iPad 2

iPad Rumours Round-up

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Deutsch: IFA 2010, Berlin iPAD mit Lautspreche...

We are a pretty sad lot really, if we are honest with ourselves. The iPad 2 is an awesome product (by all accounts) and its the market leader, despite the best efforts of the likes of Sony, RIM and Samsung. Yet, it seems everyone is drooling over the iPad 3, even though, as always, there is no official announcement of whether there will even be an iPad 3, never mind when it’s coming and what exactly it will offer over and above the current model.

Now I have to say here that I don’t own an iPad, not even the first generation model. However, I encouraged a friend of mine to buy one recently. he is a totally non-techie guy and he has a young son. He was thinking of getting a laptop for the family (he already has  desktop PC – a HP server I persuaded him to buy for his home office) and his budget didn’t quite run to a MacBook Air. So, I suggested that the iPad would make an ideal choice as its light, very portable and has an intuitive interface, something he and his family would get along with easily. Also, the vast library of apps would be perfect for his young son as educational software was high on his list of priorities. Also, they wanted something their son could use on long journeys in the car. So, he went ahead and purchased the iPad and is, needless to say, very pleased with his purchase, as are his son and wife.

So, there is no doubt in my mind that the iPad 2 is the best tablet device around and its understandable that the geeks amongst us are interested to see what Apple can pull out of the hat next. I am sure too that there is an element of “how can Apple perform without Steve Jobs at the helm?”. In view of this and as its coming up to New Year, a time when we traditionally look to the year ahead, I thought I would do a round-up of the iPd 3 rumours doing the rounds at the moment.

Firstly, there are the contradictory rumours about whether there will be one or two new iPads in 2012. Some pundits are saying that Apple will introduce 2 models – a so-called iPad mini included. Taipei-based DigiTimes  has said that an iPad with a 7.85-inch display (iPad Mini) might be released by Apple in late 2012. Others are saying that there will only be one new iPad and that its slated for release as early as February 2012. Personally, I think that’s too early as it would cut into sales of the iPad 2 when its still riding high. The iPad 2 was only released in March this year (14 months after the original iPad was introduced in late Jan 2010). If Apple sticks to that cycle then we are looking at May or June as more likely.

In terms of specification, leaving aside the iPad mini issue, what can we expect of the iPad 3? Well, some folk seem to have been taking something (illicit substance wise) as they talk of a transparent iPad with holographic display! My guess is that such a device, if it were ever to appear would be sometime around 2020, not 2012. More realistically, a Retina-class display offering true HD with 2048×1536 pixels resolution is almost a certainty.

As for network connectivity, 4G LTE is also high on the feature list of most pundits. This would offer the possibility of super-fast mobile broadband, perhaps as fast as 100 Mb/s downloads! However, a LTE service is unavailable in most countries (including the UK) so even if Apple does introduce 4G LTE  it may only be available in some countries. My personal view is that Apple prefers to have as few models of its devices as possible and would rather wait for network providers in countries like the UK to catch-up with the likes of Japan, the US and even Poland!

Other features high on the list for many pundits are:

1. Siri – this would be a welcome step and make the iPad even more user-friendly

2. Camera – a higher resolution camera with true HD would be a minimum if Apple is to keep it’s fans and critics happy

3. Battery – improved battery performance is always welcome

4. SD Card slot – great for adding photos and expanding memory

These are the main features that most pundits seem to be expecting. Personally, I think we will see most if not all of these in the new iPad 3, whenever it eventually comes to market.

Related articles

iPad 2 glitches on Verzion

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iPad 2 WiFI & 3GApple admitted on Friday that some users are apparently having issues connecting their iPad 2 to Verizon’s network. “We are aware that a small number of iPad 2 customers have experienced connectivity issues with the Verizon 3G network and we are investigating it,” the company said in a statement to Mobilized.

You can read in detail about the issues being reported by users and Apple’s response on the Apple Discussions pages. Example posts include:

“When I try to connect to the cellular data it just says iPad or Searching in the top of the screen. It did work last night. If I do a hard reset I can get it to work. Switching Airplane mode on and off to reset the modem does NOT work. Anyone have any ideas?”

Message was edited by: nixxon2000

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“This is my first post on ANY forum, but I’ve been reading about this problem since Friday when these iPad2’s came out and I finally found the solution after 2 calls to Verizon and hours on the phone. I finally found a rep that knew what he was doing and it was fixed in a matter of minutes… here’s the deal:

Go to: SETTINGS>GENERAL>ABOUT and then touch the CARRIER line which probably says Verizon 10.0. When you touch it, it should display a PRL number, like 5XXXX. When I did this, my number was 0. That was the problem.

The Tech had me back up the iPad then go to GENERAL>RESET>ERASE ALL CONTENT AND SETTINGS. It will ask you a couple times if you’re sure and just hit ERASE both times.

**WARNING – THIS WILL DELETE EVERYTHING SO BE SURE YOU HAVE IT BACKED UP**

The iPad will then reboot itself and go back to the screen where it tells you to connect it to iTunes. Connect it, in iTunes click restore from previous backup, choose the latest one, let it restore then Sync. While it’s restoring/syncing, you will see the VERIZON pop up in the top left corner and you will be in business!

If you want to verify, go back to settings>general>about and touch the carrier to see the PRL number has changed.

Hope this helps save someone same time.”

Message was edited by: ethynol

Seems these issues only affect the Verzion 3G versions and not the Wi-Fi only or AT&T’s ones. Let’s hope they find a fix soon.

iPad 2 goes on sale in UK from 5.00 p.m.

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iPad 2The Apple Store is showing 3 – 4 weeks delivery times for the iPad 2 at the moment, though whether this is due to the impact of the Japan earthquake and Tsunami is unclear. However, the Apple Retail Stores will have them available from 5.00 p.m. if you can get to one. Here in the UK there are 29 stores so you should be within a reasonable distance of one. Here in Essex there is just one store, at the Lakeside Shopping Centre. How many iPads they have in stock is not known so I guess there will be a lot of folk queuing to be sure they are one of the first people to get their hands on one in the UK. If you are lucky enough to pick one up Apple are offering free Personal Setup, so you can have it setup just as you like before you leave the store. Presumably that means they will help you configure you email and the like, something that always confuses complete novices who have never used a Mac before although I reckon if you already own an iPhone or iPod Touch you could do this sort of stuff yourself without too much hassle.

It will be interesting to see how the launch goes her in the UK and whether the Retail Stores have enough stock to cope with the demand. Apparently in New Zealand they sold out within 15 minutes!