As with many tech events, rumors go wild in guessing and in hopes of the next device being completely perfect. This is especially true with Apple events. Apple tends to release an updated version of every product every year at about the same time. March is the month of the iPad as Apple has just announced “The new iPad” this last Wednesday.
It is time to separate the rumors of the past from the facts of the future.

This year’s presentation of the iPad started with a key stress on how important Post-PC devices, such as the iPhone and iPad,  have become. They spoke of how the Appstore has had 25 billion downloads total in its rather short lifetime.
That’s right; 25 billion downloads of apps from Angry Birds to Where’s My Water? and with genres from work to play. These apps and devices have become part of our everyday lives and many others.
In fact, they have sold almost 90 million iPads and iPhones in just the last quarter. This really goes to show why Apple’s stock has made the most valuable company in the world at over $500 billion in estimated worth. Apple’s numbers are growing; that’s very evident, but what is actually true about their new iPad.
First off, let’s get the name straight since there has been many rumor names swirling around. Unlike most national reports have claimed, it is not called “iPad HD” or “iPad 3.” It hasn’t officially been called anything other than iPad. Apple was very vague at their presentation of a new name. This was a move toward a simpler future of naming for them.
They are looking to no longer attaching number (and occasionally letters) to their devices names. Instead, they are just going to call them what the device actually is, and in this case, it is simply “iPad.” Since they release about once every year with every product, this is very sensible as then they can refer to previous years’ devices by the year they were released very similar to the way different years of cars are named. Basically, it boils down to a much simpler and cleaner naming structure, which is what Apple is all about.

Even though “iPad HD” didn’t hold true for its name, it did hold some truth in its new display. The iPad has finally been outfitted with Apple’s Retina Display technology. The iPad’s display now has a resolution of  2048pixels by 1536pixels still packed into its 9.7 inch screen. That’s more than any high definition TV packed do in the iPad. This will make avid readers rejoice since at 14 inches away the human eye won’t be able to tell the difference between text on an iPad and text on a printed page. Gamers will also be thrilled at the crisp crystal-clear views that this kind of display will provide.
This iPad includes the new A5X chip that has a dual-core processor and a quad-core graphics processor which was announced to have ran the fastest on benchmark tests compared to all the leading tablets currently available. It will make good use of the new high resolution display with games.
The iPad 2 camera’s photos were so great on it’s lower resolution screen, and they would have look even worse on the Retina Display. Apple stepped it up notch by adding a 5 Megapixel camera and allowing it to shoot 1080p. This will make great pictures on the go.
There are many little nice features. The battery life is still 10 hours even with the improved display and graphics. It will include dictation anywhere there is a keyboard similar to the way the iPhone 4S does it; however, the iPad won’t include all of Siri as it will not speak back to you. It will utilize iCloud and iOS 5.1 including the ability to stream it’s screen to an Apple TV. It can also has 4G LTE built in, but if you live in Columbia, it doesn’t make a difference since 4G isn’t available here.
Now, it’s time to here what it actually costs. The new iPad as per usual has not increased in cost, but the iPad 2 has decreased in cost by $100. Take a look below for full details.

 
This week Apple has taken another step towards the future. Only time will success of Apple’s progress with their iPads. They have made many improvements and a quality product. I will be eagerly awaiting it’s release on March 16.
[Sources: Apple.com] By John Gillis