New Toy

I went shopping for an iPad 2 and came home with a Macbook Air.

I won't take the time to review the iPad as I am no expert on electronic products.  But, I was curious to see this particular bit of equipment for myself, especially since we own a Kindle, two iPhones and I write on a Macbook.

The iPad is an exciting tool, I have to say.  It's fun.  Dazzling actually. Apple will sell a zillion of them, and people will think of at least a zillion different ways to have fun with them.  I think the main appeal is that using them feels a lot like play, and not too many products made today can give an adult that sense of unlimited discovery and delight.

But, I didn't buy one.  I bought a Macbook Air instead, and it all came down to being a practical person and prioritizing my needs as I looked at a few different products.  I write, I travel, and I am not tech savvy. The iPad has a "keyboard" but it's really a touch screen that an experienced typist would find somewhat frustrating to have to use heavily. I need to feel the keys and type without looking at the keyboard at all.

When I travel, lugging around a laptop is a chore.  My Macbook weighs 5 lb or so, which is pretty light compared to some beasts I've seen out there.  A few PC-style laptops I've seen are blunderbuses and need a pony to them carry around. The Air weighs 2 lb and is as slim as a magazine.  The iPad weighs even less, but the lack of a keyboard killed it for me.  It was fun to see the features of the new Tiger operating system and all the brilliant applications that make using it wonderful, elegant and alluring.  I came this close to buying one.

Once I realized that virtually all the applications and the operating system were the same on the Air, and it also had a keyboard, I felt my choice was obvious.  

I'm happy with my choice and can travel a little less encumbered than before.  Traveling light is very important to me. I don't want to feel like a beast of burden as I move from car to hotel to airport to train. I am always looking at ways I can shave weight and try to choose items their efficiency and effectiveness.  I think it comes from my days as a cyclist when components and accessories were considered primarily because of their durability and light weight.

So now, back to writing, using the tools I've got.  When my vacation comes up next month, I'll be carrying three pounds less stuff than I would have before, and two pounds of what I will carry uses beautiful, fun and easy-to-use technology.  That much I am savvy about.