The New iPad is NOT a Small Upgrade Nor Does it Have Any Competition!

Be Sociable, Share!

    By: Hillel Fuld (@hilzfuld)

    The lights of the Apple stage on which Tim Cook introduced the new iPad are not even out yet, but the critics, on the other hand, are already out in full force. The truth is, most people knew prior to the announcement that no matter what Cook would announce, people will criticize and call the new iPad a disappointment.

    Except I truly thought this time would be different.

    I am not even going near the countless blog posts addressing why the new iPad stinks, I am just judging by the fact that by the time the event was over, I had already gotten countless tweets, emails, Facebook messages, and even text messages asking me how disappointed I was.

    This post is for the people who will be asking me that question in the coming weeks and months. Instead of me getting all worked up about the ridiculousness in the question, I will simply click “Copy” on the URL of this post and then “Paste”, while keeping a smile on my face the whole time.

    The new iPad, yes, that is the name, is amazing. Let me just get that out there from the get-go.

    To those who are disappointed, I honestly am not sure what you were expecting to see, but the features included in the new iPad are remarkable and unmatched by anyone in the industry. Here are some of the outstanding features announced by Apple in yesterday’s keynote, most of which were predicted by the blogging community prior to the event:

    Display

    It is really very simple. The iPad 2 had a nice screen. Nice. The new iPad has 4x the amount of pixels with a Retina display. That means a 2048-by-1536 resolution, 44 percent greater color saturation, and 3.1 million pixels. That’ is a million more pixels than an HDTV. Bottom line? Once you go Retina, you can never go back. That is true for the iPhone and it is now true for the iPad.

    Connectivity

    There is really not much to say here. Apple took a huge leap forward by including LTE in the new iPad. 4G is on its way to becoming mainstream and replacing 3G. Apple’s inclusion of LTE is a stamp of approval that this technology is now a reality and will spread like wildfire starting today. How fast is LTE compared to other 3g networks? See below.

     

    Photography

    OK, I will be honest, I am not sold on the whole taking a picture with a 9.7″ device. Having said that, the camera on the iPad 2 was kind of sad, and I am being nice. The camera on the new iPad has a 5 mp sensor with backside illumination, Autofocus, tap to focus, and tap to set exposure. There is also built-in face detection that automatically balances focus and exposure across up to 10 faces. Then there’s the video. 1080p video recording with automatic video stabilization. Not sold on tablet photography but if anyone can sell me, it is this camera.

    Graphics and Performance

    While this does not interest the average user, nor is it something Apple usually talks about, the new iPad has a powerful A5X chip with quad-core graphics. Again, the iPad 2 was fast and I had absolutely no complaints regarding its responsiveness. In fact, the iPad 2 was significantly faster than any tablet I have used including almost all tablets on the market. The new iPad, especially when it comes to resource-heavy games, blows the iPad 2 out of the water.

    Battery Life

    Again, the battery life on the iPad 2 was phenomenal, but with 4g and quad-core graphics, something was going to have to suffer and the battery life was the expected scapegoat. Except, Apple pulled it off. Same 10 hours of battery life as the iPad 2 even with a Retina display!

    OK, I am pretty sure you get the point, and have no doubt, I can go on. Voice dictation, iPhoto, the longest list of supported networks around the world on any device, etc. etc. This is NOT a small upgrade and if you are wondering whether the upgrade from the iPad 2 is something I would recommend, the answer is a definite yes. I did it! For the Retina display alone, I would say it is a worthy upgrade, not to mention everything else.

    As far as the name not being iPad 3 or iPad HD, it confused me in the beginning but is the iMac, Macbook, or iPod attached to a number? No, neither will the iPad be from now on and you can be sure the next iPhone will not be called iPhone 5, iPhone HD, or any other name, but it will be called iPhone. And I get it.