One of the advantages of the iPad is that the long battery life means that I don't have to be plugged in to use it for hours at a time. I hadn't realize how big of a deal it would be for me, but it is.

I'm not sure I understand your question. But, I use my iPad off and on all day and into the night and then sometimes for three to fours straight at night. And my battery very rarely goes below 70%.

It wasn't a question, but a rave. The long life of the battery is a big advantage of the iPad over laptops.

Originally Posted by normanj

It wasn't a question, but a rave. The long life of the battery is a big advantage of the iPad over laptops.

Unless you own the previous MacBook version with 10h battery-life :-)

But the battery life is definitely great for portability.

Having used conventional PC laptops all my life, I used to be constantly on the lookout for power outlets - it became part of my life when on the move. Always wanting to get the seat at the coffee shop with a power outlet - in fact, you could often see all the laptop junkies 'hovering', waiting for that seat to become vacant - hey, why were those guys sitting there **they don't even have a laptop**!!??

Those days are now, thankfully, gone...

Tim
Scotland

Yes indeed,when you've used a laptop or the like and suddenly have the battery life of a the iPad it's awesome. I do everything on mine that I do with my netbook, laptops, etc, and no longer worry about a charger. It's great.

This is the most underrated feature for me. Like others have said, between my laptops and my Droid (which has horrible battery life), I've become conditioned to looking for outlets everywhere I go, even if I don't need one at the moment.

The iPad has changed all of that. I suddenly feel untethered!