Apple unveils iPad 2, slimmer version of iPad

Apple has finally unveiled a slimmer, trimmer version of the wildly popular version of iPad, complete with a front facing camera for vedio chat and a souped-up processor.

The new iPad 2 took the spotlight during a press event at San Francisco's Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, with none other than Apple CEO Steve Jobs - who is still on medical leave, taking the stage to unveil the much-anticipated follow-up to the best-selling original.

The "dramatically faster" iPad 2 boasts a dual-core A5 "system on a chip" processor under the hood, said Jobs, good for twice the CPU power and nine times the graphics performance of the original while maintaining the same 10-hour battery life.

Also new are, dual cameras, including a front-facing camera for VGA-quality video chat, while the rear camera will be good for 720p video capture.

As predicted, the 9.7-inch display on the iPad 2 has the same resolution as that on the original: 1,024 by 768, disappointing news for anyone hoping that the new iPad would boast an improved "retina"-style display.

Measuring 9.5 by 7.3 by 0.34 inches, the iPad 2 is slightly shorter and narrower than the original, with the listed weight of 1.33 pounds (or 1.35 for the 3G-enabled iPad 2) a bit lighter than the iPad 1.

As with the first iPad, the iPad 2 comes with Apple's proprietary 30-pin dock connector for syncing and charging, along with a 3.5mm headset jack. Missing in action, is a slot for SD (or microSD) memory cards.

A white version of the iPad will be available on "Day One," promised Jobs, with Apple probably hoping to avoid last year's debacle of the white iPhone that never quite arrived.

The iPad 2 retains the same price points as the original: $499 for the 16GB version, $599 for the 32GB model, and $699 for the 64GB model. The 3G-enabled versions will also come with the same $130 premium over the Wi-Fi-only models ($629 for the 3G-ready 16GB iPad 2, $729 for 32GB, and $829 for the 64GB version), and they'll be available for both AT&T and Verizon Wireless.

The shipping date is expected to be March 11 in the U.S., and March 25 in 26 additional countries.

Jobs also announced a new "Smart Cover" to go along with the iPad 2 - one with magnetic clasps that either wakes up the iPad or puts it to sleep depending on whether it's being attached or removed. The polyurethane version of the case will sell for $39, while a pricier leather one goes for $69.

Another new accessory is a $39 HDMI video-out cable that's capable of 1080p video mirroring. The cable works with all iPad apps, Jobs said, and it'll charge your iPad when plugged into a power source.

March 11 will also see the release of iOS version 4.3, with new features such as personal hotspot support for the iPhone 4, a speedier version of Safari, improvements to AirPlay media streaming, and FaceTime video chat, but the iOS 4.3 release on the 11th will only be for iPads, third- and fourth-generation iPod Touches, and the GSM version of the iPhone - meaning that owners of the iPhone for Verizon, which runs a CDMA network, will have to wait.

There will also be a new iPad version of Apple's iMovie video-editing app, which is slated to arrive March 11 for $4.99.

Before unveiling the new iPad, Jobs confirmed recent rumors that book publisher Random House, the last of the major iBooks holdouts, would be offering more than 17,000 volumes through Apple's e-book store.

Jobs also took a shot at Honeycomb, Google's new Android-based tablet OS, by bragging that only 100 Honeycomb-ready apps are currently available for download, versus about 65,000 apps for the iPad - perhaps not the fairest comparison, since the first Honeycomb-enabled tablet only landed in stores about a week ago.

The first iPad, originally unveiled last January before landing in stores the following April, was initially greeted with skepticism.

Unsurprisingly, the massive success of the iPad has drawn a slew of competitors, with sleek new tablets from the likes of Dell, HP, LG, Motorola, and Samsung either on sale now or waiting in the wings.

Most of the hottest new tablets, such as the Motorola Xoom and the upcoming LG G-Slate, are based on Google's tablet-oriented Android 3.0 "Honeycomb" OS, although we'll also see some non-Android tablets as HP's WebOS-based TouchPad and the BlackBerry PlayBook from RIM.

Apple begins production of new iPad

According to a recent report by Wall Street Journal, Apple has begun to make a new version of its iPad tablet computer with a front-facing camera and faster processor.

The new iPad will be thinner and lighter than the first model and sport a more powerful graphics processor, the Journal said.

It will have at least one camera on its front for features such as video conferencing, and will also have more memory, adding Apple plans to unveil the new iPad through Verizon Wireless and AT&T.

Early in February, a Reuters eyewitness saw what appeared to be a working model of the next iPad with a front-facing camera at the top edge of the glass screen at a press conference in New York.

Samsung Galaxy Tab to compete with Apple iPad

Samsung Electronics has unveiled a new tablet PC named Galaxy Tab as the latest device meant to rival Apple Inc.'s popular iPad.

The device is mean to offer users "a new galaxy of possibilities" with features such as mobile video conferencing and a video chat function.

The thin tablet device weighs 13.4 ounces (380 grams) and has a 7-inch (18-centimeter) touch screen. The Tablet PC comes with Google Inc.'s Android 2.2 ‘Froyo’ operating system and Adobe's Flash Player.

Amazingly, this powerful tablet is also a phone - although it's a huge one. In its press release, Samsung said "the Samsung Galaxy Tab turns out to be a perfect speakerphone on the desk, or a mobile phone on the move via Bluetooth headset."

The Galaxy Tab has the full complement of Google's Android apps, including access to the 70,000-plus apps in the Android Market. Samsung has added some of its own apps as well. Its Media Hub, which we saw briefly in action on a Samsung Epic 4G phone last month, sells TV episodes and movies for download. The "Readers Hub" appears to be Samsung's own e-book store and e-reader app.

The tablet runs Froyo on a 1-Ghz Samsung Hummingbird processor, and the LCD screen is 1024-by-600 resolution. Since this is Froyo, the Web browser has full Adobe Flash 10.1 support.
To connect to the Internet, the Tab uses 3G HSPA 7.2 (AT&T's technology) as well as Wi-Fi 802.11n. The frequency bands on the model introduced make it incompatible with U.S. carriers in general, though presumably a U.S.-centric model will fix this.

There's a 3-megapixel camera on the back and a 1.3-megapixel camera on the front, specifically for making video calls. The tablet has either 16 or 32 G-bytes of internal memory, with a MicroSD card slot supporting up to 32GB more. The tablet weighs 13 ounces, and according to Samsung, the 4000 mAh battery will last for 7 hours of video playback.

Although Android 2.2 is the latest version, rumor mongers have been looking forward to Google's unannounced Android 3.0, also known as "Gingerbread."

With 512MB of RAM and a 1-Ghz processor, the Galaxy Tab looks well-positioned for a potential upgrade.

The Galaxy Tab will come to Europe this month and to the US in coming months. The price of the device will depend on telecommunications operators through which it will be available.