I really must say, it's a terrible review that suggests trying a competing product first not based on the quality of the products themselves, but only on the fact that it doesn't support the newest whizz-bang version of the device it's expanding.As a musician who works with MIDI a lot, I would actually be more inclined to go with the Alesis device because it is very clearly significantly more full featured.  Yamaha's looks great if you're looking to drive a MIDI chain, but the Alesis device looks like it will turn your iPad into a low cost workstation.Honestly, the two aren't even really the same target level...