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Apple's "iPad" Out In the Open

Reader oxide7 is one of the many to note that the heaviest speculation is mostly over (still waiting on the price, though) about Apple's anticipated new device (though there are surely plenty of questions about the device's hardware capabilities and the scope of its software and content marketplace): "At an event in San Francisco Apple released its anticipated iPad.'[It's] Way better than a laptop, way better then a phone. You can turn it any way you want. To see the whole page is phenomenal,' said Jobs." The (0.5") skinny: 1.5 lbs, multitouch, up to 64GB of flash, 9.7" screen, and a 1Ghz "Apple A4" chip (more about the A4 in Engadget's developing story). The iPad is closer in concept to an expanded iPhone (OS and all) than a miniaturized laptop, though it doesn't have quite as much connectivity as you might expect, with no 3G connection built in. (You'll have to make do with 802.11n, Bluetooth, and tethering.) Live coverage is ongoing at gdgt live, Engadget, and Gizmodo, as well as various others. Update by timothy, 19:58 GMT: Got the 3G part wrong; 3G is indeed an option. Prices run from $499 (16GB flash, WiFi but no 3G) to $829 (WiFi and 3G, 64GB flash). Should start shipping in 60 days (WiFi only), in 90 days for 3G. Surprsingly, no built-in camera.

19 of 1,713 comments (clear)

  1. Re:No flash support by mdm-adph · · Score: 5, Informative

    Yep, this picture (http://www.blogcdn.com/www.engadget.com/media/2010/01/apple-creation-0128-rm-eng.jpg) pretty much spells it out.

    The fact that they didn't even try to hide this during their usually precise demo of the product is surprising.

    --
    It is by my will alone my thoughts acquire motion; it is by the juice of the coffee bean that the thoughts acquire speed
  2. Re:Is that an OLED screen? by MoonBuggy · · Score: 4, Informative

    It's LCD. IPS, to be specific.

  3. Re:No flash support by LaminatorX · · Score: 5, Informative

    I think it likely has as much to do with the impact of Flash's unquenchable thirst for CPU cycles on battery life.

  4. Error in the article by garg0yle · · Score: 5, Informative

    "There will be models with 3G support" according to Steve Jobs, so saying that it doesn't support 3G is just a bit, um, wrong.

    --
    Modding "-1, Troll" is not a proper response if you disagree with me. Try reason.
    1. Re:Error in the article by SwabTheDeck · · Score: 5, Informative

      Details:

      AT&T (per usual)
      $15/mo for 250 MB or$30/mo for unlimited
      Free use of AT&T Wi-Fi hotspots
      Uses GSM Micro SIMs and will work with any GSM provider that has these cards, all models are "unlocked" and not bound to a carrier

  5. Re:Extra things you'll need by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Informative

    But it doesn't.

    I use a 1.2ghz Pentium M tablet PC running XP tablet edition (Less than $350 with a new battery). Why? because I can annotate PDF files, take notes with one note (PLEASE we need a OSS version of that app) and then at the end of the meeting I can simply email all of it via my corperate email. Those two apps are the killer apps most people that use a tablet professionally need. I can annotate the customers blueprints and send them and engineering a copy, Plus my notes in one note are easy to organize. All on something that costs less than this thing will even in it's el-cheapo form.

  6. Re:price? by dgatwood · · Score: 4, Informative

    Nope.

    Wi-fi versions are $499, $599, $699 for 16/32/64GB versions, respectively.

    3G versions are $629, $729, $829, respectively.

    --

    Check out my sci-fi/humor trilogy at PatriotsBooks.

  7. Re:No flash support by jo_ham · · Score: 5, Informative

    Youtube serves up an H.264 version of the video to your iPhone. Not all videos are converted yet (google is massively numbercrunching behind the scenes to convert older ones). If the phone meets a video with no H.264 version it just says "cannot display movie at this time" or something like that.

    You can use ClickToFlash on Safari in 10.6 to tell the Youtube site to serve the H.264 iPhone version to your browser instead of the flash version too - much nicer.

  8. http://www.apple.com/ipad/ by Singularity42 · · Score: 5, Informative

    Not seeing it on the front page, but it's all up here.

  9. multiple SIM cards by pydev · · Score: 5, Informative

    I know this comes as a surprise to US users, but in many countries, you get multiple SIM cards on the same contract for no or little extra money. Put one in your phone, one in your reader, one in your laptop, etc. Nice, eh?

  10. Re:No flash support by Lunix+Nutcase · · Score: 4, Informative

    I highly doubt Hulu or anyone else will ever support H264.

    You mean except for the fact that Hulu currently does use H.264? Same with youtube?

    From Hulu's about page:

    Leveraging the H.264 capability of the new Flash Player

  11. Re:Is that an OLED screen? by DJRumpy · · Score: 4, Informative

    Here are the full specs: http://www.apple.com/ipad/specs/

  12. Re:Multi-tasking by prockcore · · Score: 5, Informative

    It doesn't.

  13. Re:True by proslack · · Score: 4, Informative

    Where Apple spent it's money last year: Operating expenses: Research and development 1,333,000,000 Selling, general and administrative 4,149,000,000 Notice that they spent about three times as much convincing you to buy stuff as they did designing it...

    --


    Floating in the black seas of infinity without a paddle.
  14. Re:gay by cheesybagel · · Score: 5, Informative
    Minuses:
    • no camera
    • no USB ports, I/O is done via the same horrible iPhone connector you have know and hate
    • VGA out requires using an adapter
    • card reader requires an adapter
    • no Ethernet port
    • no Adobe Flash
    • more expensive than a $399 netbook or CULV which has all the above, not to mention more memory and storage space
    • need to use Apple store

    Pluses:

    • Apple Office suite
    • light
    • not horribly expensive
  15. Re:No flash support by DangerFace · · Score: 4, Informative

    Dude, H.264 is proprietary, and that's what Apple want as part of the HTML5 specs. Also, it's what the Youtube et al HTML5 betas are running.

  16. Re:What is the point? by exomondo · · Score: 4, Informative

    better resolution that iPhone

    Actually it has a WORSE resolution than the iPhone (132ppi Vs 163ppi), the screen is just bigger, but not as sharp.

  17. Re:True by PAKnightPA · · Score: 4, Informative

    Your comment is very misleading: Sales, General and Administrative is not merely marketing expenses. It includes, among other things, the salaries of everyone at the company (thus the word general) and numerous other expenses. Therefore it is not accurate to use SG&A as a substitute for marketing costs. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SG%26A

  18. Re:What is the point? by fsiefken · · Score: 5, Informative

    Hi Joost, you confuse the iTunes for iPhone with iTunes for OSX or Windows. Subscribe to rss url is not possible in iTunes for iPhone or iPod.