I'm a member of Quirky.com, a social product development community that accepts ideas from anyone and allows community members to improve product concepts and "vote" to bring them production, and this Cloak case hit my radar a few months ago. The Cloak finally started shipping within the past week and I received my Cloak case today. I do plan to do a full review of the case but wanted to post a first look video of it to give an overview of the case for those of you thinking of ordering one now that they're available:

I knew it wouldn't last. The iPad's gorgeous screen was absolutely delectable to use naked – so crisp and clear, so smooth to the finger. But then after just a few swipes, fingerprints would amass on the screen, driving me crazy faster than Flash crashes Safari. I knew I had to get an anti-glare screen protector, just as I had for my iPhone 3GS and nearly every glossy-screened gadget I've owned in the past few years. Initially, I had thought about getting the one from Power Support USA, the same company who made the screen protector I use on my iPhone. Then I saw its price: $24.95 for one screen protector plus $5.55 for the cheapest shipping option. Also, their site warned that they were in such high demand that it was taking more time to fulfill orders than usual. So, I went to see what Brando had to offer instead and ended up purchasing their anti-glare screen protector. And it is fantastic - read my review of it here.

As I mentioned just before I got my iPad, I was thinking that I wanted two cases for it – one to use around the house that added some grip and one for outside the house that provides screen protection plus a bit of camouflaging action. The DODOcase fit the bill for latter and the Cimo USA Silicone Skin case has been working pretty well for me for the former. My review of this Cimo case is now up and it includes a video overview of it as well – you can read it here.

Image courtesy of CimoUSA.com

On the day before the iPad was released in the U.S., I placed an order for a DODOcase for my soon-to-arrive iPad. I was attracted to these cases because they look just like Moleskine notebooks and I wanted a case that would both protect and "camouflage" my iPad for use in public and the DODOcase looked like it would be perfect. I received the case just over a week ago and have been using it regularly and I love it, though I do have a couple of minor issues with it. Read my full review of the DODOcase to find out the details and see up-close-and-personal pictures of it in action.

If you follow me on Twitter, you probably saw that I talked about ordering a DODOcase case for my iPad on the day before the iPad was released. I love the look of Moleskine notebooks and wanted at least one case for my iPad that provided a bit of camouflage while using it in public. The DODOcase fit the bill and I placed my order right away. It arrived today (well within the 4-6 week delivery window) and I'm just starting to use it and wanted to post a quick video of it to start off. I will write a full review of it after I spend some time using it regularly.

So, if you follow me on Twitter, you already know that I successfully obtained my iPad with nary a problem on Saturday morning. It was a pretty good experience overall and was lightning-fast compared to what it took to get my first-generation iPhone and my iPhone 3G.


To recap briefly, I got to my selected Apple store (at the Rockingham Mall in New Hampshire - a bit of a ways from home for me but I like to go there to avoid the bigger crowds at the Boylston store and save on sales tax) at around 7:30 a.m. I first walked to the longer line (it was closer to the entrance I used) and saw that it was marked Purchases. I asked people there if they had pre-reserved an iPad and they said no and pointed me to the other line. I walked over to the other line, which was marked by a little sign that said "Reservations" and confirmed that those people had pre-reserved their iPads. There were only two people in that line. Yes, two. I got behind them with a huge grin on my face as third in that line. I was quite happy since I had been running later than I had planned, but this apparently wouldn't hinder my ability to get an iPad quickly without spending the entire morning there. The first guy in line had arrived at ten minutes to 7:00, so he beat me by a good margin.

That first guy in line got a lot of attention from the press. Every reporter who showed up interviewed him and took pictures or recorded video. A few reporters seemed interested in talking to the woman who was second in line as well as me, but I acted uninterested and no one talked to me or took any pictures of me. I had no desire to show up in any papers or on the news, to be honest. I get enough "Look! Geek!" reactions in my daily life as it is, thank you very much.

Promptly at 9:00 am, the doors opened and everyone in the reservations line (around 60 or more by that time) rushed into the store. It took me a minute to realize that there was no order in the store - all you needed to do was find a specialist to get you an iPad and take your money in exchange. By the time I realized that the line order wasn't a factor in getting helped, I had to wait a minute to find a free one and then get my iPad. I hovered around the iPad cases for a moment, not expecting them to have much in stock and picked out the Apple case in haste (I should have picked out a skin case since I already have a book-style case on order). Once I had it, I paid for everything and headed out. I was back at my car by 9:18 a.m. Woot!

So what do I think of the iPad? A few of my first impressions are posted at MacRumors. Beyond this, the iPad's weight is still probably my biggest sticking point in terms of book reading (in lieu of a Barnes & Noble Nook I had almost purchased earlier this year, the iPad is going to spend a lot of time as my dedicated ebook reader). The screen is fantastic but the fingerprints it shows so easily despite the oleophobic coating are killing me – an anti-glare screen protector is definitely on my shopping list even though it will detract from the screen's crispness a bit.

I find that I'm loathe to load iPhone apps onto my iPad. I tried a couple and they look shrunken and miserable in normal mode and even worse in 2x mode to take up the iPad's entire screen. Yes, I'm spoiled - I want everything I see on my iPad to look sharp and wonderful, so it looks like I'll just waiting for iPad versions of my favorite apps. Hopefully that won't take too long.

WOO HOO! Only a 47 hours, 43 minutes, and 10 seconds until the iPad is released! I will be at my local Apple Store bright and early on April 3 to pick up my pre-ordered iPad. I think I'm going to shoot for being in line at 7:00 am or so to ensure I'm somewhere close to the front of the line and can get in and out quickly to get home and play with it as quickly as possible.

Yesterday I mentioned that I could envision having 2 cases for my iPad - one silicone skin-type case without a cover for reading and other casual use around home and another one with a cover to protect it while I'm traveling with it. For the latter, I've come across one contender so far – the Cloak by Quirky.

Today is a big day for Apple fans (at least those in the U.S.) who want to secure an iPad as soon as they're available. Pre-orders kicked off this morning at 8:30 am EST and I interrupted my morning get-the-craziness-out-of-your-system-so-I-can-work play session with the dogs to get one. After a few minutes of mad clicking and frantically searching for the in-store pick up option, I pre-ordered the 64GB 3G model and also reserved a 16GB wi-fi one to pick up on April 3 for the hell of it.

Even as an Apple fangirl, I will be the first to admit that the iPad isn't for everyone and that the iPad lacks features that would make it more appealing and useful for many. But why all the hate? It's one thing to legitimately define why you don't like the iPad (and I think Gizmodo has a great article here comparing the iPad to other tablets and its shortfalls are clearly evident) but it's another to completely bash it simply because it isn't for you. Why bother? Do those who bash it simply because they don't like or want it hope to change the minds of those who do? Or is there some other chest-beating and roaring message behind this behavior that I'm just missing?

Really? I thought I left the obnoxious boys who giggled anytime they heard the word "bra" or anything else related to "girl stuff" in my 7th grade class far behind.

/rant over. Now it's time to search through my stash of gadgets that I no longer use to see what I can sell to help fund my iPad purchase. First on that list is that old iPod nano...

Of course, I was glued to my computer yesterday watching multiple sites providing live coverage of Apple's event. From the overwhelming number of rumors in the past few months, everyone pretty much knew what was going to be announced, though the actual design of the tablet and detailed specs hadn't been pinned down. I actually screamed like a sweaty teenaged girl at a Jonas Brothers concert when Steve Jobs first held up the iPad on stage. Fortunately no one but the dog saw this bit of highly undignified behavior. And the dog was not amused.