You would have to be living under a technology rock to not have heard about Apple’s latest launch event that took place today at 1pm EST. It’s been plastered all over social media, with every tech blog under the sun covering every last detail announced from the hour long press conference hosted by Tim Cook. In case you missed any of it, here are some highlights of the event and what we can expect to see in the coming weeks from Apple. You can also check out sites like The Verge for more in-depth analysis’ of the whole event.
Apple’s first announcement was that iOS 5.1 had become available, with some significant upgrades and expanded language support for Siri. They also announced a new Apple TV set that has a similar interface to iOS and that it now supports 1080p resolutions, with the same price point as older models.
Apple then announced some numbers for the company, like having sold over 315 million iOS devices, more than the population of the United States. They also mentioned this pretty staggering statistic:
“post PC” devices (iPad, iPod, and iPhone) make up 76 percent of the company’s revenues, and the company sold a whopping 172 million of those post PC devices in 2011.
And then there was the big announcement that everyone had been waiting for…The new “iPad”. Yes, Apple did away with the numbers and the next iteration is just called the iPad. For all those wondering, here’s a few specs on the new tablet:
- a 9.7 inch screen with a resolution of 2048×1536, a Retina Display (which has probably been the most talked about feature)
- an A5X processor, which is still a dual-core CPU at an unknown speed, but with a quad-core GPU to handle graphical tasks
- an LTE radio, making this Apple’s first step into the LTE arena with both an AT&T and Verizon carrier version
- a 5MP camera, the same iSight camera used in the iPhone4S
- quoted 10 hours of battery life on wifi (same as older iPad2)
- models offered with 16GB, 32GB, or 64GB of storage respectively
In breaking this down a bit, the nicest thing going for the new iPad has to be the screen. At a resolution of 2048×1536, you’re looking at 264 pixels per inch (ppi), “which means you can’t distinguish individual pixels when held at 10 inches—the standard Apple uses for the Retina moniker.” That’s more ppi than any other tablet in production now, and should make for a gorgeous screen that is very pleasing to view while using the new iPad. There’s a new A5X chip on-board the tablet, which is still a dual-core CPU, but with a new quad-core GPU to handle graphics processing. This only seems like a natural upgrade as this new screen that has quadruple the pixels of the first 2 iPads is going to require more graphical processing power. However, Apple claims that the new iPad has 2X the graphical performance of the iPad2 and 4X the graphics performance of NVIDIA’s Tegra3 chip, which is a quad-core CPU and a 12 core GPU. NVIDIA is already challenging this statement, saying it will be purchasing the new iPad and running some tests of its own. The LTE radio is a first for Apple, as the stayed away from it when they introduced the iPhone4S even though the technology was there. The upgrade to the 5MP camera is a nice upgrade, but it still seems awkward to take pictures with a 10″ tablet. The same quoted battery life is nice, meaning either the hardware, software or both are more power efficient. As in the original iPad and the iPad2, the new iPad is being offered in 16GB, 32GB, and 64GB models.
One of the best announcements for consumers has to be that Apple is sticking with the same price points as the older iPad2, with the 16GB Wi-Fi only model starting at $499. They’ll be available starting March 16th in the US and other countries, with preorders already starting.
Do you already own an iPad? Have you been waiting to break into the tablet scene? In either way, does the new iPad peak your interest?