My dock (above and below) just arrived via FedEx and I got all excited.
Then the air left the balloon in a Podunk town second.
Because the only way you can use the dock is with the iPad in its upright orientation, since the device’s charging port is on the bottom.
But I only use mine in widescreen mode because:
1. Stuff is easier to read.
2. The virtual keyboard is sort of usable as opposed to pretty much useless.
Apple needs to add a charging port on the long side, opposite the side with the volume control.
I guarantee this will appear in the next version.
You heard it here first.
A TechnoDolt™ insight brought to you by a card carrying member of iPad Nation.
Editor’s note: reprinted with permission from Bookofjoe. PB
Um why don’t you just use the cable instead then? The dock is so you can just leave it to recharge over night.
Teddypig is right. What you need is a gadget that holds your iPad in either orientation and allows room for you to attach the standard charging cable. It ain’t purty, but it is functional.
Apple’s creativity rarely extends to their accessories, excepting mice and keyboards. I suspect some clever third party will make a charging cradle that rotates to allow the display to be in either landscape or portrait.
It’d also be great if someone created an iPad holder something like the eMate kids computer that Apple sold in the late 1990s. It was almost perfect for using a touchscreen standing up. There was a handle at the top for your non-dominant hand and the bottom fit into the bend in that arm. You could hold it well with one hand/arm and use it with the other hand.
I had the same thought last night, not only would it allow you to use the stand in landscape, it would also allow for the use of more peripheral products like a hard drive.
They should add another, higher, ridge behind the first one so that you could at least display the iPad in landscape.