iPad 2

[Rico]

No major stock problems in my neck if the woods.

They get weekly deliveries, usually sell out and are restocked by the following week. Pretty good for a high demand product.

What's the price in the UK for these?

[Rico]

Oh, I guess it seems Best Buy is in hot water with Apple.  The story below is unconfirmed, but based on my recent Best Buy experiences I tend to believe it.  Looks like BB might be not able to sell the iPad 2 soon.  Read on....

Numerous rumors have claimed that Best Buy is in hot water with Apple over its alleged policy to stop iPad 2 sales once it meets its quota for the day, leaving the retailer "blacklisted" from further iPad sales.

Citing a source at Best Buy, CrunchGear reported this week that Best Buy was holding off on selling iPad 2 units it had in stock, telling customers they were sold out when, in reality, the stores had just reached their internal quota for that day. That strategy is rumored to have upset Apple, which is allegedly no longer allowing the retailer to sell the iPad 2.

"No less than (Apple Chief Operating Officer) Tim Cook is involved in this little snafu, and will be helping with the negotiations," the report said.

In addition, TUAW also received a tip that Apple "ordered a freeze on sales of the iPad 2 through Best Buy." The report also claimed that the retailer has pulled all stock except demo units.

Best Buy has been a partner in selling the iPad since the first-generation device launched last April. A year ago, Best Buy was the only non-Apple retailer that was allowed to sell the iPad, though other options such as Walmart and Target were added as the year went on.

Best Buy also has a unique partnership with Apple, as the electronics retailer commits a significant amount of floor space devoted specifically to Apple products in many of its stores. Best Buy began adding Apple boutiques to its stores in 2008.

In March, it was also rumored that Best Buy was considering giving the iPad to all of its on-the-floor sales associates at its 1,100 U.S. stores. It was said that employees would use devices such as the iPad to educate consumers and process purchases.

source:
http://www.appleinsider.com/articles/11/04/08/rumor_best_buys_ipad_2_sales_strategy_gets_it_blacklisted_by_apple.html

[X]

X, what are you looking for in a tablet?

Well, they aren't many things, but they are important to me personally.

1) Flash support. I don't care about the beef between Apple and Adobe. A majority of the internet runs on Flash and I want it. Sure there might be an App for that, but the only reason you need an App for that is because you can't just go to the site and see what you wanted to see.

2) Expandable memory and larger starting memory. 64 gigs just isn't enough for me. My Music collection is several times that and a good 1080p movie is around 9 gigs of info. Combine that with the need to have Apps for everything and I'd be out of memory way too soon.

3) 4G over 3g. I can't see paying for a 3g device when 4g is active. I want this year's tech, not tech from 5 years ago.

4) Stereo speakers and sound. I don't want to have to bring out the speak addons to sit with a friend and watch a movie together. The mono speaker in the 2 might work for some, but I like good sound with my video.

I think those are the core things that I'm looking for. I am aware that there are a few tablets that are moving to meet these things I want, but I'm in a holding pattern now.

I'm really not impressed with the number of apps that iPAD has because many would be unnecessary with the inclusion of Flash. So that's not a big selling point for me.

Yeah, I'm a little picky, but I like what I like.

I think the machine will work great for some people, but the cost to benefit ratio for me isn't on the side of the 2.

[QuadShot]

Yeah, Flash would be nice! And I agree, when you think about it, 64 gig isn't all that much for today's standards/needs. Yeah, you are picky:) BUT...there's NOTHING wrong with that at all! ;)

[Dan M]

Really, lack of Flash hasn't been nearly as inconvenient as I'd expected.
I agree about the memory.  I've had an 80gb iPod for 4 years.  Why can't the iPad be at least that large?

[Rico]

The thing that has made me not be as bothered about the memory is I would most likely use an iPad around the house mainly.  And now since I can stream off my computers, the storage isn't too big a thing.  Don't care much about the 3g or 4g thing because I doubt I'll use it much on either.  Sweeter sound would be nice and I'm sure that will come eventually.  Unlike a small iPod, an iPad is something that you will share with others around you so better sound would help on that.  Overall, I'm still liking the iPad 2 better than other tablets I have checked out so far.

[KingIsaacLinksr]

The only problem with 4G X is that its a massive battery drain and only available in select cities.  Most of the country is still running on 3G for at least this year and probably next year.  Heck, we don't even have basic signal to a good chunk of the country....but that's a gripe for another day.  And that's not even mentioning the Data drain 4G has...current plans are insufficient, especially for an iPad.  But alas...

More memory would be nice and I guess it depends on your library.  But 32GB has been sufficient for me so far.  Especially when you have services like Netflix, Dropbox and etc already.  

I prefer the built-for-iPad apps over the websites.  But again, that's preference.  They really work well and the UI just makes the difference.  The only reason I've used Safari is for Treks-in-Scifi.  Even with eBay and Amazon being easily accessible via Safari, the apps are just way better than using the browser.  Also, certain websites like Hulu block Droid devices from accessing their streaming content.  

Yeah, the whole Best Buy thing just cements the fact that I truly dislike that company.  They have more damage to the tech industry than any other company I can think of as far as customer relations go.  They sell mediocre products and their customer service is atrocious.  Completely ruined my Grandmother's computer several years ago when she sent it in to be repaired.  Had to have my Uncle fix it, never worked the same again. 

King

[KingIsaacLinksr]

Really, lack of Flash hasn't been nearly as inconvenient as I'd expected.
I agree about the memory.  I've had an 80gb iPod for 4 years.  Why can't the iPad be at least that large?

And the reason it can't be just yet is the memory used for storage in the iPad is very expensive and to hit 80 GBs is...well yeah.  Its not using the typical Hardrives that were used in the old iPods.

King

[Rico]

Did anyone get an iPad 2 with Verizon for 3G?  Looks like they are having connectivity issues.  Read on...

PC purists might contend that the joke's on all iPad owners who bought into iOS and the Apple ecosystem rather than invest in Android or hold out for any number of promising tablets on the horizon, like RIM's PlayBook and HP's TouchPad. But the real joke is on Verizon iPad 2 owners who report problems connecting to Verizon's 3G network, only it's no laughing matter to those affected. After blowing up Apple's support forum, the Cupertino outfit finally acknowledged the problem, but doesn't yet have a solution.

"We are aware that small number of iPad 2 customers have experienced connectivity issues with the Verizon 3G network and we are investigating it," Apple told All Things Digital.

There's a thread in Apple's Support Forum where users have come together to complain of their connectivity woes. The 9 page (and growing) thread is filled with Verizon iPad 2 owners saying that they're sometimes unable to receive a 3G signal once its turned off and back on. The only solution so far is to reboot the device.

Interestingly enough, the problem only appears to affect Verizon's CDMA iPad 2 and not AT&T's GSM version.

http://www.maximumpc.com/article/news/rotten_apples_verizon_ipad_2_owners_fuming_mad_over_3g_connectivity_issue

[KingIsaacLinksr]

Hmm, iPad 1.0 had the Wifi issues plaguing it till they updated.  Guess something went awry with the "new" CDMA version. 

King

[Dangelus]

No major stock problems in my neck if the woods.

They get weekly deliveries, usually sell out and are restocked by the following week. Pretty good for a high demand product.

What's the price in the UK for these?

They start at £399 for the 16Gb Wi-Fi only model.

I'm so tempted!

[Rico]

No major stock problems in my neck if the woods.

They get weekly deliveries, usually sell out and are restocked by the following week. Pretty good for a high demand product.

What's the price in the UK for these?

They start at £399 for the 16Gb Wi-Fi only model.

I'm so tempted!

Doing some math, 399 pounds is about $652 dollars at the moment.  Hmm, that's a fair bit more pricey than here.  They start here at $499.

[KingIsaacLinksr]

No major stock problems in my neck if the woods.

They get weekly deliveries, usually sell out and are restocked by the following week. Pretty good for a high demand product.

What's the price in the UK for these?

They start at £399 for the 16Gb Wi-Fi only model.

I'm so tempted!

Doing some math, 399 pounds is about $652 dollars at the moment.  Hmm, that's a fair bit more pricey than here.  They start here at $499.

Yeah, they raised prices on all their stuff a couple months ago for UK buyers.  Something about taxes, I can't remember what it was.  Caused quite a bit of a stir in the tech community too.

King

[billybob476]

VAT FTW!

(at least I think it's VAT)

[Rico]

Speaking of tax, does the Apple store online charge sales tax?