Steve Jobs calls it a "game changer", but is it just an oversized iPod touch? Will we all want one of these in addition to our laptops, phones and eBook readers? If you're still standing in a queue outside an Apple Store as you read this, then maybe it's time to go home – the iPad is probably sold...

Apple's iPad may be a stellar device, but the company's compatibility philosophy is letting it down. The hype surrounding Apple's iPad tablet PC recently reached a fever pitch after the company reported record sales numbers for the device.

The iPad's overall design, like much of Apple's product arsenal is highly attractive; the 9.7

Early compatibility issues with Windows based PCs left us with a sour taste in our mouths

Of course the iPad is not solely an entertainment device. It offers serious functionality such as such as simple-to-use email and a fine e-reader for, y'know, "books." At the same time, it lacks the goods under the hood to make it a viable alternative to a true "tablet computer," for mainstream work...

Big; gorgeous screen; Works with current iPhone/iPod touch apps; Up to a 64GB of memory (and 8+ hours of battery life) in a slim package; Movies; music; internet and more; big enough to share and intuitive to operate

How are we supposed to hold it for long periods of time; Onboard sound is severely limited; No flash support; Charging is not as simple as it could be

We titter-tottered back and forth whether we should get an iPad, and we have a feeling that many of you out there are in the same boat. The burning question is if you should spend $499 (at a minimum) for this device is something only you can answer. However, we wanted to provide you with [...]

The iPad is fun . It can't and doesn't want to replace a notebook or netbook. And as soon as the small computer is seen as a pure entertainment device, the advantages are obvious. The interactive consumption of multimedia content is the main application field of the iPad.

Precise touchscreen use; Outstanding IPS screen; Silent; Good battery life; Appstore and iPhone compatibility; Workmanship; design; interaction

Arrow keys are missing (virtual and hardware; Only Apple Apps permitted (no alternative browser; Few expansion options; iOS4 not yet available; A few functions of a full-fledged operating system

Is it worth it? Put it this way. If you never bought one, you wouldn't miss it. But buy it and you'll soon wonder how you lived without it.

Brilliant user interface; lovely LCD screen; great form factor and design; WiFi support

Quite an expensive gadget; expensive accessories; no Flash support

Like any 1.0 product, the iPad has its rough edges, the worst being the erratic Wi-Fi reception. However, the basic design is spot on. It's small enough to be portable and comfortable to use, yet large enough to work really well for tasks such as web browsing, reading books and playing video.

For now, Apple pitches the iPad as a computer that fully engrosses you in a web page, your e-mail, or media because-apart from playing music in the background-you can't really do two things at once on it, and its non-finger input solutions are still in their infancy.

An impressively built tablet computer; featuring a clean industrial design borrowed from Apple's MacBook Pro computers; internal components derived largely from its iPod touch and iPhone pocket devices; and stable; multi-touch software.

Cannot serve as a standalone computer; in addition to iTunes dependence, horsepower is presently shortchanged by limited, iPhone-class multitasking that forces all third-party applications to occupy and waste entire screen; lack of camera similarly limits value for video communications.

Watch Apple's iPad demo videos and you'll see smiling fanboys typing with the iPad on their lap. The real experience? It's a little bit different. We've got our hands on an iPad, and here are our impressions.

I picked up my iPad, pressed the menu button, typed in my passcode and went straight onto the net in about thirty seconds. That is what this is all about. No one is saying the iPad is a serious computer but it is a very slick net browser that can play music and films in good quality, carry your...