Officially, they are only on sale in the United States of Exclusive America, but we know that the first Apple iPads are already on their way to South Africa.
The internet is awash with opinion. Too much, if you ask us. But somehow, some way, we have to figure out if we want to buy the damn thing, right?
Let’s break it down for you.
The e-reader and video functions of the device are, by all accounts, fantastic to use. But the iPad also came with the promise of revolutionising the portable gaming industry. At R6,338 (imported), it had better follow through. Consider what you could be buying instead. Or hang on, Kotaku will do it for you:
That‘s a lot of whisky. Or a Nintendo DS with a basket full of games.
Everyone seems to like the screen. It‘s bright, it‘s big (for a handheld device) and it is very responsive to touch commands. As for the software, the deceptively obvious consensus seems to be that some games work on the platform, and others don‘t.
Gamesradar points out that the point & click adventures of yore are due for resurgence on the iPad. Ditto real-time strategy, which has exciting days ahead in a touch-enabled world. As for driving games: who likes the idea of a game where the screen moves with the steering wheel? It‘s a recipe for nausea if ever there was one.
One thing we can‘t fault is the sheer number of gaming titles already available on the iPad. IGN is keeping an updated list of the heavy hitters, which includes Mirror‘s Edge, Red Alert and Geometry Wars. To boot, all of them are available from the single, easy-to-use marketplace we know as the iStore.
We‘d love to hear from South African gamers who have experienced the iPad hands-on. Get in touch, bru.
The only question still to be answered about Steve Jobs‘ latest technological marvel is: will it blend?
