CDW are one of the US’ leading providers of technology and infrastructure to businesses of all sizes. So when they share their latest survey data on tablets – and iPad – adoption in the enterprise with me, I’m interested right away.
And their latest data offers further evidence of the iPad’s growing momentum in the enterprise arena. Here’s some of their findings from the latest CDW IT Monitor:
Nearly six in 10 IT decision-makers reported tablet computer use in their organization, with 61% of those choosing Apple’s iOS over other mobile operating systems.
85% of IT decision-makers see implementing tablets as an opportunity to increase productivity.
Of those who have not incorporated tablets, 31% are planning to employ them within their organization in the next six months. If this figure holds, it would mean tablet use in more than 70% of businesses by October.
The only surprise in those numbers is the 61% figure for the iPad in terms of tablets in use. Although that’s clearly the majority, it still seems a low number, given the near non-existent competition there’s been for the iPad so far.
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It’s time for another post in our What’s on Your iPad series. I’m glad to see that some of you are enjoying these posts as much as I am. I find them a great source for discovering interesting new apps and thoughts on how to organize apps on the iPad.
This week Joshua Schnell is providing answers. Joshua is the Editor In Chief at one of my favorite Mac sites – macgasm.net. I’ve known Joshua for a few years now after we originally met on Friendfeed through our mutual griping and troubles with the lack of good comment services for blogs. One of the things I like about Joshua is he’s very rarely on the fence about anything, and he’s never likely to pull his punches when sharing his opinion on a subject – as you’ll see in his answers here. I’m very happy to have him taking part in this series.
Here are Joshua’s answers – questions are in regular text, Joshua’s answers are in block quotes:
Which iPad model do you use? (original or iPad 2, WiFi or WiFi + 3G, storage size) Any particular reasons for choosing this model?
I’m currently rocking a 16 GB Wifi iPad 3, AKA new iPad. I got the new iPad for the Retina screen, but I chose not to go 3G/LTE because I think data plans are ridiculously priced. If I need the Internet, I just tether my iPhone to my iPad. Works great, and saves me cash. Up here in the great white north, a lot of us qualify for free tethering. I took advantage of that and went with the WiFi model. It’s been working out great.
Do you use any sort of case with the iPad? If so, which one/s and why?
I usually alternate between going naked, and a Pad and Quill Contega case. I tend to prefer using my new iPad case free, but the moment I plan on leaving the house I make sure I put it in a case. I wouldn’t be able to stomach scratching that sexy Retina Screen.
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Flipboard, the flagship news / magazine app for the iPad, has been updated today – to Version 1.9. This is another major update for Flipboard for iPad (and iPhone) – and the big headline new feature is audio feeds and the ability to connect Flipboard to SoundCloud.
Here’s the full change list for Version 1.9:
★ Connect Flipboard to SoundCloud and enjoy amazing sounds created and shared by your friends and people you follow.
★ Explore dozens of recommended audio feeds in new Audio category in the Content Guide.
★ Accessibility for visually impaired people. Apple’s VoiceOver helps users navigate Flipboard and listen to articles.
★ Fully localized Japanese edition of Flipboard.
★ Use Readability to save articles to read later.
★ View related sections for social networks (new on iPhone). For example, tap on the “Twitter” section title to view sections like “Your Tweets,” “Your Favorites” and “Tweets Mentioning You.”
I’ve been playing with the updated app for a good while this morning and enjoying the new audio feeds quite a lot.
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The iPad is a wonderfully easy and intuitive device to use. This is generally nothing but a major advantage – but at times it can cause issues if you have children who share your iPad or are allowed to use it from time to time. Problems you might encounter range from a child inadvertently deleting a frequently-used app to discovering that your child’s favorite new iPad game has allowed them to rack up hundreds of dollars worth of charges to your credit card via In-App purchases.
Fortunately, the iPad (and iOS) comes with a strong set of parental controls that you can choose to apply to reduce the chances of seeing any problems when you allow your kids to use an iPad, it’s a shared one or one of their own. On the iPad these are called Restrictions – and here’s a quick rundown of how they can be setup:
You’ll find these controls in the iPad’s Settings app – under Settings > General > Restrictions.
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See. Touch. Learn. is a hugely impressive looking iPad app from Brain Parade, a publisher dedicated to creating solutions for children with autism and other developmental challenges. The app is described as a picture learning system for the iPad that brings picture cards into the 21st Century – and is designed specifically for those with autism and other special needs.
Here’s a slice of its App Store page including some of its most notable features
Parents and professionals use See.Touch.Learn.™ to build custom picture card lessons and automatically track their child’s responses. Includes a starter set of stunning, high-quality images and 60 exercises created by a certified assistant behavior analyst! Additional libraries of images and lessons are available for purchase from within the app.
✔ Build, save, copy and reuse your custom lessons
✔ No more organizing and reorganizing cards for each student
✔ Create unlimited scenarios and prompts
✔ Thousands of gorgeous picture cards to choose from
✔ Your entire collection is portable – take it with you everywhere
✔ Never misplace a card – Images are automatically backed up
✔ Save hundreds of dollars – only a fraction of the cost of physical cards
✔ No cards to wear out
✔ No cards to lose
With all the myriad use-cases for the iPad, this is still one of the areas that makes you recall Steve Jobs’ initial description of it as a ‘magical and revolutionary’ device – and makes you feel as if the device is living up to those words.
