Should I buy my mom an iPad for Chrismas

[Ellestin]

See, I'm considering that because my mom, who is an inherently technology-averse person (bless her), recently got into finally getting to know her way around a PC, which she uses mainly for email, pic storage and looking around the Internet for recipes, e-cards and some loldogs shit.

I'm considering buying her an iPad (or a tablet of some sort) because a) her PC is a fucking ruin that runs on Windows 98 and takes longer to boot than Krigloch to take a level 46 full-armoured dump b) it keeps freezing and crashing, like 5 times a day c) despite my pleas she refuses to consider getting something else ("as long as it works, son...") d) I read somewhere that tablets were especially suited for elderly people due to their intuitive interface or something e) she's afraid the PC will explode each time she double-clicks on something she doesn't know

list pros and cons plz. I got that far:

PROS
- it's a present
- pretty sure it's a cool present by most people's standards

CONS
- it's a bit expensive but what the hell
- I hate iPads

 

[refraction]

Hey if my mother could learn to use one anyone can. Shes truly John Mccain level tech illiterate.

 

[NAD]

I have an iPad. Were things to rewind in a Groundhog's Day manner, I would not repeat this purchase. I've found Android to be a lot more user friendly than iOS, but I have not tried an Android tablet yet.

But, I can't stand Apple anymore, after years of using a Macbook Pro at home with an older OS X (which is great), I also use a newish iMac for work and it has the stupidest, most non-intuitive bullshit design I've seen over the last many years. I call it the Black Magic Mouse because that thing, as great of an idea as it might be, is a fucking WITCH.

It's a gift though, fuckit. Get her three of them.

 

[Hell Mike]

My gramma (age 80) tried dad's android tablet today and immediately thought of getting one herself. There's how easy they are to use even for old non-computer people.

 

[Krigloch the Furious]

Love my 3rd gen Ipad. very expensive, but so much fun

 

[einride]

lol, there are seriously still windows 98 computers in operation

but yeah maybe you should. although i loathe the idea of the ipad, it's not an actual bad idea to buy one who will be using it just for web browsing and email and dumb games or whatever

it's good for old people to have a "computer" that is all but impossible to fuck up


edit: also get one of them bluetooth keyboards for it because fuck every computing device without a keyboard

 

[dorian gray]

We have ipads at work and they are really quite annoying

edit: just read Erik's edit above. That's exactly correct. The programs we use at work are assessment forms that require you to check boxes and type notes and it's just a pain in the butt on a touchscreen device.

edit #2: my main communication device is a Kindle Fire and it's really annoying to type emails without a keyboard. The amount of typing mistakes I (or it) makes is absurd. It's so bad, it makes me want to break down and get a cell phone.

 

[NAD]

Oops sorry about the C. Funny that my middle name is Erik and I still fucked that up. Whoops.

EDIT: Fix'd.

EDTx2: This would actually make a pretty decent device really. Screenboards do suck.

 

[dorian gray]

HAHAHAHA

 

[lurch70]

i think that's probably the best thing about the IPad ... it's almost impossible to fuck it up or get to some settings to do so ...
in that respect it is cool ... and will save you a shit ton of phone calls from your mom

 

[Ellestin]

I don't have a phone

 

[lurch70]

doorbell?

 

[Ellestin]

telepathy

 

[NAD]

Ooooohhh The Shining.

 

[neal]

Bert's not here Mrs Torrance

 

[einride]

Oops sorry about the C. Funny that my middle name is Erik and I still fucked that up. Whoops.

EDIT: Fix'd.

EDTx2: This would actually make a pretty decent device really. Screenboards do suck.

this is literally the keyboard i use all day

maybe you already knew that and that's the joke

 

[NAD]

this is literally the keyboard i use all day

maybe you already knew that and that's the joke

Yarp.

I'm starting to miss my Model M. I used ergonomic keyboards for many years but haven't for some time now, so I could easily go back to a clacker.

 

[einride]

Yarp.

I'm starting to miss my Model M. I used ergonomic keyboards for many years but haven't for some time now, so I could easily go back to a clacker.

hipsters have picked up on this shit so actual model m's are pretty expensive these days, sadly

unicomp bought the rights and production equipment i guess so they still make them new but without the ibm logo and with stupid windows keys http://www.pckeyboard.com/ (usb though, which is a good future-proofin' thing i guess since PS/2 connectors are starting to disappear)

i remember getting the real ibm thing for $3 each or something in the end of the 90's. looking forward to using my current one until the end of the frickin world

 

[Reign in Acai]

Get a playbook for 150. That's what I'm using atm, as my Sony Vaio is all but dead.

 

[Vittra]

So you hate Apple/Ipad's but you are going to buy your mother a device that you will have to support and teach her how to use.

Sounds like a good idea to me!