To no one’s great surprise, Apple unveiled a new product at a special event in San Francisco today: the iPad. Yep, that’s the name Apple is going with, not the rumored iTablet or iSlate monikers.
Apple says the device is for browsing the web, reading and sending email, enjoying photos, watching videos, listening to music, playing games, reading e-books and much more. iPad’s Multi-Touch display lets users physically interact with applications and content.
The iPad is just 0.5 inches thick and weighs just 1.5 pounds — thinner and lighter than any laptop or netbook, according to Apple CEO Steve Jobs. The device includes 12 new apps designed especially for the iPad, and will run almost all of the over 140,000 apps in the Apple App Store. iPad will be available in late March starting US$499.
“iPad is our most advanced technology in a magical and revolutionary device at an unbelievable price,” says Jobs. “iPad creates and defines an entirely new category of devices that will connect users with their apps and content in a much more intimate, intuitive and fun way than ever before.”
iPad features 12 next-generation Multi-Touch applications. Every app works in both portrait and landscape, automatically animating between views as the user rotates iPad in any direction. The precise Multi-Touch interface makes surfing the web on iPad an entirely new experience, dramatically more interactive and intimate than on a computer, Jobs says. Reading and sending email is possible on iPad’s large screen and almost full-size “soft” keyboard.
You can import photos from a Mac, PC or digital camera, see them organized as albums, and enjoy and share them using iPad’s slideshows. Watch movies, TV shows and YouTube, all in HD or flip through pages of an e-book you downloaded from Apple’s new iBookstore while listening to your music collection.
iPad runs almost all of the over 140,000 apps on the App Store, including apps already purchased for your iPhone or iPod touch. The iTunes Store offers access to over 11 million songs, over 50,000 TV episodes and over 8,000 films including over 2,000 in high definition video.
Apple also announced the new iBooks app for iPad, which includes Apple’s new iBookstore, the best way to browse, buy and read books on a mobile device. The iBookstore will feature books from major and independent publishers.
Apple also introduced a new version of iWork for iPad, which the company says is the first desktop-class productivity suite designed specifically for Multi-Touch. With Pages, Keynote and Numbers you can create formatted documents, presentations with animations and transitions, and spreadsheets with charts, functions and formulas. The three apps will be available separately through the App Store for $9.99 each.
iPad syncs with iTunes just like the iPhone and iPod touch, using the standard Apple 30-pin to USB cable, so you can sync all of your contacts, photos, music, movies, TV shows, applications and more from your Mac or PC. All the apps and content you download on iPad from the App Store, iTunes Store and iBookstore will be automatically synced to your iTunes library the next time you connect with your computer.
iPad’s 9.7-inch, LED-backlit display features IPS technology to deliver crisp, clear images and consistent color with an 178 degree viewing angle. The intelligent soft keyboard pioneered on iPhone takes advantage of iPad’s larger display to offer an almost full-size soft keyboard. iPad also connects to the new iPad Keyboard Dock with a full-size traditional keyboard.
iPad is powered by A4, Apple’s next-generation system-on-a-chip. Designed by Apple, the new A4 chip provides exceptional processor and graphics performance along with long battery life of up to 10 hours. Apple’s advanced chemistry and Adaptive Charging technology purportedly deliver up to 1,000 charge cycles without a significant decrease in battery capacity over a typical five year lifespan.
iPad comes in two versions — one with Wi-Fi and the other with both Wi-Fi and 3G. iPad includes the latest 802.11n Wi-Fi, and the 3G versions support speeds up to 7.2 Mbps on HSDPA networks. Apple and AT&T announced 3G pre-paid data plans for iPad with on-device activation and management.
Each iPad enclosure is made of highly recyclable aluminum and comes standard with energy-efficient LED-backlit displays that are mercury-free and made with arsenic-free glass. iPad contains no brominated flame retardants and is completely PVC-free.
What’s more, Apple has released a new Software Development Kit (SDK) for iPad, so developers can create new applications designed to take advantage of iPad’s capabilities. The SDK includes a simulator that lets developers test and debug their iPad apps on a Mac, and also lets developers create Universal Applications that run on iPad, iPhone and iPod touch.
iPad will be available in late March worldwide for a suggested retail price of $499 for the 16GB model, $599 for the 32GB model, $699 (US) for the 64GB model. The Wi-Fi + 3G models of iPad will be available in April in the US and selected countries for a suggested retail price of $629 for the 16GB model, $729 for the 32GB model and $829 for the 64GB model. iPad will be sold in the US through the Apple Store, Apple’s retail stores and select Apple Authorized Resellers. International pricing and worldwide availability will be announced at a later date. iBookstore will be available in the US at launch.
