Apple Announces iPad 2: A5 Dual Core, 2 Cameras, Thinner

[deputy_doofy]

I'm most interested in the upgrade and evolution of the Ax chips. It's a good time to be an ARMH investor, methinks. I only wish I had more. Still, dual-core + better graphics, and SAME battery life. That's pretty significant. I'm buying when I get my tax returns.

 

[QuarterSwede]

No... real GPS means you don't need to go through a wireless phone company to use it. It's even listed "assisted GPS" for a reason as to differentiate it's usability. Assisted is handicapped... The Tom Tom dock lets the iPhone work as an un-assited, uncrippled GPS, but for the price of the dock, you can just get a Tom Tom and be done with it. I will never rely on assisted GPS again. You're arguing schematics. No one thinks it's imaginary GPS. We know it exists, but it still is crippled.

A-GPS is better than regular unassisted GPS. If anything is crippled, handicapped GPS it's plain jane GPS.

A-GPS uses cell tower triangulation (no cell service needed) to get a quick fix and then hones in on your location more precisely using slower GPS. I don't know what you've been reading but you've got it way wrong.

Also, to use the TomTom app you don't need the dock. It works perfectly fine on my iPhone 4 and I don't have the overpriced dock.

 

[milo]

Not that bad. FaceTime on a 2007 vintage macbook using the built in crappy iSight looks perfectly fine, even when blown up to near 21".

And even if it had a higher rez camera, isn't the limiting factor going to be streaming video both ways over a wireless connection?

Given that the two banner apps previewed today are iPad2 only, I'm fairly confident it is.

iMovie is iPad2 only, Garage Band runs on the original one. And the issue is probably processor speed more than ram. But I'd be shocked if it only had 256 - I hope it's a gig, but there's no way it's less than 512. Demo guys often don't know things like that, and apple has NEVER said how much ram for any of the iOS devices, not the iPhone, not the touch, and not the original iPad.

No retina display......... wtf.

WTF is that NOBODY has that resolution on a tablet yet, who knows if the screens even exist yet. And you're just finding that out today? The retina rumor was debunked weeks ago, no surprise today.

Notice how they say twice as fast and 9x faster gfx but compared to *?????*

You conclude that it might be compared to the ipad 1 's processor but maybe and surely not.

Seriously? You seriously think that it's NOT twice as fast as the original and they're just saying it's twice as fast as some random unrelated processor? Wow. Did you miss the fact that the new one has dual core while the old was single? Just wow.

 

[Kwill]

WoW! Even thinner

If the iPad gets any thinner, Apple will have to change the name to Steve.

 

[japanime]

I think the upgrade is pretty nice, but probably not enough to get me to upgrade, the main reason being that I like the thickness of the first-generation model. It feels substantial and solid to me. I'm afraid a thinner iPad won't feel right in my hands, and I'd have a hard time gripping it. Of course, I won't know for sure until I actually hold the iPad 2.

Having said that, I'm glad to see Apple continue to refine and push the iPad forward. Nice announcements today!

 

[Slix]

so how the heck am i supposed to sell my 3 month old ipad when they have lowered the price already? i am gonna lose so much money
and freaking apple is supposed to hold their value - yeah right kiss my ass!

Hold their value meaning it won't be useless in a few months.

I'm liking the new iPad. Even better than the first. And people complaining about it being "not good enough to upgrade": No one is telling you that you have to upgrade. Just use what you already have if you want.

 

[reisa]

all crap???

For the last couple of weeks I have been watching news and debates here on macrumors. Must say that I am quite astonished over the level of hatred and antagonism displayed in the forum. Obviously some people tend to jave a religious approach to computer brands, and especially Apple. If you hate everything made by Apple, Why bother spending time on this site and forum?

As a professional photojournalist I have been using computers for 25 years. Both macs and pcs. My experience, and the reason for consecuently choosing Apple for my own purchases, is reliability, and long life. I hate buing new computers and waisting time learning how to use them. The lifespan of my macs have been 4-6 years. None have crashed. Even my three kids have not been able to inflict any damage that I was not able to fix myself. The intuitive interface in macs, iphones and in the ipad has always appealed to me.

I have just ordered a new 13" 2,7 ghz 8 ram 750 Gb to replace my aging 2006 macbook. Despite the macbooks meager 1,8 ghz core duo it can still handle raw images from my canon 5d ii using aperture 2. The workflow using this platform is much faster then working with photoshop on the papers 2007 hp that crashes 2-3 times a year.

With the new mbp it will be even faster - I believe - despite all the negative feedback in this forum that followed the release of the new models.

Today the new Ipad was released, and the comments was overwhelmingly condemning:

quote: And these geniuses decided to take the iPod touch cameras and slap them on the iPad, which has a 10 inch screen?! That has to be a joke! And they have no freaking LED-flash. Unless you're shooting on a beach in mid-summer, most photos and videos shot with it, will be utterly useless.
uncuote

It would of course be nice if the camera was capable of shooting HD video in *3d. But is that really neccessary for the intended use of this gadget?

On the release of the new macbook pros the 13" was massively turned down in this forum because of the low screen resolution. But you dont buy a 13" computer or even a 15" if you plan to use it - as is - for demanding video or photo editing. Any serious photographer will hook it up to an external monitor. And then the resolution is quite good enough. The real advantage with the 13" is the portability.

Of course it would be great to have all the macpros features in a 13" portable, and in the new ipad 2. But this is not an option neither in the mac or pc-world - at this time and age.

 

[Scottsdale]

Believe it or not, I would probably not buy this simply because of the case.
What exactly does this case do? It's just a plastic cover for the screen, and a stand. It however doesn't offer any protection on the back or the rim/side of the iPad--more fragile part than the screen.

Yes, the glass screen is more scratch resistant than the back! Remember the old case? it covers the entire iPad snugly and really offers protection against a light drop...Now w/ this the iPad has zero protection against any liquid, drop, scratch, etc.

Also, magnetic attachment?? So I can't even hold onto my iPad simply just grabbing the case? This means I have to be very careful with how I handle it. If I didn't pay attention and just grab the case the iPad might snap out and drop on the ground. I can already picture a friend or a kid pick it up and iPad snap out of the cover and fall on the ground...

Please offer a regular case like before....then I will def get one.

There are always third party case options. However, I looked at this similar to you. Apple is going to make a fortune due to all of the drops. I have a case on my original iPad not to protect it from scratches but to prevent myself from dropping it. The leather is much easier to grip and ensure I don't drop it. Now I know it offers some protection if I drop it, but I primarily use it not for dropping or for scratches but for grip-ability.

I really like the look of the new cover, but I think it is a true fail as it provides no protection for drops and even more important no assistance with gripping. It only protects the glass from scratches. This move will ensure much more damage to iPads. Look at the iPhone 4. Beautiful glass back, but it is rated as the highest damage due to drops and greatest ratio of drops. The materials simply don't do anything as far as gripping is concerned.

While Apple would never admit that they are pitching this with the cover to make more money in the long run, that is guaranteed to be the net result. It would be nice if Apple at least made something to help grip it better even they charged more as an accessory. Ever tried holding an iPod Touch 4Gen without case? It is really slippery and this is essentially the same only heavier.

I say the new cover is a fail and would hope people with children and limited income strongly consider the third party case options that not only protect it from drop damage but also help the user not drop it in the first place. I think a lot of people are going to be in for a rude awakening to the Apple way when their cover offers zero protection or assistance gripping their new iPad.

 

[Mattsasa]

Not sure if this is already pointed out... but the 5MP HD shooting w/dual LED flash shipping SINCE LAST THURSDAY.. as opposed to the still vaporware iPad 2 ie. NOT SHIPPING

gets 9.48 hours browsing on Wifi... vs 9.78 on iPad... hardly an epic win.. we're in 2011! http://www.anandtech.com/show/4191/motorola-xoom-review-first-honeycomb-tablet-arrives/14

Further the Xoom actually gets 9.52 hours on 3g browsing, vs whats that??? 7.77 on iPad??! WTF Xoom actually got BETTER battery life/ Despite the verticle integration? Oh. my. days

P.S the Xoom has 149 PPI vs 131 PPI and is actual widescreen.. cry about it

Oh and I since were talking about iPad 2 weight.. which isnt shipping, look up the Galaxy Tab 10.1's weight

so your saying that the Xoom is thicker and heavier, and has worse battey life?

yes it has nicer display and cameras but then also a much higher price.

finally on 3G you were comparing the CDMA Xoom to the old model GSM iPad 1. the CDMA ipad gets 9 hours of web browsing

 

[kon46]

About what I expected for the new iPad. I just wish I had ignored all the rumors about it not shipping for months. I could have sold my present iPad on ebay last week for lots more than I will get today,sigh. When will I ever learn. Anyway, out with the old and in with the new iPad. I have to have the latest. My only real vice. As for my friends who are disappointed with the new iPad.......don't buy one.

 

[John Dillinger]

Wah, wah, wah ...it doesn't do this.... it doesn't do that.......... Android Xoom... wah!

A great product defining the market and will be copied again and again
at higher prices!

Why do people want this to be an MBP in an ipad body?

Another million pieces sale of an EPIC FAIL product.

But you see.. I can go buy a dual core Xoom right now, with dual cams (w flash), 10 hour battery life etc...

The only Apple tablet on the market has no cameras, single core, 256 MB RAM,... but Xoom is copying Apple.

P.S if you compare price points, you will see that for 32GB WIFI plus 3G xoom gets you 2MB front-facing camera, 5MB rear cam with dual LED flash, higher PPI screen (149 vs 131 on iPad 2, do the math), larger screen, most likely more RAM... for $70 dollars more..

Also, unlike the iPad.. Xoom prices will go down with time... Start high to handle supply etc... Have you not noticed how Apple is pretty much only electronics company not to do this? Keep prices same right till next release...

By the way $799 is not the only price, WIFI only models, which will also be packing more hardware than comparable iPads, will be cheaper too

 

[milo]

The RAM specs were on the same slide as the pricing specs. They remain, alas, the same.

Those were the amount of FLASH storage, 16/32/64 gigs. RAM is completely different, it was 256 in the iPad and 512 in the iPhone 4. At this point it still seems to be unknown what it is for iPad 2, we may not find out until someone is able to either tear one down or run an app that lists it.

720p? No way! Everyone else is going to being playing catch-up to get that brand new standard baby!

What is your point supposed to be? It plays back 1080. And it shoots 720p. Is there ANY tablet with a 1080 camera? The motorola Xoom just shipped a couple weeks ago and it shoots 720 as well.

Notice they didn't even announce iOS 4.3 for the ATV alongside everything else.

I can't imagine that they would have. The aTV does run iOS but that's something people figured out, not something apple has ever publicized, and it lacks most of the functionality of other iOS devices.

 

[IWantItThatWay]

I really want an iPad but I cannot get one because it does not have Flash.

 

[Benjamins]

How does assisted GPS actually work, does it use the 3G network? Did you have bad experiences with it?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assisted_GPS

All you need to know is, it's GPS, but better.

 

[Shagrat]

Since when is criticism trolling? I was mega-dissapointed.

I'm not allowed to be dissapointed? I own every other iOS device in existence, and I'm now not allowed to criticise one of them?

Not being a fanboy means I have no life? How does that even compute. I'm sorry, it was a major dissapointment. You can't shame me into liking the iPad 2 and the decisions they made on it.

A freaking VGA camera for a 10 inch display is just going to look terrible. I know, coz that VGA camera is barely good enough for my 3inch iPod's facetime... How can it a VGA not look terrible stretched on 10 inches?

And when it's at the other end of the internet? I have seen so-called HD webcams on our network calling to other users only dozens of miles away, and it looks even worse than Skype from my Mac from London to Portugal. So a VGA camera, with a decent frame rate is FINE as far as i'm concerned.

<Facepalm>Just more Specification jerking off...

I just love how Macrumors has descended into a forum for whiners and complainers, whenever there is an Apple announcement of almost any description.

" Apple... epic fail" "Apple...this that and the other...i need..(when what they usually mean is I want!)...ect. ect. ect." (See Nigel Molesworth for explanation, as any fule kno.

Answer is simple...go and buy something else. Just go and buy something else.

</Facepalm>

 

[Shagrat]

But you see.. I can go buy a dual core Xoom right now, with dual cams (w flash), 10 hour battery life etc...

The only Apple tablet on the market has no cameras, single core, 256 MB RAM,... but Xoom is copying Apple.

P.S if you compare price points, you will see that for 32GB WIFI plus 3G xoom gets you 2MB front-facing camera, 5MB rear cam with dual LED flash, higher PPI screen (149 vs 131 on iPad 2, do the math), larger screen, most likely more RAM... for $70 dollars more..

Also, unlike the iPad.. Xoom prices will go down with time... Start high to handle supply etc... Have you not noticed how Apple is pretty much only electronics company not to do this? Keep prices same right till next release...

By the way $799 is not the only price, WIFI only models, which will also be packing more hardware than comparable iPads, will be cheaper too

Then go and buy one. Simple, isn't it?

 

[John Dillinger]

so your saying that the Xoom is thicker and heavier, and has worse battey life?

yes it has nicer display and cameras but then also a much higher price.

finally on 3G you were comparing the CDMA Xoom to the old model GSM iPad 1. the CDMA ipad gets 9 hours of web browsing

Thicker and also higher specced.

Further where did you get that it was the GSM iPad? They put both versions of iPhone on there, why not the iPad?

And ok fine, even if you want to say that CDMA iPad comes back upto par with Xoom.. well there you go.

You dont have that in your bag anymore im afraid. And Apple "makes the hardware and software blabla" right? so all that for weaker 3G performance than Motorola, and what .25/hour more on wifi? Negligble differences im afraid...

 

[John Dillinger]

Then go and buy one. Simple, isn't it?

I'm getting the Galaxy Tab 10.1 which is lighter (1.3 pounds) and will have a Samsung AMOLED screen The Xoom's isnt that great.

Im not even saying Android ownz or anything, but know-it-alls who havent even got their facts straight

 

[marksman]

right! - using a drawing board denotes drawing up new ideas - rather the competition is just onion skinning what apple previously has done.

These shallow attempts at copying are evidenced in so many ways - they fall far short with shockingly little original innovation. Perhaps they should just pay apple to be their R&D department.

This is a good point and Apple has done it before. None of these other companies seem to have a creative bone in their entire company. They essentially just copy what Apple does...

So I am sure they have been sitting around waiting to see what the new iPad does and then poach a bunch of ideas and up the specs so they could try and take marketshare away from Apple.

Apple knows this, so they just essentially offer a spec update, and so all the bozos go to copy they have no new features to copy and they are incapable of coming up with anything on their own, so they are essentially running 1st gen technology.

Now when Apple comes out with their next gen stuff all these companies will be in full force running their 1st gen technology, and Apple will hit them between the eyes with a big upgrade. They have done it before with the iPhone.

It is a pretty smart strategy given how little innovation and creativity have come out of other companies.

Look at the smartphone market and the tablet market. Apple essentially innovated the entire existence of those current markets. There has been some minor innovations by others in smartphones, but relative to what Apple has contributed very minor. In Tablets Apple is 100% of it.

The only tablet I am the least bit interested in is the HP/Palm one, because it is the ONLY one right now that has no chance of being just a 100% rip-off of an iPad. Why would I want a rip-off of an iPad that is bigger and more expensive with less battery life.

I also knew when Apple came out with the $499 price with the original iPad they were hamstringing their competitors... As you can see nobody is capable of delivering comparable value.

Apple has set the table for the tablet space very well and they are firmly in control of it, and the iPad 2 announcement does nothing to change that, in fact it sets their competitors up to fall further behind in the next generation.

 

[zephyrnoid]

Hi.
Part time retired pro still shooter turned videographer here.
Please read by vitriolic posts today. I one of the slightly angry, very disappointed people.
There's a reason there is so much disappointment over the iPad 2. Apple failed to meet most of our expectations. That simple.
I pulled the quotes below because...
Even though I need my MacPro to do full HD, uncompressed editing, an increasingly greater amount of rough editing and personal movie making is occurring on my laughtops .
12 years ago I drew out what the laptop of the year 2010 should look like and the 17" Macbook Pro tricked out is close.
With respect to the iPad2... we are hungry for interoperability, that's why getting the feature set is critical.
Mirroring my family snaps from an ipad2 onto an HD TV is NOT my idea of a serious development.
Getting an HD signal from my video camera so I can stop lugging my DIY monitor around WOULD be a serious development, if only Apple cared.
The ecology of all this is that we have too many redundant devices that do overlapping functions and yet true convergence eludes us.

 

[pubwvj]

Too Thin?

How thin is too thin? Anorexic iPad? I like a lady with curves. But seriously, I expect a book to have some thickness, some heft in my hands. Too thin and it becomes uncomfortable to hold, the edges get sharp, the device bends and dare we say, might break. Can it take it?

I would rather they had left the iPad II a little thicker and heavier and used that extra space and weight for more battery. Imagine 20 or 40 hours of run time...

iHope it is RealWorld Ruggged. iWish.

 

[v66jack]

The Apple event is now on iTunes: http://ow.ly/46LHi

And 20 hours of battery life would have been awesome, but I'm not sure Apple will ever release a new product which isn't thiner or lighter than the previous.

 

[marksman]

Did the developers not think about the consequences of introducing WiFi Hotspot features in iPhone 4s standard? Why would anyone with an iPhone 4 purchase the 3G version of the iPad for more money + subscription cost?

Pertaining to the cameras... this is probably why the iPad is priced at this level. We're in 2011 and Apple still using VGA camera? Come on. I would still buy the damned thing if it was $100 more but with a real camera.

Yes Apple would much rather have people buy a $130 upgrade for an iPad instead of a $700 iPhone instead.

Or maybe they prefer that people buy the iPhone with the iPad because they make a lot more money that way.

 

[Zdb]

Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU iPhone OS 4_2_1 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/533.17.9 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/5.0.2 Mobile/8C148 Safari/6533.18.5)

Any chance this airplay update would allow you to use applications such as keynote for presentations without having to be tethered to the hdmi cable...this would definitely be a lot more useful in business and school
 

 

[Fraaaa]

Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU iPhone OS 4_2_1 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/533.17.9 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/5.0.2 Mobile/8C148 Safari/6533.18.5)

Any chance this airplay update would allow you to use applications such as keynote for presentations without having to be tethered to the hdmi cable...this would definitely be a lot more useful in business and school
*

Do TV even have WiFi that could connect to AirPlay?