Introducing the New Apple iPad

Apple CEO Steve Jobs debuts the much-anticipated Apple tablet. Jobs shows the in's and out's of the new "iPad", starting at $499. 




After months of speculation and hype, Apple unveiled a portable device Wednesday called the iPad that will attempt to usher in a new era of touch-screen tablet computing, filling a gap between smart phones, laptops and eBook readers. Apple's CEO Steve Jobs presented the iPad to a rapt audience of technology journalists from the around the world, calling it Apple's "most advanced technology in a magical and revolutionary device." He said the iPad bridges the divide between laptops and smart phones, giving people an experience that those other devices can't provide. The iPad "is so much more intimate than a laptop," he said, "And it's so much more capable than a smartphone."

But Apple must still persuade recession-weary consumers who already have other devices to open their wallets yet again. He said the device -- half an inch thick and weighing 1.5 pounds -- will be available within 60 days starting at a lower-than-expected $499 for a 16 gigabyte Wi-Fi model with larger storage sizes and 3G wireless data connectivity through AT&T, taking the price up to $829. In form and function, the device resembles a large iPhone or iPod Touch with a bigger 9.7-inch high-definition, LED-backlit screen and a 10-hour battery life. The iPad will offer a scaled-up iPhone experience complete with the iPhone operating system and access to almost all of Apple's 140,000 iPhone apps.

Zachary, a contributing analyst with a mobile research agency called The 451 Group, considered the iPad a laptop replacement, especially because Apple is also selling a dock with a built-in keyboard. But Forrester Research analyst James McQuivey said he does not believe the iPad offered enough additional features for consumers to justify buying yet another gadget, or to call it a new category of device. In an e-mail, he criticized its lack of social features, such as ways to share photos and home video and recommend books.

The device does break new ground for Apple in that it will include a new Apple iBook store, pitting Apple directly against Amazon's Kindle service. Apple said five publishers, including Penguin, Harper Collins, Simon & Schuster, are on board to sell books in the iBook store. Jobs said the device will speak to an array of readers. The device offers access to Apple's iTunes catalog of music, movies and TV shows. The iPhone's browser is expanded for the iPad, as are a number of other basic functions such as a calendar, photo e-mail, contacts and maps. Apple also created iPad versions of popular iWork suite productivity applications Keynote, Pages and Numbers, which will sell for $9.99 each.
Apple, however, passed on a camera for the iPad, and there is no Adobe Flash support, so Web video viewing is limited. And despite the larger screen, Apple has not enabled multitasking of apps.
Applications will play a large role in the success of the iPad, just as it helped propel the iPhone and iPod Touch. Jobs said almost all 140,000 apps will be able to run in a scaled-up, full-screen version on the iPad or in its original form.


The key, however, will be a new version of the iPhone software development kit that will allow developers to build specifically for the iPad. Several developers, including game makers Electronic Arts and Gameloft, demonstrated what developers can do with the large screen real estate.
Stephen Wildstrom, an independent technology analyst said the iPad feels like an offshoot of Apple's Macbook laptop line, focusing on portability, rather than the outright mobility of the iPhone. He said Apple has a chance to lead a fledgling category with its strong combination of hardware and software.
"The iPad can succeed without hurting anything existing today," he said. "The iPhone didn't kill the smart phone industry, it expanded the market." But Mike McGuire, an analyst with Gartner, said e-reader manufacturers should worry about the iPad and its eBook aspirations, especially at a starting price of $499. He said old media publications such as newspapers and magazines may stand to benefit if they can use the iPad to get consumers to pay for online content. Shares of Apple rose $2.04, or 1 percent, to close Wednesday at $207.98. The company's shares have more than doubled over the past year, partly on anticipation of the tablet computer. Shares in Amazon rose $3.27, or 2.7 percent, to $122.75.



(Source - AP and New York Times)