iPad 3 with LTE, Quad-Core Processor and Retina Display Set for March Launch
Bloomberg briefly reports that Apple's manufacturing partners have indeed begun on production of the iPad 3, with a ramp-up to full capacity taking place by February ahead of a March launch for the device. The report corroborates circulating rumors that the iPad will offer a quad-core processor and sport a high-resolution "Retina" display. The iPad 3 is also said to offer 4G LTE support for faster data connectivity on the go.
Apple Inc. (AAPL)’s next iPad tablet, due in March, will sport a high-definition screen, run a faster processor and work with long-term evolution wireless networks, according to three people familiar with the product. [...]Japanese blog Mac Otakara reported nearly identical information earlier this week.
The tablet will use a quad-core chip, an enhancement that lets users more quickly jump between applications, two of the people said.
Rumors have been split on whether the iPad 3 will be slightly thicker, thinner, or the same form factor as the iPad 2, with those rumors apparently depending on whether Apple has been able to adopt Sharp's IGZO technology that would allow for a thinner display. While some sources have indicated that Sharp's displays are making the cut for the iPad 3, others have claimed that Sharp failed to win approval from Apple and that a slightly thicker form factor may be required to accommodate a dual light bar design to support the high-resolution IPS display from Samsung and LG.
Update: Bloomberg has now updated its article with additional information on the new features:
Apple is bringing LTE to the iPad before the iPhone because the tablet has a bigger battery and can better support the power requirements of the newer technology, said one of the people.Sources note that Foxconn's factories will be running 24 hours a day to produce the iPad 3, with a break later this month for the Lunar New Year holiday being followed by an acceleration to full capacity in February.
The new display is capable of greater resolution than the current iPad, with more pixels on its screen than some high- definition televisions, the person said. The pixels are small enough to make the images look like printed material, according to the person. Videos begin playing almost instantly because of the additional graphics processing, the person said.
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28 months ago
It does sound pretty nice. Perhaps too nice? Who knows. Regardless of the specs, I'll be buying the 3 for my first iPad.
28 months ago
I'm in. I don't care about the cellular connection. If it has quad-core and retina display, take my money.
28 months ago
Glad to hear that the processor is being updated.
And I don't really care if it turns out to be slightly thinner or thicker.
And I don't really care if it turns out to be slightly thinner or thicker.
28 months ago
I just bought two iPad2's for co-workers today!
They will be sooo happy when I tell them they will be obsolete very soon!
They won't be obsolete at all. The original iPad is still a very capable tablet.
28 months ago
This is *also* one of those cases where I think we're better off not having Jobs' stubbornness in the way of progress. He tended to get hung up on such concepts, with no room for compromise -- and consumers sometimes wound up with a less capable product as a result.
A realist would look at how thin the iPad is today, realize it was APPROXIMATELY an ideal thickness, and build future units so they appear and feel "about the same size", going thinner when electronics advances allow and a millimeter or two thicker when it allowed a worthy new feature.
It's a lot like the ridiculous multi-button mouse situation Mac users endured for a decade or so.... Everyone I knew with a Mac was using a Microsoft or Logitech mouse on it, because it was clearly less functional not having a way to do a right-click without putting your other hand on the keyboard first. Very FEW people besides Jobs found that single button mouse advantageous.
While the above statement is definitely true, I am also a bit worried about the iPad 3 being thicker.
It's less the problem of thickness per se, since the iPad is a pretty thin device already and a millimeter more or less just isn't a big deal.
It's more the problem that now that Steve is gone, compromises seem to appear that would never have been approved, when Steve was still around.
Steve's decisions may not always have been right, but he had a clear concept and he would never let that concept be watered by what he thought would be an inferior approach. He would rather have pushed back the shipping date until a solution has been found to make the iPad thinner or just as thin with a new screen than opting for the better screen at the expense of making the iPad thicker again - even if it's just one millimeter. The iPad 2 is still a cool device, it's working and selling really well. And even if sales had been dwindling, I don't think Steve would have gone for the thicker design just to push sales and make more money.
My point is that I am worried that Apple products, which have been without compromises for 14 years now, slowly start to evolve into the same crap that other companies are selling, that backsteps are taken and that unfinished stuff is released only to get things out to consumers to make them buy it right away, instead of holding things back until the product is really great - which has been one of Steve's greatest achievements.
Do I make sense? :confused:
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