On Friday, the professor provided each of us with an iPad 2 (or iPad for some) to experiment with over the weekend. How cool is that?! I have been considering purchasing an iPad for my four-year-old son, so it was awesome to have a test run. I think the iPad makes the internet and applications more accessible and convenient than traditional computer use, but I will wait until it runs flash before purchasing. I also caution schools from purchasing large quantities of iPads or iPad 2s because Apple is sure to correct the flash issue soon in order to keep consumers happy.
Favorite Apps:
- Doodle Buddy- tool for drawing
- Strip Design- comic strip maker but also nice for picture collages
- Planets- 3D guide of the solar system (ASTONISHING!)
- Toy Story Disney Digital Storybook- e-Book with fun extras
The Pros:
- There are hundreds (maybe even thousands) of apps that promote learning and skill development
- Could be integrated with any subject area to get students motivated about the content
- Apps are affordable (many are free)
- Easy to use (toddlers can navigate)
- Light- super portable
- Large screen
- Support for multiple languages
- Ability to enlarge text/windows (zoom)
- E-books can be read to users
- Allows users to produce creative artifacts easily and quickly (For example, drawing a picture in the Doodle Buddy app for iPad takes significantly less time than drawing the same picture in Kid Pix for the computer)
- Space saver in comparison to computers
The Cons:
- NO FLASH!! (Other tablets such as, BlackBerry’s Playbook, Samsung’s Galaxy Tab, HP’s soon-to-be-released TouchPad, and others run flash)
- The lit screen is not ideal for long term reading…honestly, I couldn’t last 10 minutes before my eyes ached
- Battery life (I’ve read that it lasts for 9 hours but the one I had lasted just 4 hours)
- Apple will come out with something newer and better as soon as you purchase one
- Lack of additional memory (No USB port or SD card slot)
- Typing or writing is not user friendly
The iPad was so much fun playing with it over the weekend. I have never used one before so it was great going through all the apps to see what they were about. I really like the Toy Story app and the Doodle Buddy app. A lot of the apps were interactive so they would be great for students.
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure Apple will get flash up and running. I actually do not use flash very much when it comes to day to day internet exploring. I know a lot of schools use flash but remember technology wasn't created for schools. We as educators have to find ways to adapt the technology to work in a school setting. I'm not really at all disappointed that it doesn't use flash because I don't really use it. I can see where it would make some users unhappy.
ReplyDeleteExcellent review of your time with the iPad. Many of your favorite apps are mine too! There is so much out there, one just needs time to check them out. I think your concerns about the iPad are right on target and well thought out. We'll see what happens because as you say... something new will always be on the horizon!
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with your favorite apps. I wish I had gotten a chance to look into the Toy Story app, but I did play around with the other three a little when I connected to the internet in the CTLT today. The Planets 3-D app blew me away. I am not sure how to feel about the flash player issue right now because I do use it a lot on day to day things, but at the same time I think that the apps that are available and don't use flash are encouraging and make me think that they may continue to evolve even without the access to flash.
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