After many months of rumours, the new Apple iPad is finally here! My first impression is that it looks just like a bigger size iPod touch or iPhone. There are 6 different models available, the Wifi option (16GB/32GB/64GB), as well as the Wifi + 3G option (16GB/32GB/64GB).
For the User Interface (UI) part, Apple has re-designed some of the key applications to make reading more easily on screen, other than that, I don’t find any difference with the iPod touch/iPhone at all. As for the features part, many things are pretty much expected, for examples the browser, email, music, maps, photos, videos, music, calendar, contacts and etc. According to Apple, the iPad is designed for people who just require basic function from the Internet, and therefore a full-fledged OS is not necessary.
Another breakthrough that Apple has made this time round, is to design their first chip called A4. According to Apple, the A4 chip inside iPad is extremely powerful yet extremely power efficient. The performance is unlike anything you’ve ever seen on a touch-based device. Which makes iPad fantastic for everything from productivity apps to games. At the same time, the A4 chip is so power efficient that it helps iPad get up to 10 hours of battery life on a single charge.
It’s too early now to give any more comments, until I have tried out the real unit, which is suppose to be launched around April. However, I can see that in some ways, the device will surely attract lots of senior users, whereby the simple UI, together with the big screen, touch-gestures and light weight design will help to get them into the IT World.
Official site: http://www.apple.com/ipad/
