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2011-03-03 11:01:01
Tablet computers
Mar 2nd 2011, 21:01 by The Economist online | SAN FRANCISCO
WHEN the iPad was launched last year, it was dubbed the Jesus tablet because of the quasi-religious fervour with which it was greeted by consumers worldwide, who have since snapped up more than 15m of them. Now Apple wants to create even more converts. On March 2nd Steve Jobs, its boss, returned briefly from sick leave to introduce the iPad 2, a revamped version that will compete with a host of rivals now coming to market.
Among these are devices such as Motorola s Xoom that are based on a new version of Google s Android operating system designed specifically for tablets. Android-based smartphones have rapidly eroded the market share of Apple s popular iPhone. But when it comes to tablets, the iPad s lead should prove more durable.
For a start, Apple has had the tablet field to itself for a year, allowing it to refine its offering and raise the bar for rivals. The iPad 2 is considerably thinner, lighter and faster than its predecessor and offers videoconferencing and other capabilities whose absence in the first iPad were widely criticised.
Another reason to bet Apple will maintain its lead is that rivals with similar capabilities have turned out more expensive, whereas the new iPad, despite its extra features, will cost the same as the old one. In America the Xoom costs $800 without a wireless contract and $600 with a two-year one from Verizon. The cheapest iPad 2 will cost $499 without a contract. Sarah Rotman Epps of Forrester, a research firm, reckons high prices will prove fatal for these rivals. Apple has other advantages too, such as an online store full of software programmes, or apps, designed for iPads, as well as content that can be downloaded to them.
Yet the closed nature of such stores also makes some people hesitate to buy tablets. In a recent survey by the Boston Consulting Group (BCG), more than 80% of American respondents said being able to access content from anywhere would be an important factor in their choice of e-reader or tablet. John Rose of BCG reckons Apple s iTunes music store succeeded because it had to strike deals with only the handful of firms that dominate the record business; it will be far harder to reach exclusive agreements with the diverse owners of the many other types of content tablet users might buy.
That is unlikely to stop Apple from trying, though. Mr Jobs is a notorious control freak. He is also a tech visionary whose notion of tablet computing has delivered yet another smash hit for Apple. The father of the Jesus tablet is no doubt already planning his next miracle.
How the iPad 2 stacks up against the competition
By Ben Patterson ben Patterson Wed Mar 2, 2:57 pm ET
Now that we've finally got the official details for the next iPad, those in the market for a new tablet can begin comparison shopping in earnest.
On paper, it looks like the iPad 2 (read the announcement details right here) adds the features it needs to keep up with its upcoming tablet competitors. For example, we're talking a faster, dual-core processor (essential for speedy performance and smooth multitasking), dual cameras (including a front-facing lens for video chat, a key omission in the original iPad), and a thinner and lighter form factor. The second iPad also keeps a couple of key qualities from the first: 10 hours of battery life, and a $499 price tag for the cheapest, 16GB Wi-Fi-only model.
But several of the tablets listed below, including the Dell Streak 7, the Samsung Galaxy Tab, and (eventually) the dual-core processor-packing Motorola Xoom come with Flash support (the Xoom is still awaiting a software update from Flash developer Adobe), while the LG G-Slate and the PlayBook will connect with bleeding-edge 4G data networks. (The Xoom will ultimately do so as well, although you'll have to ship it back to Verizon Wireless for hardware and firmware tweaks.)
Any true head-to-head evaluation of these tablets will have to wait until we get them in for testing, of course. For now, though, I've gone ahead and compiled a list of specs for the top iPad competitors that are either available now in the U.S. or are on their way soon.
We're still waiting for full details and pricing on some of 2011's most-anticipated upcoming tablets, but hey I figured you'd want to see the details we do have, at least.
Specifications are supplied by the manufacturers particularly when it comes to battery life. If I've reviewed or had hands-on time with any of the tablets, you'll find a link below the list of specs.
All set? Then here we go...
Apple iPad 2
Dimensions: 9.5 by 7.31 by 0.34 inches
Diagonal screen size/resolution: 9.7 inches, 1,024 by 768
Weight: 1.3 pounds (Wi-Fi-only), 1.33 pounds (Wi-Fi + 3G)
Processor: 1GHz dual-core Apple A5
Cameras: VGA in front, 720p video capture-capable in back
Battery: 10 hours of Wi-Fi surfing
Ports: 30-pin dock connector
Connectivity: Wi-Fi, 3G
Platform: iOS 4.3
Price: $499 (for 16GB Wi-Fi version) up to $829 (for 64GB Wi-Fi + 3G model)
Release date: March 11 (U.S.), March 25 (additional countries)
Click here for more details
Dell Streak 7
Dimensions: 7.9 by 4.7 by 0.5 inches
Diagonal screen size/resolution: 7 inches, 800 by 480
Weight: 1 pound
Processor: Dual-core Nvidia Tegra 2
Cameras: 5MP (rear), 1.3MP (front)
Battery: 2780 mAh, four hours video playback
Ports: microUSB, microSD
Connectivity: Wi-Fi, 4G
Platform: Android 2.2
Price: $449 (no contract, T-Mobile), $199 (with two-year T-Mobile contract)
Release date: Available now
Click here for my review
HP TouchPad
Dimensions: 9.45 by 7.48 by 0.54 inches
Diagonal screen size/resolution: 9.7 inches, 1,024 by 768
Weight: 1.6 pounds
Processor: 1.2GHz dual-core Qualcomm Snapdragon APQ8060
Camera: 1.3MP (front)
Battery: 6300 mAh
Ports: microUSB
Connectivity: Wi-Fi, 3G
Platform: WebOS
Price: Unknown
Release date: Summer
Click here for more details
LG G-Slate
Dimensions: Unknown
Diagonal screen size/resolution: 8.9 inches, resolution unknown, 3D (anaglyph) capable
Weight: Unknown
Processor: Dual-core Nvidia Tegra 2
Cameras: 5MP (rear, dual-lens stereoscopic), front-facing lens (unknown resolution)
Battery: Unknown
Ports: Unknown
Connectivity: Wi-Fi, 4G
Platform: Android 3.0 "Honeycomb"
Price: Unknown
Release date: Spring 2011 (T-Mobile)
Click here for more details
Motorola Xoom
Dimensions: 9.8 by 6.6 by 0.5 inches
Diagonal screen size/resolution: 10.1 inches, 1,280 by 800
Weight: 1.6 pounds
Processor: 1GHz dual-core Nvidia Tegra 2
Cameras: 5MP (rear), 2MP (front)
Battery: 10 hours Wi-Fi browsing
Ports: MicroUSB, mini-HDMI, microSD (not enabled yet)
Connectivity: Wi-Fi, 3G, 4G later this year (must be shipped to carrier for upgrade)
Platform: Android 3.0 "Honeycomb"
Price: $800 (32GB), or $600 with a two-year Verizon Wireless contract
Release date: Available now
Click here for my review
Samsung Galaxy Tab
Dimensions: 7.48 by 4.74 by 0.47 inches
Diagonal screen size/resolution: 7 inches, 1,024 by 600
Weight: 13.6 ounces
Processor: 1GHz Cortex A8 "Hummingbird"
Cameras: 3MP (rear), 1.3MP (front)
Battery: 7 hours
Ports: microUSB, microSD
Connectivity: Wi-Fi, 3G
Platform: Android 2.2
Price: $249 with two-year contact on T-Mobile, $299 with two-year Sprint contract, $549 on AT&T, no contract, $599 on Verizon, no-contract, or $299 with two-year Verizon contract.
Release date: Available now
Click here for my review
Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1
Dimensions: 0.43 inches thick
Diagonal screen size/resolution: 10.1 inches, 1,280 by 800
Weight: 1.3 pounds
Processor: 1GHz dual-core Nvidia Tegra 2
Cameras: 8MP (rear), 2MP (front)
Battery: 6860 mAh
Ports: microUSB
Connectivity: Wi-Fi, 4G
Platform: Android 3.0 "Honeycomb"
Price: Unknown
Release date: Spring (Europe), unknown (U.S.)
Click here for more details from CNET
RIM BlackBerry PlayBook
Dimensions: 7.6 by 5.1 by 0.4 inches
Diagonal screen size/resolution: 7 inches, 1024 by 600
Weight: 0.9 pounds
Processor: 1GHz dual-core Cortex A9
Cameras: 5MP (rear), 3MP (front)
Battery: 8 hours (or so RIM is promising)
Ports: microUSB, mini-HDMI
Connectivity: Wi-Fi, 4G (summer, through Sprint)
Platform: QNX
Price: Unknown (but expected to be $500 or less)
Release date: Q1 2011
Click here for my hands-on impressions
Ben Patterson is a technology blogger for Yahoo! News.
Steve Jobs p scen igen
Publicerad 2011-03-02 19:22
Apples sjukskrivne vd Steve Jobs deltog verraskande p en presskonferens i San Francisco d r f retaget presenterade en ny version av sin surfplatta Ipad.
Vi har jobbat med den h r produkten ett tag och jag ville bara inte missa den h r dagen, sade han enligt sajten All Things Digital.
Den tunne sjukdomsm rkte Steve Jobs h ll ngan upp p k nt Apple-man r och drev med efterapande konkurrenter som blivit omk rda i racet p surfplattemarknaden.
Annons:
Han skr t om att Ipad2 har mycket snabbare processor och grafik n f reg ngaren. Den kommer med kameror fram och bak vilket m jligg r videokonferenser, r l ttare och en tredjedel tunnare samt kan f s i svart och vitt.
Priserna kommer i USA att variera mellan 499 och 829 dollar, beroende p modell. Steve Jobs lovade att apparaten finns p den amerikanska marknaden den 11 mars och tv veckor senare i ytterligare 26 l nder.
Den h r lanseringen r mycket viktig f r Apple, eftersom aktiekursen har sjunkit efter Steve Jobs sjukdom och rykten om att lanseringen skulle f rsenas. Det r ocks s att konkurrenternas surfplattor knappat in p den f rsta Ipadens f rspr ng. Nu g ller det f r Apple att rycka loss igen.
TT
2 March 2011 Last updated at 18:24 GMT
iPad 2 tablet launched by Apple's Steve Jobs
BBC technology correspondent Rory Cellan-Jones tries out the iPad 2.
Apple has launched the second generation of its iPad tablet computer at an event in San Francisco.
The company said the machine featured a faster processor, improved graphics, and front and rear cameras.
Apple leads the industry in sales of tablet devices, but is beginning to face competition from rivals such as HP and Samsung.
The event was hosted by Apple chief executive Steve Jobs, who has been on medical leave since January.
It had been widely speculated that he would not appear owing to his ill health.
Mr Jobs was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 2004.
Speaking on stage, he said: "We have been working on this product for a while and I just didn't want to miss today."
Declining share
Start Quote
The arrival on stage of Apple's founder, who is away on sick leave, was the biggest surprise of a launch which mostly matched up to the rumours that have been around for some weeks.
End Quote
Up until September 2010, Apple iPads accounted for 95% of tablet computer sales, according to research firm Strategy Analytics.
By the end of 2010, that figure had fallen to 75%, said Strategy Analytics.
The loss of share was down to the arrival of scores of new tablet devices, mainly based on Google's open-source Android system.
Other platforms have also begun to appear, including Microsoft's Windows 7 and HP's WebOS.
Ovum analyst Adam Leach predicted a two-horse race in the tablet market over the coming year.
"The platform dominance of Apple and Google will continue through 2011 and beyond," said Mr Leach.
"However, devices based on Google's platforms will only overtake those based on Apple's platform by 2015, when we forecast 36% and 35% market shares respectively," he added.
Faster processor
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Apple chief executive Steve Jobs and software vice president Steve Forstall unveil iPad 2.
Apple has billed the iPad 2 as slimmer, lighter and faster than its predecessor.
The new device features the company's latest dual core A5 processor, which, it is claimed, delivers twice the processing power of the original iPad.
iPad 2 will go on sale in the US on 11 March, followed by 26 other countries, including the UK, on 25 March.
In the United States, pricing will remain the same as for the first iPad, between $499 ( 305) and $826 ( 505). Other countries are also expected to retain their original pricing models.
CCS Insight analyst, Ben Wood, said that alone would worry other tablet manufacturers: "All of those guys are struggling to even match the iPad pricing, and if you are going to win in the tablet market and you are not Apple, you need to price against it."
In numbers: tablet computers
Apple iPad
Interface issues
Along with the updated hardware, Apple unveiled several new applications for the iPad 2, including the video editing package iMovie and music making programme, Garage Band.
However, according to James Holland, editor of Electricpig.co.uk, the company still has some way to go in refining the iPad's software.
"Where Android is still ahead is they have nailed a few of the interface issues, like notifications - when the iPad wants to tell you something it takes up the whole screen and you have to dismiss that to continue working," he said.
"Apple needs to up its game because it is positioning the iPad as a post PC device.
"At the moment it is slightly backwards in that it makes you do one thing at a time," said Mr Holland.
Vends iPad, moins d un an, d j p rim
par Alexandre Hervaud
Silence dans les rangs, arr tez de vous exciter sur les r volutions arabes, l chez le joystick et coutez : Apple a parl . Mais si vous le voulez bien, avant de commencer cette fourn e d infos Apple, accordez-nous une minute de silence en l hommage de Steve Jobs, disparu tragiquement hier. Non, pas le vrai Steve (pas au meilleur de sa sant , certes, mais toutefois pr sent sur sc ne aujourd hui et plut t en forme), mais @CEOSteveJobs, merveilleux faux compte Twitter parodiant les d lires m galo du patron d Apple depuis plusieurs mois, petite dose quotidienne de dr lerie tweetesque qui tait suivi par presque 500 000 abonn s. Dieu merci, son d part n aura pas t long, puisque le compte a t r activ rapidement sous un nouvel identifiant, FakeCeoSteve, qui met donc bien l accent sur l aspect parodique en vertu des r gles d usages de Twitter dans ce rayon.
Passons maintenant aux annonces du jour. Le visuel choisi pour annoncer l v nement ne laissait pas vraiment de doute quant au produit dont il serait question :
Oui, a ressemble un iPad, quand m me, la tablette (pardon, l ardoise !) lanc e en avril 2010 par Apple. Autre l ment ayant mis la chip l oreille, cette fois-ci tenant plus du cafouillage que de la promo : la publication par erreur sur Amazon Allemagne d une fiche iPad 2 ce matin, rapidement retir e.
On pouvait y lire les sp cificit s techniques suivantes : Wi-Fi / Bluetooth, cran de 9,7 pouces (rien de neuf jusqu pr sent), mais aussi processeur 1,2 GHz (contre 1GHz actuellement), webcam, et port Thunderbolt (derri re ce nom qui sonne comme un titre de James Bond, une technologie Intel qui permet de connecter un ordinateur jusqu 6 p riph riques via un m me c ble, bien plus rapide que l USB 2 ou 3).
Concr tement, la sauterie a commenc sur une note litt raire, puisqu il a t question du service iBooks, son troisi me magasin en ligne apr s iTunes et l App Store : 100 millions de livres ont t t l charg s depuis son lancement en avril 2010. L an dernier, 15 millions d iPads se sont vendus en 9 mois, g n rant pour la m me p riode 9,5 milliards de dollars de revenus. Bref, c est pas demain la veille, en croire Stevy, que la concurrence franco-low cost d Archos fera trembler son empire. Toujours d attaque quand il s agit de tacler Android, Jobs a en effet rappel que la concurrence, en mati re d ardoise, propose au mieux une centaine d applications natives, contre 65 000 pour l iPad.
Oh, c est si fin - photo Technologizer
S en est suivi une vid o promo qu on a h las pas pu voir, a priori il y tait question d iPad sauvant le monde, gu rissant les malades, r duisant le trou de la couche d ozone, et renfor ant le cuir chevelu (on devine d apr s les divers liveblogs, qu il s agisse de Wired, 01Net, Gizmodo, Techcrunch ou Mac World). Avec 8,8 mm d paisseur contre 13,4mm actuellement, l iPad 2 sera l image de Steve Jobs : plus fin, plus l ger. Dot d une webcam l avant comme l arri re, d un gyroscope, d un processeur A5 double coeur, il garde l autonomie de 10 heures. Il sera disponible en noir comme en blanc, et ce d s le premier jour ( a semble tre une nouveaut en croire les r actions d Apple boys enjou s).
DR
Le syst me d exploitation iOS 4.3. a t pr sent , il sera disponible le 11 mars. La fonction Personal Hotspot permettra de partager la connexion 3G d un iPhone 4 avec d autres p riph riques (ordinateurs, etc.). Avec Facetime, les visioconf rence seront faisables entre iPad2, iPhone 4, Mac, et la derni re g n ration d iPod Touch. Le logiciel iMovie va sans doute permettre des apprentis r alisateurs de s attirer un peu de presse en tant les premiers monter leur film sur un iPad 2. Idem pour les musiciens avec Garage Band (trop tard, Gorillaz a d j exploit ce filon promo pour un r sultat tout pourri). Le site officiel d Apple a t mis jour pendant la conf rence avec les nouvelles infos.
Les livraisons en France d buteront partir du 25 mars prochain. Niveau prix, comptez 499 dollars pour la version Wi-Fi, 629 dollars pour la version 3G de base de 16Go (et en g n ral, pour les prix en France, un dollar = un euro, hum). En plein d bat sur l obsolescence planifi e relanc il y a peu par un docu diffus sur Arte, il est au mieux amusant, au pire effrayant, de constater l augmentation massive d annonce type je revends mon iPad 1 ! qui fleurissent depuis quelques heures de Facebook en Twitter. Et pis d ailleurs, a sert quoi un iPad ?
Peut- tre rire un peu gr ce l excellent blog bd The Oatmeal, dont la derni re publication [maj : bon en fait, le strip n est pas r cent mais a t tweet par l auteur pendant la keynote] s intitule : quoi a ressemble de poss der un produit Apple ? .