Anyone that knows me knows that I love Apple products. I’ve been an evangelist for several years and it’s just gotten worse as Apple has entered both the phone and tablet industry. So what is it about this new iPad 2 that’s really going to make an impact? Let’s dive in!
Speed – Dual Core A5 Chip
With all of the rumors leading up to the iPad 2 this one was the least surprising to me. Initially my thought was that there was no way that they were going to be able to keep the battery life the same, but they did. The dual core chip supposedly improves performance by two according to the info on the web. As usual I can’t wait to actually use one in real life to see how much faster it really is. With this increased speed comes the ability to do some more intensive tasks that we couldn’t do normally on a tablet. Things such as movie editing (using iMovie) and creating your own music score (using GarageBand).
Two Cameras? – HD FaceTime
With the upgrade of the processor comes the ability to do more graphic intensive things on the iPad. Anyone that has used an iMac, or MacBook, has had a chance to play with PhotoBooth. Kids love it, adults love it, and my wife and her sisters laugh so hard they fall on the floor when they’re done. Recording in HD, and doing FaceTime calls is going to be a great addition. I’m waiting for FaceTime to be upgraded to allow for 3-way chats. When it gets to that point I will be really impressed. I am looking forward to the day when I see a tourist walking around taking pictures with their 10″ iPad. 🙂
Smart Cover – Now that’s smart
Working at an advertising agency we work hard to sell products and services for our clients. When we watched the video in the office yesterday we thought, “Man, Apple really knows how to sell their innovative products!” Let’s be honest here, this idea of a “cover” is great. Steve Jobs hit it right on the noes when he said that the case for the original iPad was bulky and heavy and took away from the sleek factor in the first iPad. This is a step in the right direction for Apple, and the magnetic click sound is one I gotta hear.
Thinner and Lighter? – I think so!
Apple is notorious for making their new revisions of products smaller in one way or another. It’s rare that they release a new one that is bigger than the last. I’m sure there will a point where it won’t be possible, but for now let’s just enjoy it. Yes, the iPad 2 is thinner. It’s even thinner than the iPhone 4, somehow. The fact that it weighs 1.3 lbs is what really floors me. Looking forward to holding one so I can really see how different it feels from the old one.
HDMI Out and Mirroring
This is easily my favorite addition to the feature set. When we bought an iPad for Jibe we were really hung up on the fact that we couldn’t show clients exactly what we were seeing on the screen unless the app supported it. The apps that did support it got a lot attention from companies like us. With this change now though, I’m sure the game will change. Frankly, this should have been a feature in the original iPad…but I guess with the new processor and graphics card it just made it that much easier for them.
Conclusion
The new iPad is awesome, of course. As usual I’d love to get one (who wouldn’t?). The improvements are great, and much needed to take the iPad 2 even further. The one spec that has left everyone wondering is the 512MB of RAM. This is great, but starts the iPad 2 a little behind the game. There are lots of competitors to the iPad now, so it’s time to step it up. They do have a good percentage of the market, but over the next few months we’ll really see if 2011 is “the year of the iPad 2” as Steve Jobs said in his keynote.