To be part of this enabling, exciting technological world in which we live, you have to have fast and expensive tools with which to connect to it. Without them, accessing data is slow and annoying.

I recently had the pleasure of trying out an iPad3 tablet, the ingenious device (241.2 mm X 185.7 mm X 9.4 mm) that's bigger than a cellphone and smaller than a PC. While the iPad2, is light enough to lie down and hold in one hand, the marginally heavier iPad3 (652 g) required me to sit up. With the iPad3 I stayed holed up at home and awake for hours browsing the internet.

Its weight and new screen are the only noticeable difference between it and the earlier Apple tablet.

But as much as I would like to have one of these nifty little objects, it's a laptop I really need for generating data. An iPad is a luxury, an optional extra which is great for browsing pleasure, but it's impractical for typing.

If I could it would be the MacBookAir I'd have to buy first. Because a purchase of this kind isn't possible, it's back to swearing at my four-year old donkey of a Lenovo laptop. And hopefully, when I can buy a new tool, Apple would have developed an iPad keyboard that is easier to use.

• The iPad3 with 16 GB and Wi-Fi costs R4999. One with 64 GB, Wi-Fi and USB costs R8299. The smallest MacBook Air laptop costs R10499. Visit www.apple. com/za