In another of its legendary product-launch events, Apple unveiled its long-rumored tablet computer Wednesday. If the legend plays out the way the launches of the Mac, the iPod, and the iPhone did, the iPad tablet will reshape the landscape of its competitors.
That landscape could include the emerging categories of netbooks, e-readers and other tablets, all of which have seen a flurry of product releases in the last few months — at least some of which were in anticipation of Wednesday’s event.
‘The Internet In Your Hands’
The presentation at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in San Francisco followed the form of previous Apple launches, with Apple CEO Steve Jobs appearing in his trademark black turtleneck and jeans.
He said Apple wanted to kick off the new year with a “truly magical and revolutionary product” to go alongside laptops and smartphones, and he described the iPad as “a third category of device.” Jobs told the packed auditorium that surfing the web on the iPad is like “holding the Internet in your hands.”
At half an inch thick and 1.5 pounds, the iPad builds on the success of the iPod touch and the iPhone, and runs an updated version of the iPhone operating system. The device features a 9.7-inch LCD touchscreen and is optimized for movies, games, books, web browsing, and other media.
There’s a built-in calendar and address book, access to iTunes, a built-in e-mail client, and an on-screen QWERTY keyboard. There is also a new iPad Keyboard Dock, so the user can employ a regular keyboard.
The device is based on a custom Apple-designed one-GHz chip, called the A4, and features 802.11n Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 2.1, an accelerometer, a speaker and mike, and a 10-hour battery.
The pricing of the device has been the subject of much discussion, with many expecting a price…
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