Apple IPad 2 and Its Tablet Competitors

Apple announced details concerning the iPad 2 on March 2, 2011 at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts Theater in San Francisco.

The original iPad has sold 15 million units and raked in a stunning 5 billion dollars for Apple in only three business quarters. The iPad 2 will be available March 11, 2011 with the iPad 3 released as soon as March 2012.

The iPad's publicity and public reaction has spawned other contenders to the tablet market. Competition has spurred on companies like Research in Motion, Motorola, HP, and Samsung to jump into the lucrative market. Dell has announced its play into the fray with a Win 7 OS powered 10-inch tablet to be released sometime in 2011.

For a comparison of major tablet players check out this table comparison:

http://www.komando.com/charts/column_9603.asp

iPad 2

The iPad 2 will run faster than its original. The A5 dual core processor will provide twice the CPU speed than the original and nine times the graphics speed.

Front and back cameras are offered. The front-mounted camera should allow video conferencing, which might make iPad 2 a more viable business tool.

Thinner and lighter: 33% thinner and 15% lighter (1.3 pounds).

Smart covers will allow users to prop the unit in several ways while covering the screen.

White and black units will be provided with multi colored smart covers.

Similar pricing and connection to the current three options to the iPad -- $499 - $829.

The possibility of an iPad 3 to be shipped in September and running iOS 5.1is the latest rumor.

What won't change: battery power and the ability to download library books along with Apple's ebooks.

In February 2011, News Corp offered the first iPad-only newspaper, The Daily. Users are charged through iTunes. Apple is forcing publishers of digital newspapers and magazines for iPhones and iPads to make an option for payment through iTunes.

Additional features:

Photo Booth: Allows you to take pictures of yourself. Apple says: "Choose from artsy, wacky, and weird effects. Twist up your face, see yourself doubled, or look like you stepped into a comic book. Photo Booth is great for parties or just for kicks. And the fun keeps coming as you keep snapping."

Find My iPad: If you lose your iPad you can find it with this option. Apple says: " When you first get your iPad, set up Find My iPad in a few simple steps. Then if you lose it, you'll see the approximate location of your iPad on a map. And before you know it, you and your iPad will be happily reunited."

iPad's Competitors

Motorola Xoom was released in late February 2011 with an Android format. Motorola Xoom, who won the Consumer Electronics Show's 2011 Best Gadget award, has a larger screen than the iPad (10.1 inch), two cameras, and Google video software to compete with FaceTime. Drawback: no wi-fi model.

• BATTERY TYPE
  24.5 W-hr
• BROWSING OVER 3G
  up to approx. 9 hrs.
• BROWSING OVER WIFI
  up to approx. 10 hrs.
• MP3 PLAYBACK
  up to approx. 3.3 days
• STANDBY TIME²
  up to approx. 14 days
• VIDEO PLAYBACK TIME
  up to approx. 10 hrs.
• CAMERA
  5 MP
• WEB CAM
  2 MP
• DIGITAL ZOOM
  Yes
• FLASH
  Dual-LED flash
• FOCUS
  Automatic

  The Samsung Galaxy ($ 500-600) has been reviewed favorably, though the Galaxy is more like a large Android phone with only a 7-inch screen. Though Dell has not released it yet, look out for the Streak 7, a mini-tablet sporting a 5-inch display. It will run Android 2.2 OS and support Adobe Flash 10.1.

  Research in Motion will offer the BlackBerry PlayBook that will run an all-new version of the QNX operating system. Samsung will offer the Windows-based Sliding PC7 ($699) in March. It will have a 10.1-inch, hybrid touch-screen with a slide-out keyboard . The Sliding PC7 will be operable as a tablet and laptop with 3G and WiMax connectivity.

  HP announced a new tablet March 1, 2011:

• HP EliteBook 2740p - an ultra-thin, multitouch-enabled convertible tablet that provides an interactive experience for businesses in health care, education, sales and more;
• HP EliteBook 2540p - the company's lightest EliteBook notebook PC, starting at only 3.3 pounds, is ideal for global and large corporate enterprises, the public sector and other businesses in need of a rugged, high-performance notebook; and
• HP ProBook standard series (s-series) notebook PCs - four new models of the high-performing series provide a new design and sophisticated colors for everyday use.
• Sources:

  Motorola Xoom: http://www.motorola.com/Consumers/US-EN/Consumer-Product-and-Services/Tablets/ci.MOTOROLA-XOOM-US-EN.alt

  Apple.com

  Clevenger, Nathan. iPhone Life, March/April 2011: http://www.iphonelife.com/issues/2011March-April/NextGeniPad
  Taylor, Chris. Apple iPad2 Now in Production. http://articles.cnn.com/2011-02-09/tech/ipad.2.production.mashable_1_ipad-apple-tablet-iphone?_s=PM:TECH

  Purewall, Sarah. iPad Rumors Now Compete with iPad 3 Rumors http://news.yahoo.com/s/pcworld/20110210/tc_pcworld/ipad2rumorsnowcompetewithipad3rumors_1

  Apple Insider

  AP -- iPhone and iPad Subscription policy: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110215/ap_on_hi_te/us_tec_apple_subscriptions

  Enternet: http://www.enternet.org/3543840/more-than-60-of-apple-ipad-2-production-to-be-3g-models/

  Video TECHNO Buffalo

  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a5j68ttXudk

  Toronto Star

  http://www.thestar.com/business/companies/apple/article/935558--apple-starts-manufacturing-ipad-2-0-reports

  iPad Video: http://video.search.yahoo.com/search/video;_ylt=A2KJjaky52dN8yEA21zQtDMD?ei=UTF-8&p=ipad%202%20march%202&fr2=tab-news