So, as you may recall, I was one of the bloggers challenged by The iStore, to use the new iPad Air 2 for seven days, as my only connection to the digital world. That meant; no smartphones (unless for calls, but I used mine for WhatsApp too), no laptops and no computers.
Everything I would normally do day to day, had to be done on the new iPad Air2, to show and tell, how you can do it all with just one “gadget”.
And if you were sceptical, let me tell you that it can be done and I did it!
I’d be lying if I said I didn’t miss my big 25″ screen and working on multiple windows simultaneously, but the thing I loved about the iPad Air2 is that I could stick it in my bag and blog on the go, without having to “rush back to the office” to get work done.
To be honest, I hardly ever took my Mac Book Pro out-and-about before, unless I was going away for a couple of days. It’s not that its heavy, but it ain’t light either and you still need the charger, so ya, it takes a lot space.
The iPad Air 2 didn’t take up much room in my bag, and since it only weighs 437 grams, it’s hardly an inconvenience.
So instead of sitting around killing time between launches, I had my iPad Air 2 with me, and was able to sketch out my blog posts, take notes, check mails and mess around on Pinterest while I waited.
During the challenge, I enjoyed moving around to different rooms and not being stuck in an office, even taking my work outside on a beautiful summer’s day. I liked that I was able to connect my Bluetooth Apple Keyboard, which made typing up my posts faster and feel like I was working on a normal computer.
Ya, I think this is how I’ll travel in future. iPad Air 2 and a my bluetooth keyboard. No bulky chargers!
So besides it being super lightweight and skinny, one of my favourite features on the new iPad Air 2 is the Touch ID fingerprint identity sensor. One touch not only allows you to unlock your iPad, but also makes purchasing apps from the App store a breeze.
It’s seamless and works like a dream. Wish I could have that feature on everything that requires a password!
The screen quality is extremely impressive with it’s razor sharp retina display that made everything pop, but not in an unnaturally, contrasty way.
The camera on the iPad Air 2 is another a great feature for me, since I’m an obsessive happy snappy! Check out how crystal clear this pic and this one came out.
The front facing camera is also much better. I Skyped with my mom and she kept saying how clear I looked. The front facing camera on my old iPad2 wasn’t great, I didn’t use Skype on it much, but with the new iPad Air2, I prefer to Skype on that.
Blogging on the iPad Air2
I blog everyday for StyleScoop, so the first app I installed, was naturally WordPress. It’s a little tricky since you do need some understanding of HTML coding to format your posts and images, but I managed to keep my post quality consistent with posts that were done on a computer.
I also tried out some apps to create pretty image layouts for my posts. This post is by far my favourite and most impressive one done on the iPad Air2. I love how creative my layouts came out, using a combination of MoodBoard and Adobe Ideas.
Here’s an archive of all my posts done on the iPad Air 2, if you want to check out the different apps and features I used.
Overall, the iPad Air2 is a fantastic device, that looks good, feels great, comfortable to use and easy to make it part of your life.
The battery lasts for up to 10 hours and it charges quite quickly as well, so you could use it every day, and for everything, including surfing, shopping, reading on my Kindle App, iBooks, listening to music and watching movies through Plex.
Everything you need, in 1
If you’re worried about not being productive, don’t be, because with the iPad Air 2 you also get “purchasable apps” like Pages, Numbers and Keynote and a few others free from Apple. Numbers, which is a Spreadsheet program, is actually really impressive. It’s easy to edit cells thanks to a pop up screen that appears while you edit formulas.
Then, everything else you “need” can pretty much be downloaded. For instance, I received a zip file that I needed to open, so I downloaded GoodReader and viola, files unzipped!
I even made a little home video using iMovie (also free with the iPad Air 2). I have iMovie on my “Bic MAC” but I never really made random vids just for fun. iMovie on the iPad Air 2 is so much better with fun trailer and movie templates that will have you feeling like a director!
I’m really glad to have this little guy in my life, helping me out!
Thanks so much to The iStore for choosing me to take part in this challenge. And while it was only for 7 days, I think I’ll be using him a lot more than I thought I’d use an iPad for blogging.
