Looking at the big picture
Touring the outside of the iPad
Checking out the iPad's applications
Congratulations! You've selected one of the most incredible handheld devices we've ever seen. Of course, the iPad is a combination of a killer audio and video iPod, an e-book reader, a powerful Internet communications device, a superb handheld gaming device, and a platform for over 150,000 apps at the time this was written — and probably a lot more by the time you read this.
In this chapter, we offer a gentle introduction to all the pieces that make up your iPad, plus overviews of its revolutionary hardware and software features.
The iPad has many best-of-class features, but perhaps its most unusual feature is the lack of a physical keyboard or stylus. Instead, it has a 9.7-inch super-high-resolution touchscreen (132 pixels per inch, if you care about such things) that you operate using a pointing device you're already intimately familiar with: your finger.
And what a display it is. We venture that you've never seen a more beautiful screen on a handheld device in your life.
Another feature that knocked our socks off was the iPad's built-in sensors. An accelerometer detects when you rotate the device from portrait to landscape mode and instantly adjusts what's on the display accordingly.
Tip
The screen rotates, that is, unless the screen rotation lock is engaged. We tell you more about this hardware feature shortly.
And a light sensor adjusts the display's brightness in response to the current ambient lighting conditions.
In the following sections, we're not just gawking over the wonderful screen. We take a brief look at some of the iPad's features, broken down by product category.
We agree with Steve Jobs on this one: The iPad is magical — and without a doubt, the best iPod Apple has ever produced. You can enjoy all your existing iPod content — music, audiobooks, audio and video podcasts, music videos, television shows, and movies — on the iPad's gorgeous high-resolution color display, which is bigger, brighter, and richer than any iPod or iPhone display that came before it.
Note
Bottom line: If you can get the content — be it video, audio, or whatever — into iTunes on your Mac or PC, you can synchronize it and watch or listen to it on your iPad.
Chapter 3 is all about syncing but for now, just know that some video content may need to be converted to an iPad-compatible format (with proper resolution, frame rate, bit rate, and file format) to play on your iPad. If you try to sync an incompatible video file, iTunes will alert you that there's an issue.
Tip
If you get an error message about an incompatible video file, select the file in iTunes and choose Advanced
But wait — there's more! Not only is the iPad a stellar iPod, but it's also a full-featured Internet communications device with — we're about to drop a bit of industry jargon on you — a rich HTML e-mail client that's compatible with most POP and IMAP mail services, with support for Microsoft Exchange ActiveSync. (For more on this topic, see Chapter 5.) Also on-board is a world-class Web browser (Safari) that, unlike on many mobile devices, makes Web surfing fun and easy on the eyes. Chapter 4 explains how to surf the Web using Safari.
Another cool Internet feature is Maps, a killer mapping application based on Google Maps. By using GPS (Wi-Fi + 3G model) or triangulation (Wi-Fi model), the iPad can determine your location, let you view maps and satellite imagery, and obtain driving directions and traffic information regardless of where you happen to be. (See Chapter 6 for the scoop on maps.) You can also find businesses such as gas stations, pizza restaurants, hospitals, and Apple stores with just a few taps.
We daresay that the Internet experience on an iPad is far superior to the Internet experience on any other handheld device.
Download the free iBooks app and you'll discover a whole new way of finding and reading books. The iBookstore, covered in Chapter 11, is chock full of good reading at prices that are lower than a hardcover copy. Better still, when you read an e-book, you're helping the environment and saving trees. And best of all, a great number of books are absolutely free. If you've never read a book on your iPad, give it a try. We think you'll like (or love) it.
Over 150,000 iPhone apps are available at this writing, in categories that include games, business, education, entertainment, healthcare and fitness, music, photography, productivity, travel, sports, and many more. The cool thing is that most of those iPhone apps run flawlessly on the iPad. Meanwhile, at the time we wrote this, the App Store offered more than 1,000 apps designed specifically for the iPad's large screen, with many more on the way. Chapter 7 helps you fill your iPad with all the cool apps your heart desires. We share our favorite free and for-sale apps in Chapters 16 and 17, respectively.
To actually use your iPad, only a few simple things are required. Here's a list of everything you need:
An iPad
An iTunes Store account (assuming you want to acquire apps, videos, music, iBooks, podcasts, and the like, which you almost certainly do)
Internet access — broadband wireless Internet access recommended
Plus you need one of the following:
A Mac with a USB 2.0 port, Mac OS X version 10.5.8 or later, and iTunes 9.1 or later
A PC with a USB 2.0 port; Windows 7, Windows Vista, or Windows XP Home or Professional with Service Pack 3 or later; and iTunes 9.1 or later
The iPad is a harmonious combination of hardware and software. In the following sections, we take a brief look at the hardware — what's on the outside.
On the top of your iPad, you'll find the headphone jack, and the Sleep/Wake button, as shown in Figure 1-1:
On/Off, Sleep/Wake button: This button is used to put your iPad's screen to sleep or to wake it up. It's also how you turn your iPad on or off. To put it to sleep or wake it up, just press the button. To turn it on or off, press and hold the button for a few seconds.
Note
Your iPad's battery will run down faster when your iPad is awake, so we suggest that you make a habit of putting it to sleep when you're not using it.
When your iPad is sleeping, nothing happens if you touch its screen. To wake it up, merely press the button again or press the Home button on the front of the device (as described in a moment).
Tip
Find out how to make your iPad go to sleep automatically after a period of inactivity in Chapter 13.
Headphone jack: This jack lets you plug in a headset. You can use the Apple headsets or headphones that came with your iPhone or iPod. Or, you can use pretty much any headphones or headset that plugs into a 3.5-mm stereo headphone jack.
Note
Throughout this book, we use the words headphones, earphones, and headset interchangeably. Strictly speaking, a headset includes a microphone so that you can talk (or record) as well as listen; headphones or earphones are for listening only. Either type works with your iPad.
Microphone: The tiny dot next to the headphone jack is actually a pretty good microphone.
Tip
Although your iPad doesn't include the Voice Notes app that comes with the iPhone, the App Store offers several free voice-recording apps for the iPad and/or iPhone.
On the bottom of your iPad are the speaker and dock connector, as shown in Figure 1-2:
Speaker: The speaker plays audio — music or video soundtracks — if no headset is plugged in.
30-pin dock connector: This connector has two purposes. One, you can use it to recharge your iPad's battery: Simply connect one end of the included dock connector–to–USB cable to the dock connector and the other end to the USB power adapter. Two, you can use the dock connector to recharge your iPad's battery as well as to synchronize: Connect one end of the same cable to the dock connector and the other end to a USB port on your Mac or PC.
In the "What's in the box" sidebar earlier in this chapter, reread the note about using the USB ports on anything other than your PC or Mac including keyboards, displays, and hubs.
On the right side of your iPad are the Volume Up/Down control and the screen rotation lock, as shown in Figure 1-3:
Screen rotation lock: You've probably noticed by now that your iPad's screen tries to rotate to what it thinks is the best orientation for whatever you're doing. But at times, you just don't want it to rotate, perhaps when reading an e-book. When that's the case, flip this little switch downward, and your screen won't rotate again until you flip it back up.
Volume Up/Down control: The Volume Up/Down control is a single button that's just below the screen rotation lock. The upper part of the button increases the volume; the lower part decreases it.
On the front of your iPad, you find the following (labeled in Figure 1-3):
Touchscreen: You find out how to use the iPad's gorgeous high-resolution color touchscreen in Chapter 2. All we have to say at this time is ... try not to drool all over it.
Home button: No matter what you're doing, you can press the Home button at any time to display the Home screen, as shown in Figure 1-3.
Application buttons: Each of the 13 buttons (icons) shown on the screen in Figure 1-3 launches an included iPad application. You read more about these applications later in this chapter and throughout the rest of the book.
The Home screen offers 13 icons by default, each representing a different built-in application or function. Because the rest of the book covers each and every one of these babies in full and loving detail, we merely provide brief descriptions here.
To get to your Home screen, tap the Home button. If your iPad is asleep when you tap, the unlock screen appears. After it is unlocked, you see whichever page of icons was on the screen when it went to sleep. If that happens to have been the Home screen, you're golden. If it wasn't, merely tap the Home button again to summon your iPad's Home screen.
Tip
Three steps let you rearrange icons on your iPad:
Press and hold any icon until all the icons begin to "wiggle."
Drag the icons around until you're happy with their positions.
Press the Home button to save your arrangement and stop the "wiggling."
If you haven't rearranged your icons, you see the following applications on your Home screen, starting at the top left:
Calendar: No matter what calendar program you prefer on your PC or Mac (as long as it's iCal, Microsoft Entourage, or Microsoft Outlook), you can synchronize events and alerts between your computer and your iPad. Create an event on one device, and the event is automatically synchronized with the other device the next time the two devices are connected. Neat stuff.
Contacts: This handy little app contains information about the people you know. Like the Calendar app, it synchronizes with the contacts app on your Mac or PC (again, as long as it's iCal, Microsoft Entourage, or Microsoft Outlook), and you can synchronize contacts between your computer and your iPad. If you create a contact on one device, the contact is automatically synchronized with the other device the next time your devices are connected. Chapter 12 explains how to start using the Calendar and Contacts apps.
Notes: This program enables you to type notes while you're out and about. You can send the notes to yourself or to anyone else through e-mail, or just save them on your iPad until you need them. For help as you start using Notes, flip to Chapter 12.
Maps: This application is among our favorites. View street maps or satellite imagery of locations around the globe, or ask for directions, traffic conditions, or even the location of a nearby pizza joint. You can find your way around the Maps app with the handy tips in Chapter 6.
YouTube: This application lets you watch videos from the popular YouTube Web site. You can search for a particular video or browse through thousands of offerings. It's a great way to waste a lot of time. Chapter 6 also explains the joys of YouTube.
Videos: This handy app is the repository for your movies, TV shows, and music videos. You add videos via iTunes on your Mac or PC, or by purchasing them from the iTunes Store using the iTunes app on your iPad. Check out Chapter 9 to learn more.
iTunes: Tap this puppy to purchase music, movies, TV shows, audiobooks, and more, and also download free podcasts and courses from iTunes U. There's more info about iTunes (and the iPod app) in Chapter 8.
App Store: This icon enables you to connect to and search the iTunes App Store for iPad applications that you can purchase or download for free over a Wi-Fi or cellular data network connection. Chapter 7 is your guide to buying and using apps from the App Store.
Safari: Safari is your Web browser. If you're a Mac user, you know that already. If you're a Windows user who hasn't already discovered the wonderful Safari for Windows, think Internet Explorer on steroids. Chapter 4 shows you how to start using Safari on your iPad.
Mail: This application lets you send and receive e-mail with most POP3 and IMAP e-mail systems and, if you work for a company that grants permission, Microsoft Exchange, too. Chapter 5 helps you start e-mailing everyone you know from your iPad.
Photos: This application is the iPad's terrific photo manager. You can view pictures that you transferred from your camera or SD card reader (using the optional Camera Connection Kit) or transferred from your computer. You can zoom in or out, create slideshows, e-mail photos to friends, and much more. To get started, see Chapter 10.
iPod: Last but not least, this icon unleashes all the power of an iPod right on your iPad, so you can listen to music or podcasts. You discover how it works in Chapter 8.