iPad 2: Hands-On Report
The next generation of iPad has been announced and is, surprisingly, on sale next Friday in the US. That's right, Apple's new (new, new) vision of the future, the next generation of the company's self-proclaimed "3rd post-PC blockbuster" will be in US hands come March 11. The rest of the world will have to wait a few weeks, until the international roll out come March 25. The price points for the various 3G/Wifi versions remain exactly the same as the original iPad.
Presented by Steve Jobs at a San Francisco conference yesterday, a conference that was screened at a UK event simultaneously, the iPad 2 had been the worst kept secret since, well, the last iPhone upgrade. It's improvements were, as rumoured, a mixture of cosmetic and software enhancements. The price points for the various 3G/Wifi versions remain exactly the same as the original iPad, and it'll be available in both white and black versions from day one.
The device comes with a A5 chip, a dual core processor CPU which is two times faster than before, but still saps the same amount of juice as the A4 when used. Its graphics capabilities have been buffed up to work nine times faster, meaning a more seamless gaming experience - obviously Apple are aware how big the gaming market is growing on its tablet. Even with the extra power behind it Apple claim it still has the same battery life of the original - ten hours in total, though how that breaks down with video playback and running WiFi is unknown for now.
There's two cameras, same as the iPhone 4, positioned front and back, with the rear offering HD quality recording but no flash. The inclusion means Apple can now bring FaceTime to the iPad 2. Another App offered out of the box is Photo Booth, a cooky little photo manipulator that impressively runs nine video feeds from the camera on the touch screen simultaneously, each with its own unique visual effect that can be manipulated at a touch before taking a snap shot. The iPad 2 also comes with an in-built gyroscope, carried over from the iPhone and iTouch.
The tablet build: the frame shape is the same, but is now lighter and thinner. Weight wise its reduced from 1.5 to 1.3 pounds, and the depth has shrunk from 13.4 mm to 8.8 mm - shrinking by 33% and is now thinner than the iPhone 4.
The iPad 2 has been built with two magnets built into the left hand side of the unit. The reason for this is new magnetised and foldable Smart Covers for the device, sold separately in both leather and polyurethane, which click into place onto the side of the unit cover the screen entirely. Once folded, they double up as stands for typing or watching videos. Lifting a cover off the screen or dropping it onto it will automatically put the tablet into wake or sleep mode, and covers' inner micro fibre lining keeps the touch screen clean.
Another small addition, but one included due to customer demand, is the ability to chose the performance of the iPad switch - you can set it either to mute the speakers or lock the orientation of the unit.
The second accessory for the iPad 2 is a HDMI video out cable. It lets you play mirrored video output of up to 1080p quality between iPad and your TV - the HDMI setup reportedly works for all iPad Apps currently on the market, and the cable comes with an extra slot for power adaptors if you need to charge your tablet during use.
The unit's release is also backed by new iOS software and Apps. iOS 4.3 will be released come March 11 with increased Safari performance thats twice as fast as before. There's iTunes Home Sharing, letting you wireless stream music and video to your iPad, while Airplay gets a new overhaul, letting you sync with your Apple TV with a single tap.
<bild>The UK event was swamped, as journalists jostled to the first to try the new device.</bild>
Two newly improved Apps, iMovie and GarageBand, will launch at the same time as the iPad 2 for $4.99 each, the former offering in-depth editing software for user-shot video clips, while the latter offers virtual guitars, drums and piano to play with. These latter two utilise the device's accelerometer to ascertain how hard or soft you hit drum or keys. You can also create eight tracks recordings and upload them to iTunes or email them to friends.
All these Apps, PhotoBooth, iMovie, GarageBand, let you upload your creations to a variety of different sites, such as Facebook and youtube with the touch of a button.
Its a impressive step if not an awesome leap from the original iPad, but its amazing to think the difference the company has made within a year of the original going on sale. The lack of flash on the camera is an annoyance, but then, there's always iPad 3. For those thinking about making the leap into Apple's tablet world however, its worth waiting as couple more weeks for the lighter, thinner version. You won't be loosing any extra money by waiting for the upgraded model.
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