tablets

We opened the stream early to do full coverage of Apple's iPad event. Sure, you already know everything there is to know about the iPad. But just think of the fun you can have reliving this glorious event with us! (sarcmark)

The Apple iPad is a bit of a misfit. Like an iPod Touch with a glandular problem, a complicated pricing scheme, and a name that will fuel weeks of late-night comedy monologues, the iPad has a rough road ahead of it.

Fortunately, I'm fond of misfits. I mean, I'm the guy who thinks the Chumby is a good idea.

More importantly, I'm a fan of disruptive technology--and for all the snickering, jaded, eye-rolling comments the iPad will get, it is going to change the way we think about mobile technology beyond the smartphone.

I'll get on my editorial jag in a minute, but first, let's spell out the specs. The iPad measures 7.47 inches wide by 9.56 inches tall by 0.5 inch thick, and weighs 1.5 pounds. Held in your hands, the dimensions and heft have a natural, magazine-like feel.

The screen is a glass-covered, oleophobic, LED-backlit, 9.7-inch capacitive touch screen that uses IPS (in-plane switching) technology for above-average viewing angles. Maximum screen resolution is 1,024x768 pixels. Video output is available using a dock adapter, but HDMI is not supported, and output resolution is constrained to 480p. Below the screen is a home button that looks and behaves exactly like the button found on the iPhone and iPod Touch.

Matte aluminum wraps around the backs and sides of the iPad, tapering a bit around the edges. If you've ever held one of the latest unibody MacBooks, you know exactly the kind of feel and finish of the iPad's aluminum. Unlike the polished chrome of the iPod or glossy plastic of the iPhone, the back of the iPad seems less likely to show fingerprints and wear. Like any Apple product, though, expect to see a boatload of cases and screen protectors for the iPad by the time it launches in April.

The buttons, switches, and ports around the edges of the iPad will be familiar to any iPhone owner. A 30-pin dock connector sits on the bottom, along with a small integrated speaker; a volume rocker button and mute switch sit on the right side, and a screen lock, a headphone jack, and a pinhole microphone sit up top.

Under the hood you're looking at a 1GHz A4 processor of Apple's own making, along with 802.11 a/b/g/n Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth 2.1, and a compass. Battery life is rated at 10 hours, and three storage capacities are available, including 16GB ($499), 32GB ($599), and 64GB ($699). A line of iPads with 3G wireless data support (microSIM) are due out in May with the same capacity range, only it will cost $130 extra for each respective model (i.e., $629, $729, and $829). If you go the 3G route, you'll also need to pay for an additional data plan (currently provided by AT&T with no contract), setting you back $14.99 a month for 250MB of data, or $29 for "unlimited" usage. As data plans go, those prices are very reasonable, but they are tied to the device and can't be shared with your phone or other Internet-capable devices.

Features Man, oh man--where to start? First off, let's be clear that the iPad is running a version of the iPhone OS (version 3.2 on the model I handled), and not a version of Apple's full-blown Mac OS. Aside from a few new features (such as iBooks) and a handful of interface tweaks to take advantage of the larger screen, the iPad operates very much like a scaled-up version of the iPod Touch.

Apps that have been around since the iPhone's beginning, such as e-mail, photos, notes, an iPod, calendar, contacts, maps, YouTube, and the Safari Web browser, are all installed on the iPad. Each of these apps, however, has undergone a makeover for the iPad's larger screen size. For instance, apps such as contacts and calendar now offer a split-pane view, allowing more content to spill out onto the screen. The iPod app now looks and behaves like a pared-down version of iTunes, complete with multiple library views, and the capability to create both standard and Genius playlists.

The most impressive app makeover by far, though, is Apple's photo app.… Read more

On Wednesday morning, we published a list of some of the good, the bad, and the ugliest rumors leading up to Apple's iPad release. Now that we know most, if not everything, about it, let's take a look at how some of the rumors panned out.

Rumor: Apple's latest gadget would be a touch-screen tablet. Outcome: Apple's iPad ended up looking a whole lot like what we saw in the patent applications.

Rumor: The tablet operating system would be based on the iPhone OS Outcome: Very real. The iPad shares the iPhone's software development kit, or SDK, and can even run the same applications. It simply scales apps that have been designed for the smaller screen up to its 1024x768-pixel resolution.

Rumor: The tablet would be called the iSlate. Outcome: False. Apple seems to have just been covering its bases with the iSlate trademark application and domain grab. This is kind of like buying alternate top-level domains when starting a Web site. That said, Apple could bring this name to a future product--be it hardware or software.

Rumor: The tablet would be called the iPad. Outcome: Ding ding ding. Despite initial observations that Apple could be in for a legal battle, due to Fujitsu owning the iPad trademark, that's what Apple ended up going with. This could end up being problematic. Bloomberg reports that Apple's decision to go ahead with the iPad name, despite Fujitsu's trademark ownership, could lead to big legal battle. It could also have a similar outcome to the iPhone trademark battle it had with Cisco Systems.

Still, kudos go to iLounge for getting the name, along with a handful of other details, correct in September of last year.

Rumor: The tablet would include textbooks. Outcome: Real, but almost entirely skipped over in Apple's big unveiling. Part of the reason for that could have been the big slip by McGraw-Hill Chairman and CEO Terry McGraw, who the night before had told CNBC that 95 percent of his company's content was ready to go for the Apple tablet.

Nonetheless, textbooks will be sold through Apple's new iBooks store, though details are scarce about whether Apple has worked the kind of pricing magic with which Amazon.com has been so aggressive in trying to get similar content available for its Kindle e-book reader.… Read more

After months of speculation about an upcoming Apple tablet, CEO Steve Jobs took the stage at a press event Wednesday to unveil just that. The iPad, as it's called, is a slim slate-style device that has all the features of an iPod Touch mixed with an e-book reader. Here is a collection of videos of Jobs introducing the iPad and showing off what it can do.… Read more

We recorded right after Steve Jobs finished his 90-minute announcement of the Apple iPad, Apple's new tablet computer. It's variably impressive depending on who you are, but will anyone buy it? We discuss. Also, it's over for the Mars rover Spirit. At least the roving part is over, but it's still alive and doing science.

Apple iPad tablet http://news.cnet.com/8301-31021_3-10440943-260.html

After three months, only 35 subscriptions for Newsday’s Web site http://www.observer.com/2010/media/after-three-months-only-35-subscriptions-newsdays-web-site… Read more

After endless rumors and speculation, Apple finally unveiled its tablet. CNET reporter Erica Ogg was on hand for the announcement in San Francisco and she details the new iPad. Plus, Oracle's acquisition of Sun is now official.

Today's stories:

Apple on Wednesday finally unveiled its tablet computer, called the iPad, at an invite-only event at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in downtown San Francisco. The device, which looks like a larger version of Apple's iPod Touch will be available in two to three months, and starts at $499.

Read on to get a quick overview of everything that was announced, and why it matters.

Proving rumors right, Apple unveiled the iPad, a device that looks akin to a large iPhone or iPod Touch. It sports a 9.7-inch LCD touch-screen display, which makes use of the same multitouch technology found on the iPhone, Apple's Magic Mouse, and its notebook trackpads. It also has the same in-plane switching display technology that made its debut in the latest crop of iMacs.

Like the iPhone and iPod, it sports a finger-friendly OS with an on-screen QWERTY keyboard, and an accelerometer that can detect whether the device is in portrait or landscape mode. It has a 30-pin dock connector, built-in Wi-Fi, and a home button that jumps users back to the main screen of the OS. It also has a volume rocker and a mute button--just like the iPhone.

Along with a big screen, it's sporting a 1Ghz custom Apple chip (from its pick-up of PA Semi back in 2008). Apple says it can get 10 hours of video, which is about four more than the iPod Touch and the same as the latest generation iPhone. This translates to "a month" of standby time. The iPad will come in 16, 32, and 64GB capacities for $499, $599, and $699, respectively. That's just the Wi-Fi version though. Apple will also be selling a version of the iPad that includes both Wi-Fi and a 3G wireless modem built in.… Read more

The iPod Touch and iPhone, defying many disbelievers, have, as a collective platform, succeeded in transforming gaming as much as they have transformed the smartphone industry. Low prices and a massive App Store library, it can be argued, helped the iPhone and iPod Touch out more than the platform's often better-than-expected graphics. We expected Apple gaming to take off, and indeed it has--in the portable space, at least.

The new Apple iPad hopes to take gaming even further, but the hurdles are higher this time. Everyone doesn't need a tablet, which is a significant challenge to iPad adoption. Millions of iPhone/Touch game players proliferated because millions of people need portable media players or phones, and found that it was easy and cheap to game on the same device they had in their pocket already. On the other hand, at $499, a 16GB iPad will have the same storage capacity as a PSP Go, which costs $249. Though the iPad lacks a memory card slot, its screen and battery life look to be far superior.

The good news is, the iPad looks set to run all App Store games, playing them in original resolution in a smaller window or doubling the pixels to full-screen mode on its 9.7-inch IPS screen. The iPad sports a custom A4 processor that should be much more robust than the iPhone/iPod Touch processor, which opens up potential for even more impressive iPad-specific titles. … Read more

Whew! Finally we can stop all the speculating and rumor-mongering. The Apple iPad is here, and it's an...interesting device, to say the least. Some folks are no doubt gaga over it, while others probably came away thinking, "That's it?!"

How about you? Think you'll pull the trigger on an iPad? If so, which of the six (!) available configurations will you choose?

If not, why not? Did the device not live up to your expectations? (You didn't really think it was part hoverboard, did you? Yeah, me too.)

Cast your vote in our poll, … Read more