Dannie, I tested out the touch screen with my typing skills and it's not too different from my netbook but it has the added advantage of being lighter and more portable with longer battery life. The no chat aspect is something that I hadn't thought about and it's definitely a drawback but I'm interested to see what everyone else says.
Johnnybax, you're right about the resolution and I will admit that it's fast. I don't know if I would swear by all Apple products across the board though, I was a little disappointed by how they handled the antenna issues with one of their last iPhone models. However, maybe they learned their lesson.
Does anyone own any of the Android tablets that have come out recently? I'd love some input on those too. Also, how durable is the iPad? Has anyone dropped, kicked, stepped on or otherwise mistreated their Apple? I've seen a lot of iPhones with broken screens and I'm a little worried about having a 500.00 paperweight. I'd say doorstop but it's too thin to serve that purpose.