Will the next iPad be 4G compatible?

[Kauai]

Okay Apple I'll let you pass on making the iPhone 4's non 4G compatible. Despite confusion about the name compared to it's predecessors, 4G was still an up and coming technology largely unavailable to the vast majority of the country.

That being said, a number of carriers are starting to roll out 4G capability nation-wide. AT&T its self plans to roll out it's own 4G network in early 2011, coinciding with the release of the iPhone 5. And since it's almost a certainty the new iPhone will have 4G capability, do you guys think Apple will also introduce it in the new iPads or not?

But increasing speeds introduces a new question...Do they really matter when data plans are now largely capped? So yeah you'll be able to stream HD on the road...if you're willing to pay through the nose.

 

[miles01110]

Highly doubtful.

 

[Ciclismo]

Wasn't there news about the next iPhone not having 4G capability? If so, then I guess that we can expect the same for the iPad.

 

[gh0001]

i think the next ipad would be EV-DO capable (for carriers such as VZW). you would see 4g in data cards before mobile phones or ipads.

 

[MasterTick]

Doubt it, Apple is pretty conservative when it comes to embracing new technologies.

I'd bet we see LTE support in the iPad 3, possibly 4.

 

[TEG]

By T-Mobile (USA) definition, the current iPhone is 4G, because they are using HDSPA+, which is really 3.5G, and calling it 4G, then it is likely. If you mean LTE/WiMax, it is unlikely, since these are actually 3.9G, and are much more likely to take longer to catch one. Not to mention, that in the US, the first LTE carrier will be Verizon, which would not allow the iPad to fall back to older technology when it no longer had an LTE signal, unless they included EV-DO and RTT1X equipment in the iPad. Same goes for WiMax, since Sprint/Clearwire/Comcast are the only real supporters, and would require EV-DO and RTT1X to fall back on as well.

To be perfectly honest, I'm expecting the next iPad to not even bother with a cellular version, as portable hotspots, which are available from every carrier, are cheaper, and Apple won't have to worry about making different versions for different countries/companies.

TEG

 

[DanielNZ]

By T-Mobile (USA) definition, the current iPhone is 4G, because they are using HDSPA+, which is really 3.5G, and calling it 4G, then it is likely. If you mean LTE/WiMax, it is unlikely, since these are actually 3.9G, and are much more likely to take longer to catch one. Not to mention, that in the US, the first LTE carrier will be Verizon, which would not allow the iPad to fall back to older technology when it no longer had an LTE signal, unless they included EV-DO and RTT1X equipment in the iPad. Same goes for WiMax, since Sprint/Clearwire/Comcast are the only real supporters, and would require EV-DO and RTT1X to fall back on as well.

To be perfectly honest, I'm expecting the next iPad to not even bother with a cellular version, as portable hotspots, which are available from every carrier, are cheaper, and Apple won't have to worry about making different versions for different countries/companies.

TEG

The iPhone 4 has HSPA not HSPA+

 

[Alvi]

I doubt it, the iPhone 2G got released when 3G was already available in many places worldwide , 4G is available only in a few cities around the world right now

I'd say that the next iPad will get the Camera(s) more ram and maybe something else, but it will stick with 3G till the 3rd Gen refresh (based on usual overhauls every 2 Gens by apple)

 

[j_maddison]

You're forgetting one small, but important detail..... the iPad is not a US centric device. It has a global market, Apple will not adopt 4G until it becomes a global standard. I don't know what the figures are, but I'd hazard a guess that more iPad's and iPhones are sold outside of the US than inside.