Dave Caolo

Great post from Aaron Mahnke at A Better Freelancer.

“With a simple template in Illustrator, I’ve taken all of my logo projects and created iPad wallpaper-sized images, imported them all into iPhoto, created an album for them and then set iTunes up to sync that album with my iPad. And BOOM – instant gorgeous portfolio.”

Great application.

A long time ago, I read The Martian Chronicles by Ray Bradbury. At one point, a character is described as “listening to a book.” It was a minor detail with no special significance; just a bit of color used to establish a setting.

As an 8th grader with Star Wars PJs, it blew me away.

Years later, when the story was adapted for television, that character used a thin object about the size and shape as a clipboard for reading. No pages, no cover. How, I wondered, could something that incredible exist?

Much was made of the iPad‘s potential as an eReader before its release. Comparisons to the Kindle and Nook were inevitable. Now that some months have passed, users can explore publishers’ initial attempts at electronic distribution. Earlier this week, Condé Nast released an iPad version of Wired magazine ($4.99) and sold 24,000 copies in the first 24 hours.

That number demonstrates that users want to read magazines on their iPads, and that they’re happy to reward well-done apps. Despite some flaws, I can say that Wired for iPad is definitely well done. Here’s my experience with reading Wired on an iPad.

The good

The Ads. That’s right. Many of the ads in this issue (and there’s a lot of them; more on that later) offer something interesting for my time. For instance, a GE ad lets me rotate a high-def CT scan of lungs and a heart in 3D space. A Heineken ad asks, “Can I touch it?” while the iPad is in landscape orientation and answers “Yes you can!” when turned to portrait orientation. A Pepsi ad plays an embedded video about two kids who won an academic scholarship. It’s sappy, heart-stringy and the kind of thing you won’t see on TV or in print. Yes, it’s odd to identify advertisements as a feature, but I can’t deny that they are.

Bookmarking. Unlike other apps (Kindle for iPad, for example), bookmarking is completely invisible. There’s no need to remember and bookmark a page. The app takes care of that for you. The next time you launch, it will remember where you left off.

The iPad’s display. This isn’t really a feature of the app, but it does look terrific. The display is bright and text is razor sharp. Colors are bright and beautiful. The Kindle’s E-Ink technology has won many fans (it is superior in direct sunlight, after all), but this would be a completely different experience in greyscale. Unfortunately for Kindle customers, Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos says that a color Kindle is “still a long way out.” Of course, this is demonstrative of the app’s real strength…

Takes advantage of the platform. Before the iPad was released, I hoped that video, audio and other goodies would enhance electronic magazines and books. Wired for iPad is a great example of that wish realized.

For instance, the “Invaders from Mars” feature presents an image of the red planet and the man-made machines that have paid it a visit. Slowly swiping across the image rotates it, revealing a photo and brief history of each mission. The illusion of “spinning” the planet is very well done and kind of addictive (you’ll find yourself whirling the planet around even after you’ve read all of the text).

Some articles, like “Riverboat Resurrection,” let you toggle between related photos without leaving the article. A great example of this explains what goes into Lea and Perrin’s Worcestershire Sauce. As you tap between the numbered steps, a new ingredient is revealed. Others include a clip of related audio or video. It feels like a webpage, so it’s familiar, but it’s much faster, so it’s more satisfying.

This issue’s standout is the Pixar feature, as it combines all of the above. There’s an exclusive clip from the movie. A “Building A Frame” section highlights how a single frame is created, step by step, culminating in a gorgeous, high-resolution image that you’re free to zoom and explore. It looks absolutely fantastic on the iPad’s display.

[Show as slideshow]

[View with PicLens]

The Bad

The app has some flaws. Here’s what I found.

The ads. As I mentioned, there are a LOT of ads. Yes, some of them are clever but most aren’t. Several of the ads with extra content want to push you out of the app and into Safari which is disruptive.

The price. At $5 per issue, you’ve met the cost of a year’s subscription to the paper version in two issues. I imagine Condé Nast will explore electronic subscription models, but until they do, 5 bucks per issue just isn’t sustainable.

Swiping. This might sound silly, but there’s a lot of swiping to do. While I love the publication’s use of graphics, it ends up with small amounts of text on the screen at once, even within lengthy articles. This complaint probably represents the height of laziness, but there it is.

The size. At half a gig, the first issue is huge. I’ve got a 16GB iPad and after syncing it full of photos, apps, movies and TV shows, space is at a premium.

Conclusion

It’s fun. It’s impossible to deny how much fun it is to read this version of Wired.

It’s appealing to non-geeks. In the day that I’ve owned this, I’ve shown it to three people, none of whom are geeks. Each one was completely smitten with the app and took the iPad right out of my hands. I had to wait to get it back. Granted, Wired is for geeks, but it if the experience can be carried over to other magazines … well, you see where this is going.

It makes me eager for the app’s future. I can’t wait to see what future updates bring.

At the end of the day, what have you got? A killer implementation of a digital magazine. It’s not all eye candy, but the fantastically written and researched Wired magazine that I’ve read for years. Despite my complaints (most of which are completely fixable), I’m enthused by what the developers have done with this app. I’m looking forward to the app’s future and whatever subscription plan is in the works. If you’ve got an iPad, definitely check this out.

I bet Ray would love it.

Read that again. Japan, arguably the most gadget-friendly nation there is, has lost its shit over the iPad. Still doubt that this thing is going to be huge?

Preston Gralla:

“iPads will top the publicity charts this week when they launch, but netbooks will still top the sales charts, and far outsell iPads into the foreseeable future. The iPad will remain an expensive, niche device compared to all-purpose netbooks.”

Philip Elmer-DeWitt for Fortune:

“…a Morgan Stanley/Alphawise survey conducted in March that found that 44% of U.S. consumers who were planning to buy an iPad said that they were buying it instead of a netbook or notebook computer.”

Oh, PC World.

Mike Halsey:

“With a starting price tag of $500 [the iPad is] simply too expensive, twice the price of a better specification netbook and the same price as significantly better laptops.  At this price it’s [sic] unique selling points of multi-touch and… erm… whatever the others are, are simply not enough to win hearts and minds.”

If current sales trends continue, the iPad will reach the $1B revenue mark faster than any other consumer product ever. Pre-orders for Australia, Italy, the UK and 6 other countries began today. International delivery will begin on May 28th. I’ve bookmarked this article to revisit at the end of the June quarter.

John Dvorak:

“The iPad is not going to be Apple’s next runaway best seller.”

One million units sold in 28 days. Apple could realistically realize $1B in revenue during the iPad’s 1st quarter of availability. Stock is limited in Apple’s retail stores. They can’t even keep the case on shelves.

Carl Howe:

“Apple’s iPad will likely take the crown for the fastest consumer product growth to the $1 billion revenue mark in history.”

Right again, John.

I recently received a DODOcase for my iPad. It’s absolutely gorgeous. I’ll have a full review on TUAW next week. Until then, enjoy this video demonstrating how each one is hand made.

Yes, the video is spilling into the sidebar. I’m too lazy to fix it right now.