It has been said many times already, but it’s worth repeating: iPad is one of the most revolutionary devices that have come around in years. On the surface it seem like a cross between a tablet PC, a net book and an iPod, but comparing it to any one of these other devices doesn’t do the full justice. iPad is truly revolutionizing how we approach the use of computers, and it is bound to have an impact on all of the other computing devices. iPad is an always-on, easily accessible and intuitive computing platform. Even though the ease of use is one of its hallmarks, if you have never used an iPod or an iPhone you may have some initial difficulties with using it.

The new iPad has been a major improvement on the original iPad concept, and a significant change over iPad 2, especially when it comes to graphical abilities. Whatever version of iPad you use, however, many of the fundamental tasks are still the same. Nonetheless, there are some important changes that need to be pointed out and dealt with according to the product version.

“My iPad” aims to take away the mystery behind iPad and help you make the most of it. The book is written in an extremely accessible and to-the-point style, and from the very outset it takes you straight to the actual demonstrations of how to achieve certain actions on your iPad. It helps you navigate the plethora of settings and adjustment options, and tries to make sense of them. This is in fact one of the book’s greatest strengths – it is not just a bag of tricks, but also a clear and lucid explanation of the rationale behind every design option on your iPad (both hardware and software). The book also covers some of the most important and useful general iPad apps (both paid and free), such as maps, Keynote, Numbers and Pages, as well some apps that take the full advantage of iPad 2’s or the new iPad’s capabilities, like iMovie. It also gives a short list of some other cool aps with a brief description of each. Even seasoned iPhone or iPad users will find many valuable tips and insights, and the book is a valuable reference for the long term use.

The book covers iOS 5.1, which is as of this writing the most current version of iOS. However, Apple just made an announcement that iOS 6 is coming in the fall of this year (2012). For the most part that version of iOS will be more or less the same as this one, but if you really want to take the advantage of the new features, and are not planning on getting an iPad for a few more months, you may want to wait for another addition of this book or get another book that deals with that version of iOS when it becomes available.

I also enjoyed the format of the book. The book is large, well presented, and easily navigable. The illustrations and screenshots are fairly large and very clear and they help to illustrate all the relevant material. It is a very intuitive guide for a very intuitive device.