App Review: TrialPad 2.0 for iPad

TrialPad 2.0 – the second installment of the popular presentation app – has arrived.

The following features were added: (1) support for multiple file formats, including video; (2) expanded annotation tools, including redaction tools and and call-outs; and, (3) better file organization.

Here is a review of the new and improved TrialPad 2.0 ($89.99). What follows is the good, the bad, and the bottom line.

The Good

TrialPad 2.0 ($89.99)  just works, which is the highest compliment one can give an app. Creating file folders, adding documents, and using the annotation tools is a snap with the improved features.

My favorite feature is the call-out function, which allows you to scan your finger over a section of a document and then zoom in for the jury to see:

The annotation tools work together. I recommend highlighting the text before clicking the call-out button. Finished? Pinch from within the box, as if you are popping a bubble, and the box disappears.

The file management structure is much improved. You can create multiple file folders in TrialPad 2.0 ($89.99):

There is something comforting about storing case documents within the familiar manila file folder structure. As a prosecutor, the icon view is helpful. I can imagine connecting to the court’s display, working from counsel table during criminal docket, and opening each folder as cases are called.

The Bad

There is not much I can criticize about TrialPad 2.0 ($89.99). The updated features – especially call-outs and support for multiple file formats – are amazing.

If anything, future installments should add support for AirPlay, which would allow attorneys to wirelessly show exhibits on courtroom projectors via Apple TV. AirPlay is too powerful a technology to ignore and at least one app, AirPresenter (Free), provides a way to wirelessly display documents – albeit, without the many annotation tools of TrialPad.

TrialPad’s developers understand that attorneys do not want the entire iPad to wirelessly mirror, as will be the case with iOS 5. We need to control what the court sees during trial. Rather, the ability to wirelessly display (and hide) documents would be a nice feature.

The Bottom Line

The new features more than justify the price. As Oklahoma attorney Jim Calloway noted:

TrialPad 2.0 for the iPad is not competing with 99 cent apps. It is a legitimate competitor to trial presentation software costing tens of thousands of dollars in purchase and training costs. Best of all, you don’t have to go through days of training.

Compared with expensive software like TrialDirector, TrialPad 2.0 ($89.99) is a better value for trial attorneys: more features than most apps, lower price than most software suites. Kudos to TrialPad for delivering a product worthy of its price tag.

For questions, comments, or help using the Apple iPad at work, please contact me at redean@gmail.com.