Tegra 2 tablet snapped at nVidia's CES booth isn't the sexiest prototype we've ever seen, but Asus has promised to launch a "killer product" in June.

Camangi WebStation
Why would a tablet released relatively recently suddenly become 32 percent cheaper? Bad reviews: Complaints of slow performance, video playback issues, and sluggish single-touch response seem to have tarnished early hopes for the WebStation, a 7-inch Android 1.5 device designed primarily to run Web apps.

Freescale Smartbook Tablet Reference Design
Freescale makes the chips that most e-book readers (including the Kindle) use, its upcoming i.MX508 processor could revolutionize eReaders. The company also envisions low-cost $200 tablet PCs, and has created this reference design for PC makers. The outline uses Freescale's ARM-based i.MX51 chip, and includes a 7-inch tablet that can be docked with a keyboard base similar to Lenovo's IdeaPad U1.

Apple iPad
What more is there to say? The iPad is apleasure to use (despite some missing features and other faults), it hit stores on April 3, and Apple's iBooks pricing may match Amazon's.

DIY IPAD3

http://blogs.cio.com/careers/16404/simple-strategy-acing-job-interview

DIY IPAD3

http://news.yahoo.com/chinese-man-makes-ipad-look-scratch-091234153.html
In a 20-minute video posted on Youku -- the Chinese YouTube equivalent -- Liu Xinying demonstrates how to assemble an iPad look-a-like using computer parts, a touch screen and a case with a keypad, to the sound of metal music.


http://www.youku.com
http://www.weibo.com

Tablets, Real and Rumored

http://www.cio.com/article/594842/Tablets_Real_and_Rumored
The iPad is popular, but it's got lots of company
With more than a million units sold in less than a month, it's pretty clear that Apple's iPad touchscreen tablet has been a success so far. But Apple isn't the only company out there to develop a tablet, as there are several iPad alternatives on the market or in the works right now that could give the iPad a run for its money.

The iPad
We might as well start off with the iPad since it's the most popular tablet and it's the standard to which other tablets will be held. The iPad's specs are indeed impressive, as it includes a 1GHz Apple A4 processor, a 9.7-inch screen with a resolution of 1024 x 768 pixels and connectivity with both Wi-Fi and GSM-based 3G networks. Combine this with the wide variety of applications available in the iTunes App Store, and you've got a tablet that presents a strong standard for the competition.

Operating system: iPhone OS

The Archos 7 Home Tablet

As an Android based tablet whose price starts at a mere $199, the Archos 7 Home Tablet has significantly less impressive specs than the iPad. The tablet features a 7-inch screen with a resolution of 800 x 480 pixels and has flash memory of 2GB to 8GB. Obviously not as strong as the iPad, the Archos 7 does provide a low-budget alternative.
Operating system: Android


Price: Starts at $199.

The Dell (DELL) Mini Streak
The Mini Streak is a much smaller touchscreen tablet than the iPhone, checking in at only 5 inches with a resolution of 800 x 480 pixels. At the same time, the Streak will have a Qualcomm Snapdragon 1GHz processor that will give it equal processing power to the iPad. The device is expected to make its debut on AT&T this summer and it will support both Wi-Fi and 3G GSM connectivity.
Operating system: Android
Price: Unknown


Lenovo IdeaPad U1
What makes the IdeaPad U1 so interesting is that it's really a hybrid tablet that can be plugged into a keyboard terminal and used as a more traditional PC. The device runs on a Qualcomm Snapdragon processor as a tablet and on an Intel (INTC) Core 2 Duo SU4100 processor when attached to its terminal. Like other tablets, it has both Wi-Fi and 3G connectivity. The IdeaPad U1 is due out this summer.
Operating system: Windows
Price: Suggested at $999.

HP Hurricane
This tablet will be closely watched when it's finally released as it will be the first tablet on the market to feature Palm's webOS operating system. This device will be the first test of HP's acquisition of Palm and will go a long way in telling us whether webOS has a strong future ahead of it.
Operating system: webOS
Price: Unknown


The Verizon-Google (GOOG) (VZ) tablet
Unlike the other tablets mentioned here, we have no real details on this device other than it's a joint project between Google and Verizon and it will feature Android as its operating system. Although there's no firm timetable for when the tablet will be released, Verizon Wireless CEO Lowell McAdamhinted in an interview with the Wall Street Journal that it would be released next year and could feature 4G connectivity with Verizon's LTE network.
Operating system: Android


Price: Unknown

9 Real iPad Alternatives

http://www.cio.com/article/602053/9_Real_iPad_Alternatives_
A look at some products that have features missing in the iPad and are slated to ship this year.


Even since Apple released its "magical and revolutionary" iPad, other vendors have been scrambling to deliver products that go Apple one better. Here are nine that are expected to hit the stores this year. They feature multi-touch screens that are larger than the iPad's 9.7-inch screen. And while they might not have Apple's buzz, they do offer capabilities not available in the current version of the iPad.

Product Name: 2goPC Slate

Screen Size and Resolution: 10", 1024x600
Operating System: Windows 7 Home Premium
Communication: 3G and Wi-Fi
Ship date: Summer 2010
The 2goPC Slate is a typical netbook running on an Intel Atom processor, minus the keyboard which has been replaced with a multitouch screen. The Windows 7 OS provides multi-tasking, which the iPad doesn't have. Like most netbooks, and un-like the iPad, it comes with a built-in Webcam. And what's most impressive is a price of $499.

Product Name: Adam
Screen Size and Resolution: 10.1", 1024x600
Operating System: Android
Communication: 3G and Wi-Fi
Ship date: Q3 2010
The Adam will use NVIDIA's (NVDA) Tegra 2 (a graphics processor specifically designed for tablets and other mobile devices). Notion Ink will offer this tablet with a "dual mode" LCD; this means you'll be able to switch between a normal color screen to a black-and-white one, with the backlight turned off, which is meant to simulate the "e-ink" screen of e-book readers like the Amazon Kindle. Also setting the Adam apart will be its built-in camera, which can swivel to point at the tablet's user or away, thus, letting you shoot pictures.

Product: ExoPC Slate
Screen Size and Resolution: 11.6", 1366x768
Operating System: Windows 7 Home Edition
Communication:v Wi-Fi
Ship date: September 2010
Like the 2goPC Slate, closer scrutiny of its technical specs suggests this tablet will basically be a larger-screen netbook with a touchscreen in lieu of a keyboard. The ExoPC's upcoming release will lack 3G, but it will still have a bigger screen and higher resolution than the iPad, and it will use Windows 7.

Product: Gemini
Screen Size and Resolution: 11.6", 1366x768
Operating System: Android
Communication: 3G and Wi-Fi
Ship date: August 2010

Product: JooJoo
Screen Size and Resolution: 12.1"; 1366x768
Operating System: Based on Linux
Communication: 3G and Wi-Fi
Shipping now


Product: M1Touch
Screen Size and Resolution: 10.1"; 1024x600
Operating System: Windows 7 Starter Edition or Home Premium
Communication: 3G (optional) or Wi-Fi
Ship date: Summer 2010

Product: WindPad 100 and 110
Screen Size and Resolution: 10"; 1024x600
Operating System: Windows 7 Home Premium (WindPad 100); Android (WindPad 110)
Communication: 3G and Wi-Fi
Ship date: End of 2010

Product: Touchpad BC10
Screen Size and Resolution: 10.1"; 1024x600
Operating System: Windows 7 Home Premium
Communication: Wi-Fi
Ship date: Summer 2010



Product: WeTab
Screen Size and Resolution: 11.6", 1366x768
Operating System: Based on Linux
Communication: 3G and Wi-Fi
Ship date: August 2010

7 Crazy iPad Accessories

http://www.cio.com/article/638613/7_Crazy_iPad_Accessories
How many of these add-ons do you have for Apple's tablet, and what does that say about you?

Signs you love your iPad too much

How much do you love your iPad? Perhaps too much, if the accessories shown here cause your eyes to light up and your credit card to whip out. The good news: Outside a bunch of fake accessories like the iCade and iDrift lurking on Web humor pages, there are not as many crazy iPad accessories as you might expect, so there's still opportunity for any mad-scientist readers out there to fill the gap!

But as the next slides show, in rough order from least to most crazy, there are still some nutty things you get for an iPad.


Apple (AAPL) iPad Dock Connector to VGA Adapter and Apple Component AV Cable
It doesn't sound crazy to want to display video or presentations -- or simply the screen so that you can use a wireless keyboard and a monitor with your iPad as you would with a laptop. What's crazy is that Apple has blocked most apps from sending out video. It makes sense for some content, given that Steve Jobs is also the largest shareholder of Disney (DIS) stock: The iPad won't play movies and TV shows downloaded from iTunes because it's licensed only for device-screen display. But the fact that Apple's Keynote can show slideshows but competing apps like Quickoffice and Documents to Go can't -- that's crazy control freakishness. Until any app except those showing rights-managed content are allowed to output their screens via these two video connectors ($29 and $49, respectively), save your money.


Foldable Solar Charger

Custom iPad suit

Elite Home Theater Seating iPad Chair

Hollandia i-Con bed

Volkswagen 2010 Polo

Wannabe iPad killers

15 Best iPad Apps for Newbies

http://www.cio.com/article/668364/15_Best_iPad_Apps_for_Newbies
Are you considering the upcoming iPad 2 as your first iPad? An iPad, unplugged, is a welcome contrast to the communications-driven iPhone. Take our tour of cool apps that take advantage of the iPad's leisurely user experience.


Flipboard
Magazines play well on the iPad because of the casual reading experience. Flipboard (free) is an app for creating a customized magazine that pulls content and pictures from Twitter, Facebook, RSS feeds, Flickr, favorite blogs and Web sites. Best of all, Flipboard lets you flip through the neatly organized, wonderfully laid-out pages.

Instapaper
Instapaper ($4.99) lets you save articles, blogs and news for offline reading. The app turns Web pages into a great reading experience. It is one of our 15 best iPhone apps for newbies. But few people can stand to read feature stories on a browser or iPhone. The iPad and Instapaper are bringing back long-form reading on the Web.

Marvel Comics
Comics are fast-becoming an exciting form of literature, but they don't render well on black-and-white tablets. Thankfully, the iPad is bursting with color and can showcase comics in all their glory. Now you can catch all your favorite superheroes in action on your iPad with Marvel Comics (free).

Dropbox + QuickOffice
The iPad isn't all fun and games, sometimes there's real work to be done. That's when you'll need two apps: cloud storage app Dropbox (free up to 2GB) and Quickoffice. Quickoffice Connect Mobile Suite for iPad ($14.99) lets you access and work on Dropbox-stored Excel spreadsheets, Word documents and, recently, PowerPoint slides.

Adobe (ADBE) Photoshop Express
Photoshop pros probably won't get too excited about this iPad app from Adobe, but photo hobbyists will have fun with Adobe Photoshop Express (free). Thanks to the iPad's larger screen, you'll be able to easily crop and rotate photos, create effects and borders, manipulate color, apply filters, etc.

Bento for iPad
The 10-inch iPad screen is roughly the size of a bento box, a neatly packed Japanese meal. This makes Bento for iPad ($4.99) a perfect fit. Optimized for the iPad, Bento is a personal organizer that helps you manage everything from contacts, events and to-do items to special activities such as exercise regimens and diet plans.


ArtRage
Art on the iPhone made headlines nearly two years ago when Jorge Colombo drew a painting that made The New Yorker cover. Really, though, doesn't the larger iPad screen make a better canvas? ArtRage ($6.99) is a painting simulation app that keeps track of the amount of paint on the canvas, watercolors reacting to the wetness of the brush, blending colors, and much more.

Amazon Kindle
In only a few months since its debut last year, the iPad quickly became the second most popular e-reader behind the Amazon Kindle. If reading is your passion, getting the Kindle iPad app (free) is a no-brainer. Sure, Apple (AAPL) has its own iBook Store app, but the Amazon book selection is unbeatable

Epicurious
I probably spend more time grocery shopping, cooking and eating than any other personal activity. Epicurious (free) serves up more than 30,000 recipes from magazines, chefs and cookbooks. Best part of the iPad app version: The big screen makes it easy to follow recipes step-by-step in the kitchen.
Bonus advice: Get a stand that keeps youriPad free and clear from messy ingredients.

Netflix
Sure, there's a time and place for watching HD movies on a big screen. More often than not, though, you'll catch a flick while on the go or quietly in bed. At times like these, you'll want Netflix (free) on the iPad. The iPad's screen is big enough to catch R2-D2's cameo in J.J. Abrams' 2009 Star Trek blockbuster movie.


The Daily
The Daily ($39.99 per year) recently debuted on the iPad under Apple's new subscription model. For a dime and a penny a day, you get more than 100 pages of original news, entertainment, lifestyle, opinions, breaking news updates, customized sports pages, videos, interactive graphics, and great photography.


Star Walk
With Star Walk ($4.99), the iPad becomes a map to the stars. Just point your iPad at the sky, and you'll learn the identities of the stars, constellations and satellites. Of course, if you live in Los Angeles, all you'll really see is smog covering up the stars (and we're not talking movie stars, either).

Penultimate
Most of us got through college by scratching notes on a pad of paper. Penultimate ($1.99) brings that chaotic yet critical learning experience to the iPad. Using inking technology, Penultimate lets you take notes on realistic paper. After all, it's how some of the world's greatest ideas got started.

Pages, Keynote, Numbers
Apple's productivity apps were made for the iPad (or maybe it's the other way around?). They consist of Pages ($9.99) for word processing, Keynote ($9.99) for presentations and Numbers ($9.99) for spreadsheets. I think they beat the pants off of Microsoft (MSFT) Office. The only problem is that everyone else uses Office.

RISK: The Official Game for iPad
The iPad has become a supremely popular gaming platform. The big screen of the iPad is also bringing back another kind of gaming: the board game. A group of people can now gather around the iPad socially (unlike an iPhone or vertical computer screen). One of my favorite games is Risk ($.99). Besides, aren't you tired of hearing about Angry Birds?

My First 48 Hours with iPad 2: One CIO's Story

One CIO who has already made the iPad a critical part of his organization shares what he liked - and still wished for - after his first couple of days with the iPad 2. Read on for his take on FaceTime, Apple's not-so "smart" cover, and more.By Tom Kaneshige

CIO — After weeks of waiting for an iPad 2 on back order, CIO Rob Rennie of Florida State College at Jacksonville finally got his hands on the slick, new device. "My assessment so far is, I love it because it is faster, lighter and the FaceTime capability makes a lot of difference for me," Rennie says.

More than just a cool consumer device, the iPad has become a critical piece of technology at the college. Rennie has helped usher hundreds of iPads into the hands of executives, IT staff, administrators, faculty and students. Executives use them for reporting purposes, project tracking, staffing issues. Last summer, Rennie told CIO.com about five surprises during his iPad enterprise rollout.

CIO Robert Rennie

[ Considering the iPad 2? Check out these 15 best iPad apps for newbies, reports CIO.com. ]

"We are having great success with them in science labs and other academic environments where a laptop is impractical," Rennie says. "Leader management types are making good use of them as part of a larger paperless initiative."

As an early iPad champion, Rennie waited anxiously for his iPad 2 to arrive—which it did this week. The top-of-the-line iPad 2 64GB with 3G has enough storage space to handle Rennie's huge media content needs. He also chose to go with 3G, rather than use his iPhone as a hotspot, because he feared hot-spotting would run down the iPhone battery.

"The 3G data plan works well for me, making the iPad a fully independent device," he says.

So what does a CIO who has staked much of his reputation on the iPad do in the first couple of days with the iPad 2 (other than cartwheels and including a business trip)?

In this interview, Rennie gives the lowdown on what apps took priority (for both work and personal use), what he thinks of the magnetic Apple (AAPL) case, and what he hopes will show up in iOS 5, expected to be announced at Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference on June 6.

What apps took priority on your iPad 2?

Rennie: In addition to the standard apps, including email and calendar, I went first for iAnnotate PDF ($10—a PDF reader and annotation tool), Fluent News Reader (free—newspaper aggregator app), Keynote ($10—Apple's presentation app), Office2 HD ($8—Word and Excel app), Dropbox (free—cloud storage app), Evernote (free—cloud-storage, note-taking app), Numbers ($10—Apple's spreadsheet app), OmniGraffle ($50—diagram-creating app) and various music apps such as Amplitude HD ($2—app for amplifying sound).

I use all but the music apps for work. With Keynote, Numbers, iAnnotate, Office2 HD, and Dropbox, I have a fully mobile work environment on the iPad. I don't need a laptop except in extreme cases. Evernote is great for keeping all my notes synced. (For iPad newbies, here are 15 must-have iPad apps.)

Additionally, we have built a series of custom apps for our organization that replaces our decision support, ERP reports and several other ready references. Our tech plan and project-by-project fiscal analysis is in iBooks. Dropbox is great for file sharing.

You mentioned that you're a big FaceTime fan, and the iPad 2 brings FaceTime to the tablet. How important is this feature?

Rennie: FaceTime delivers a good, quick videoconference from any wireless environment. It has become a favored tool for work. We do quick video conferences and show whiteboards and physical spaces. When I travel, it's nice to call home and see everyone. I use FaceTime at least three to four times a week.

Did you get any accessories with your iPad 2?

Rennie: I didn't get a keyboard because the virtual keyboard works fine for me. I did get a camera connection kit ($30)and a HDMI digital AV adapter ($40) to connect to large monitors around the office and in conference rooms. (Check out these five iPad productivity tools for under $5, reports CIO.com.)

What about Apple's magnetic "smart" cover ($40)?

Rennie: I have a problem with the awkwardness of the cover. Although it appears to be a great idea, it starts to lose its luster when you are holding (the iPad) in your hand and walking around. The cover is kind of clumsy. I've also had the cover disconnect at the magnet hinges a few times. It's a little weird on airplanes where the absence of rigidity of position is problematic.

I am trying to adjust to the cover, but if I don't really soon then I will start evaluating other options.

On the iOS side, Apple apparently will introduce iOS 5 at this year's Worldwide Developer's Conference. From a CIO's perspective, what do you want to see?

Rennie: I know the iPad is an individual's device, but it is also great for classes, labs and healthcare applications where having more than one user per device is essential. Yet there's no easy way to share an iPad across classes and work shifts that keeps common data and apps and allows multiple authenticated users with their personal profiles.

For example, with an iPad in a clinical or medical environment, you'll want to keep the patient information and charts (the same for workers changing shifts) but would like the user to authenticate and have their unique calendar, email and subscriptions. This would make enterprise management of the devices a lot easier.

Top 10 Best Upcoming Cell Phones

Sure, you want a new phone right now, but carriers and manufacturers have promised some truly spectacular, knock-your-socks-off phones coming to U.S. shelves between now and June. With 4G right around the corner and mobile hardware and software getting better and better, you should take a look at what’s coming down the pike in the next couple of months before you buy.

he first three weeks of the year have seen more than a dozen announcements from top U.S. carriers, and we’re sure to see more at the Mobile World Congress trade show in mid-February. Whether you’re with AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, or Verizon Wireless, there’s something exciting on the horizon.

It wasn’t easy keeping it to just 10, but we’ve come up with this list of the most exciting phones that you’ll be able to buy in the coming months. To check out pictures of these handsets,

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  10. Sony Ericsson Xperia Arc (AT&T?)

Sony Ericsson’s big comeback could come from this Android 2.3 "Gingerbread" phone with a razor-sharp screen, spectacular camera, and the ability to be manipulated by your TV’s remote control. While the company told us it wants to sell this phone here in the U.S, we’ve put it in last place on this list because Sony Ericsson has a lousy track record of getting its phones picked up by U.S. carriers. If it does appear, the Xperia Arc will most likely show up on AT&T.

Also notable: Sony Ericsson is expected to debut a "PlayStation phone" next month, though we don’t know whether that’s ever coming to the U.S. We should know more when MWC commences on Feb. 13.

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  9. HTC 7 Pro (Sprint)

Windows Phone 7 will debut on Sprint very, very soon with this big, sliding-QWERTY-keyboard model. Like many other Windows Phone 7 devices, the 7 Pro has a 1GHz processor and a 5-megapixel camera. The form factor is the selling point here, with a tilting screen that makes it look like a little laptop.

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8. LG Revolution (Verizon Wireless) 
Verizon debuted four new LTE, Android-based phones at CES this year. The LG Revolution’s key features include 1080p HD video capture and the ability to organize your Android apps into folders, preventing your app tray from getting much too long.

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7. Samsung Galaxy S 4G (T-Mobile)

T-Mobile’s Editors’ Choice-winning Samsung Vibrant is getting a faster cousin on February 13 with the introduction of the Galaxy S 4G, which T-Mobile pre-announced on January 20. We don’t know much about the new generation Galaxy S, although we’re hoping T-Mobile’s phone is the same as the dual-core Galaxy S lineup that Samsung is promising.

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6. Samsung Infuse 4G (AT&T)

Super-thin, with a super-huge, Super AMOLED Plus screen, the Samsung Infuse will give you a truly cinematic Android experience. The 4.5-inch display carries the same 800-by-480 resolution as most other smart phones, but Samsung says Super AMOLED Plus will improve its colors. The Infuse will be one of the first phones to run on AT&T’s fast HSPA+ network.

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5. HTC Thunderbolt (Verizon Wireless)

HTC is beloved for giving a bit more style and finish to its Android phones than some other manufacturers, and the 4G HTC Thunderbolt comes with the company’s award-winning Sense UI overlay. It also has an 8-megapixel camera and an HD video recorder, which may make this an excellent 4G phone for YouTube devotees.

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4. T-Mobile Sidekick 4G

The T-Mobile Sidekick is a cult device with an intensely faithful following. After Sidekick-maker Danger was bought by Microsoft, fans thought they’d never see a new model. T-Mobile recently said the Sidekick is coming back as a 4G HSPA+ Android phone, but didn’t give many details. This image seems to hint that it will eschew a swiveling screen for a slider design.

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3. Motorola Droid Bionic (Verizon Wireless)

The dual-core, NVIDIA Tegra 2 processor in the Motorola Droid Bionic means this 4G LTE phone will be up to twice as fast as other top smartphones. I’ve seen the Tegra difference when playing games, and it means sharper backgrounds, better shadows, and more enemies to fight. The Droid Bionic may very well be Verizon’s power leader when it launches.

2. Motorola Atrix (AT&T)

The most interesting phone I saw at CES and the one I’m personally waiting most anxiously for, the Motorola Atrix is an Android phone that turns into a Linux-powered, desktop or laptop PC when it’s popped into the appropriate dock. Could this replace a tablet, a netbook, or a home media center? I really want to find out.

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1. Apple iPhone 5

Sorry folks, we couldn’t ignore the next-gen Jesus phone. Nobody knows anything reliable about the upcoming iPhone, although noisy blog speculation is already in full force. We don’t know if it will be called iPhone 5, iPhone 4G, or something else. But we’re pretty sure it’s coming in June or July—iPhones always do. Surely Apple will have plenty of surprises for us, and it’s likely that a new iPhone will come with industry-leading features. The real question is, with a Verizon iPhone 4 coming in early February—can you wait that long?

Full iPad2 Specs vs. Competition: Who’s Best?

With the release of the iPad in 2010, and the termendous and unexpected success of this latest Apple innovation, there was no doubt that all of Apple’s competitors would be releasing their own tablets in the near future in order to compete with the iPad.

After the first wave of releases and the initial thickening of the competition in this market, rumors began to fly, already in January, regarding the new features and specs expected to accompany the release of the iPad 2, which will ship on March 11.

In the following infographic, we’ll take a look at what innovation the iPad 2 will be bringing to the table (or should we say tablet?), as well as what Apple’s competitors will offer in an effort to stay in the face

Apple iPad 2: Who should buy and who should pass

By Jason Hiner

March 14, 2011, 4:49 AM PDT

Takeaway: A lot of people are attracted to the Apple iPad 2, but not all them should get it. Here’s a look at the top candidates for the iPad 2, as well as those who should stick with iPad 1 or get a different device.

Nobody in the technology business does a better job than Apple of convincing people that they need to buy the next shiny new thing. However, despite the product magnetism of Steve Jobs and company, not everyone who thinks they need or want the new iPad 2 should actually buy it.

In order to help some of those folks save some money and to help others decide whether or not they are a good candidate for iPad 2, I’ve put together a quick first take on the iPad 2 question.

Who should buy?

• Those who’ve waited - People who have already decided that the iPad is a good fit for their light computing and media consumption needs but have so far held out from buying the original iPad or any of the competing tablets are now rewarded for their patience. The iPad 2 maintains the same great catalog of apps and the same long battery life while doubling the performance, adding video calls, and slimming down the form factor — all while maintaining the same price tag as the original. If you’ve held out so far, you now get a lot more tablet for your money.
• Video callers - If you’re already an iPad owner and the Apple tablet has become an indispensable device that you already use on a daily basis, then there’s one big reason to upgrade: Video calling. Over the past year I’ve heard many iPad users complain that the biggest thing missing from the iPad was the ability to do video calls, using Skype or Apple’s FaceTime. These users have viewed the iPad, with its “lean-back” user experience, as an ideal device for making video calls to long distance family and friends, calling home during business trips, or doing one-on-one video conferencing for business. In my opinion, the iPad 2’s cameras are all about video calls. Apple certainly didn’t design this to be a device for taking high quality still photos. The front-facing camera is for face-to-face calling and the back camera is primarily for showing your video callers what you’re looking at.
• Mobile multimedia creators - With the upgrade to a dual core processor and the addition of Apple multimedia apps iMovie and GarageBand for the iPad 2, the Apple tablet is expanding beyond being primarily a consumption device to becoming more of a creation device — at least in the specialized area of multimedia creation (audio, video, podcasts, etc.). For those that who want to test the iPad as a mobile creation device that’s more accessible to more content creators than a traditional PC (because of multitouch), then the iPad 2 is a worthy purchase or upgrade.

Who should pass?

• Fans of iPad 1.0 - The worst reason for upgrading — and I’ve heard this a lot more than expected — is “I really like the original iPad so I’m going to get the new one.” If you’re not going to do much video calling and you’re not going to experiment with the iPad for creating videos and podcasts, then there’s really not much reason to upgrade from iPad 1 to iPad 2. You don’t really need the dual core if you’re not doing all the video calling and multimedia creation, and the slightly thinner/lighter form factor of the iPad 2 is nice but far from essential. The original iPad is still a great device and holding on to it for another year until the iPad 3 and the next generation of competitor tablets arrives could be a very wise choice.
• Heavy readers - If one of the main reasons that you want an iPad is to use it as an e-reader then I wouldn’t recommend the iPad 2. For hard-core readers who read 2+ hours at a time, who read mostly books, or who spend a lot of time reading outside in full sunlight, then I’d recommend an Amazon Kindle instead. If you’re an omnivorous reader who wants a tablet primarily to read Web pages, magazine articles, non-fiction books with lots of maps and graphics, and PDF documents, then I’d simply recommend picking up an iPad 1, which lots of upgraders are currently unloading for as low as $300.
• Supporters of open standards - Like the iPod before it, the iPad has appealed to a much wider audience than just traditional Mac and Apple fans. However, the thing to keep in mind before buying the iPad — especially if it’s your first Apple device — is that it will start to insidiously rope you into the Apple ecosystem. Sure, you can get content from outside the Apple ecosystem and use it on your iPad, using Amazon music and videos or Netflix or Barnes & Noble Nook, for example, but you’ll quickly find that it’s easier to just use the Apple ecosystem to buy content. Before you know it, you’ll have a small library of content with DRM that only works in iTunes and on Apple devices (this isn’t the case with music any more, but it is still the case with movies and TV shows). So, next time you upgrade you’ll be more likely to buy another Apple product so that you don’t orphan a bunch of your content. If you’re a supporter of open standards and use a lot of different platforms (e.g. Windows, Linux, Android, Xbox 360, etc.), then you’ll have a hard time wrestling with the iPad to make it work with all of your content and open file formats, and you’ll especially have a hard time getting content from the iPad to play nice with other platforms. You’re probably better off waiting for a really good Android tablet to emerge.

Also read

• Piper Jaffray: iPad 2 totally sold out, 70% to new buyers (Fortune)
• Potential iPad 2 shortages tipped by supply chain leaks (SlashGear)