I think the whole point of the ipad is to save weight by reducing the amount of manuals, pilot briefcases etc which need to be carried,this in tern reduces fuel burn, carrying paper backs as well would completely defeat the object. In a commercial operation, both crew will have an ipad, chances of something going wrong with both of them at the same time is very slim. 1times crew will basically carry the ipad, eliminating the need for heavy briefcases. As for other tabs, there are definitely better options, the galaxy in south africa for instance, performance wise, knocks the socks off the ipad, unfortunately, its not faa approved, that's the ipads biggest advantage, maybe sometime in the future!