Why it should stay on your list…
Like many people I know, I dismissed the iPad as an unneccessary accessory when it was first released. But, a couple of weeks ago, I jumped on the band wagon and, after a long period of saving up, I bought one for myself. On top of laptops, notebooks, recorders, and all the other things we bring to college, I know that you might be asking: do college students really need an iPad? Well, I think so!
Firstly, I have come to appreciate the fact that it is so much lighter! I walk around campus quite a bit and it can get very tiresome carrying a 5-7lb laptop around.
Also, I have found it to be more class appropriate. I have several of my textbooks on it since many of them are cheaper in e-book format. Some apps that I have found useful are Evernote (to read documents), Penultimate (to scribble personal notes on documents–great for notetaking and reminders), Quizlet (to make flash cards, hand made flash cards take so much time to make and mine always look so messy), and the Kindle application. If you want to take notes in class, you can buy an attachable keyboard. There are even cases that come with one built in!
During the warmer weather, it is nice to run around Centennial Park. However, in the winter, it does get a little chilly and I prefer to work out in the gym. I may not be the only one, but working out on the eliptical can get quite boring. So I scroll through notes, if I have a test coming up, or watch the Castle or Vampire Diaries episode I missed on the Netflix or Hulu app.
So…should you get an iPad? Whether or not the parents are convinced, I do think it is a worthy investment even if it requires a little bit of saving up. This may have sounded a bit like an infomercial…and I apologize…but, if you are not an Apple fan, Kindle and Microsoft have other options too. Still, if you don’t feel like buying one, our libraries on campus rent them out for three days at a time to students!