iPad

Everyone has an iPad app--or it just feels that way since I've been inundated with press releases about them since Thursday--but the NBA's is interesting for a few reasons.

First, it's free. And second, the NBA is looking at the iPad as a different use case than every other mobile platform. Pro basketball has more than 100 apps, if you count each variation of them released for iPhone, Android, and BlackBerry. But the iPad app, called NBA Game Time: Courtside, is not just a reformatted iPhone app for a larger screen.

"It's completely different from the ground up," said Bryan Perez, the president of the NBA's Digital Group. "One you pull out of your pocket, the other is sitting on your desk or coffee table."

The iPad app is supposed to be a companion to people watching the game, or in this case, the NBA playoffs, which start in just a few weeks. Unlike the iPhone app that you're probably using to stay updated on a game you're missing while you're at the airport or work or on the bus home, the Courtside app assume you're watching on TV.

It's really for stats geeks who don't want to rely on the announcers for all their information.

"We give them the info our TV analysts would have at their fingertips," said Perez.

With some finger swipes you can watch a game and delve into the type of live-updated stats that NBA analysts Doug Collins or Reggie Miller would have while they're sitting courtside calling a game. You can tap any player or team on the screen and see his/their stats as well as shot charts and shooting percentage from different areas on the floor. There's also real-time scoring, updated video highlights, play by play, news updates from around the league and tweets from the NBA's official Twitter account.

You might be thinking, "Bad timing, since the NBA season is basically over." And yes, it is in about two weeks. But this application is specifically for the playoffs. You can get it Saturday, and until the postseason begins, it will show the current playoff picture, and update depending on how the last games of the season go down.

Additional screenshots after the jump:… Read more

iPad Day, as you've surely heard, is almost upon us. When Apple stores around the country open their doors Saturday morning, those who have preordered the much-hyped tablet, yours truly included, can finally get their hands on one. Those who haven't preordered the device can also get one at Apple stores starting at 9 a.m. local time, as well as at most Best Buys.

It's been reported here and elsewhere that iPad preorders are numbering in the hundreds of thousands, and you, being Crave fans, perhaps count for one of those. Or at least you're … Read more

With the exception of the original iPhone, it's hard to remember a more anticipated piece of technology in the last few years than the iPad.

If it does follow the same pattern as Apple's iconic smartphone, that implies that the touchscreen tablet is going to do very, very well. Initial reports have listed the number of preorders in the "hundreds of thousands," and tech industry analysts are forecasting that Apple might sell 6 million iPads within a year. That's astounding because, first, that's how many iPhones Apple sold in the first year, and second, … Read more

Attention, jailbreak fans: two competing tools might be released in the next couple of days to jailbreak iPhones running 3.1.3--and they might also work on the iPad, which launches Saturday.

Jailbreaking is the practice of hacking an iPhone or iPod Touch to install non-Apple-approved programs and run system hacks. It allows for things like tethering, interface tweaks, and other changes Apple doesn't approve of. Many people don't like being locked in to the "ecosystem" Apple forces its iDevice users to inhabit, and jailbreaking is seen as the cure.

The hacks have been demonstrated and … Read more

Those who know me will tell you that I tend to reflect on things, but the sad truth is that my brain is simply slow: here I am, writing about the iPad months after everybody else has put the microscope down and decided to wait for the thing to finally hit the market for real.

From my vantage point of nonengagement I must admit it was oddly amusing to see Apple for once unable to safely ride out the centrifugal mammoth hype tube they managed once more to build around their latest … Read more

Amid heightened anticipation for the launch of its iPad tablet device on Saturday, Apple on Thursday made available numerous iPad-ready applications and began listing Web sites that have been optimized and enhanced for compatibility with the iPad's features.… Read more

The Wi-Fi version of Apple's new iPad is just around the corner, and I can practically hear the fanboys champing at the bit from my climate-controlled cubicle. The massive media player-cum-e-book reader is set for retail availability this Saturday, April 3. Not that you could avoid Apple's massive media campaigning efforts if you tried, but just in case you forgot what this thing looks like and what it can do, we're here to remind you. The gallery below contains up-close and personal shots of the device as well as a plethora of information on its functionality.

The iPad won't be available until Saturday, April 3, but you can check out the apps starting now.

The iTunes App Store now has quite a long list of iPad-ready apps, with prices that are higher than iPhone apps, as expected. At the moment, the only people able to test the new iPad apps are reviewers who've gotten ahold of loaner iPads in advance of the launch. The iPad apps we're now spotting look like the leaked apps seen last week.

Apps that Apple demonstrated at the launch event for the tablet device are all there: the … Read more

Although Amazon's Kindle is enjoying strong sales, Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster told Barrons in a recent interview that the company needs to cut the price of its e-reader if it wants to compete with the iPad.

According to Barrons, Munster told the publication that Amazon should cut the price of the Kindle from its current $259 price tag to $149. Munster believes that the iPad could cut into Amazon's Kindle sales without a price reduction.

As troubling as that might be for Amazon, Munster contends that the e-retailer is in a good position, regardless of the way … Read more