I used to have a Palm Tungsten C PDA that I carried with me everywhere.  Wasn’t quite a smartphone (back then you had to have a Blackberry to have all the bells and whistles), but it was a damned useful device.  I could email, surf the web with some imitations on a small 3″ screen (if that), I could write notes or — indeed — my 130 page master’s thesis, among other things.  It was wifi enabled and I loved the thing.

That’s what the iPad is:  a big PDA.  But infinitely more useful.  It’s not quite a netbook, but it’s more than a smartphone (without the phone.)  Initially, I saw no use for the thing until I played with one.  I’ve changed my mind, enough so I bought a 32gb version with the wifi and 3G (on the off chance I’d need it while traveling.

After 24 hours of use (actually, more like 11 hours, but I still have a 20% battery charge!), here’s the verdict so far:

Battery life — stunning.  I have the screen at about 50% brightness and it’s been more than enough, even in indirect sunlight.  I downloaded a bunch of free and a few pay apps for chat engines, a few card games and a few racing games.  The graphics are fast and it’s fun.  The contacts list was imported from my laptop without issue and is set up so you can click into the maps function to find their location, if you need, and get driving direction from where you are (the iPad can give your current location and directions.  Very slick.), or you can go to a website or email straight out of your contacts list.  I downloaded a bunch of free ebooks and bought one (Craig Frerguson’s biography — quite good.)

Graphics are fast and smooth, it’s easy to pinch/zoom for the internet, the memory doesn’t appear to be taxed with steady use, and with all the garbage I’ve thrown on it, including some pics bu no music or video yet, I’ve only used a gig of the SSD drive.

The main downside is the speed of synching the iPad with the computer.  I suspect this is due to having to go through iTunes, and formats that aren’t Apple-exclusive I’m sure get the usual Steve Jobs middle finger.  Apps and books download/synch fast, but pics seem to take forever.  With pics selected for synching, it took the iPad almost an hour to complete its task; without it’s a minute or two.  As good as the battery is (and it really is!), recharging takes a bit of time.  At 20% charge, it looks to be on target for a 2 hour recharge time (it’s been an 1:15 hours and it’s up to 60%.

The wifi is solid and quickly finds you connections, but often you have to drop to the email program to get it to go looking.  Haven’t tried the 3G yet.

Overall, style: 5 out of 5, substance/function 4 out of 5.  It’s a bit pricey, but for someone traveling a lot that needs a small machine to keep them entertained and connected, it’s a good choice.