In the May 2010 issue of AccessWorld, a publication of the American Foundation for the Blind (AFB), readers are presented with a first look at the Apple iPad. In an article entitled "24 Hours with the iPad", Bradley Hodges discusses his impressions of the iPad in his initial 24 hours with the device. It is an excellent piece, and we agree wholeheartedly with his positive impressions, particularly those regarding the iBooks experience. This is a must-read article for anyone considering an iPad. Here’s a very brief excerpt to wet your appetite:

There have been two transformative moments in my professional career that I associate with gaining equal access to the printed word. The first was in the mid-’90s, when, as a university researcher, my department obtained a braille embosser and access to the fledgling Internet. One afternoon, a graduate assistant who worked with me casually dropped a braille copy of the cover article from that week’s Time magazine on my desk. For the first time, I could read the same text as my sighted colleagues at the same time they did.

The second transformative moment took place Monday evening, April 5, 2010. On that night, I purchased a book from a book store, exactly as my sighted neighbors and colleagues would. I then sat in my den and read that book on the same device as my sighted counterparts.

Be sure to click (or tap) here to read the full review.