Why I’m falling back in love with the iPad

I’ve had an on and off again relationship with the iPad. I found myself loving it at first, then my interested waned off over time. It was easy for me to go a week without picking it up.  And then I tried the Android-based Galaxy Tab.  Really liked a lot of things about it, but again, I’d find myself going a week without picking it up.

I’m still not absolutely loving the new iPad2 case, which most people point to as the second coming of cases, I’m still looking forward to trying some Case-Mate cases since I’m very brand loyal to those guys.

About a month ago I picked up the iPad 2.  And a month in, I’m still using it pretty regularly.  Since I took many months off from really using the original iPad, a lot has changed.  There are more apps designed for the iPad interface and the OS has improved quite a bit.  That’s one of the reasons I’m liking the iPad 2.   Here are a few more:

I’ve started using Instapaper pretty religiously over the past two months and its a great app on the iPad.  Here’s a post I wrote about the differences between Instapaper and Evernote.  I still love both but they serve different purposes.

I also started using Reeder for my RSS feeds (from Google Reader) and its a great experience on the iPad.

FaceTime, although it only seems to work half the time right now, is awesome on the iPad.  I love talking to my kids on the larger interface.

I really enjoy the slicker feel of the device and how much slimmer it seems to be.  Walking around with this new iPad, its amazing how the old one feels bulky and heavy.

I’m using Omnifocus for my to-do organization now.  It’s an amazing, amazing tool.  Expensive, but amazing.  And its great on the iPad of course.

Some downsides, I’m definitely reading less books already, which is why I am still confident that the Kindle has a place in my life.

Oh, and blogging does still suck (at least via WordPress), so I’m still having to grab my laptop to write blog posts.

Lastly, here is a snapshot of my iPad 2 home screen in case you’re wondering what apps I’m using the most now.  Share your home screen, I’m always fascinated to see what other people are using.