“Apple’s iPad 2 will feature a better quality display, faster chips, separate CDMA and GSM versions, iPod touch-like dual cameras, and vendors will produce 4.5 to 5 million units in the first quarter, according to a new report from Taiwan,” Daniel Eran Dilger reports for AppleInsider
“Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo of Concord Securities has prepared a report indicating that iPad 2 won’t get higher resolution screen this year, using the same 1024×768 of the original iPad,” Dilger reports. “‘iPad 2 will use [ARM] Cortex-A9 dual core processor running at 1.2GHz. Increasing 1~2% single core processor clock results in a 3~5% power increase and dual core could get a better balance between computing power and power consumption. That’s the reason why Apple will use dual core for iPad 2.’ As expected, the report also states ‘iPad 2 will also have a GPU using Imagination’s SGX543 dual core graphics technology which is 200~300% powerful than iPhone 4.'”
Dilger reports, “RAM is also on the rise, the report says. ‘For making full use of GPU upgrading advantage, iPad 2 needs bigger memory bandwidth. So iPad 2 has 512MB RAM, same as iPhone 4 and twice as much as iPad 1, but running at higher clock 1,066 MHz for getting bigger memory bandwidth (iPhone 4 memory clock is 800 MHz).'”
Full article, with more predictions about iPad 2’s connectivity, cameras, and more, here.
No high res display, no buy
As it is, today’s iPad screen and resolution is fantastic and unrivaled, so what exactly is the big deal?
If a 1 megapixel ipod touch rear facing camera is truely what they are putting on iPad 2, then they are giving android tablets another opportunity. Also Apple should offer a 7″ ish ultra portable iPad too, to eliminate the reason some people are buying a Galaxy Tab with more of this size to come.
@nomoremsbs
You may not have noticed, but Apple does NOT follow the makers of Galaxy Tabs. Steve Jobs has been very clear on why Apple is not going to make a 7″ iPad anytime soon. I think Apple is quite correct to build products on the basis that people want to buy them rather than something that competes with competitor’s product.
And you spelled ‘truly’ wrong.
The main practical use for a camera on an iPad will be FaceTime and video conferencing- anyone who has used FaceTime on iPhone 4, knows how amazing the image is using it’s front facing camera -the current resolution for video conferencing is great.
7″ tablet is DOA!! Too big to be portable, too small to be useful. Apple learned that lesson two decades ago with the Newton.
My iPhone 4 gets slow during Angry Birds sometimes. Also, during Skype chats when the other person is typing it does not types what I am writing until the other person stops writing.
I have already reset the iPhone, closed all task and still the same.
Is the A4 powerful enough? or is there other tweak I can try?
No sexual favor from the hot salesgirl at BestBuy, no sale.
7″ iPad would require developers to rewrite their apps. Now they would be create 3 versions – one for iPhone, and one for each size of an iPad. Too much fragmentation. Besides look at what Steve Jobs said. It’s not going to happen.
A crap camera is still a crap camera. It’s beneath Apple to put sub-par components in their devices.
I got an iPod Touch 4 when it came out, hoping that I could sometimes leave cameras/camcorders home. The pictures the iPT4 takes are so bad, it embarrassing.
If they can’t put a decent component in, then leave it out.
They put a good camea in the phone.
(I’m sure there will be plenty of apologists, defending Apple’s stats quo. But I stand by my comment. Sub-par components give Apple a black eye. At least with those who’s interest goes beyond video chat.)
Megapixels are meaningless – don’t buy the marketing hype.
Same display resolution. Only 512mb RAM.
Looks like there’s no reason to upgrade. I’ll be riding my iPad until 2012 if these specs pan out.
I think a highe grade camera would be great but are seriously going to use an iPad as a camera….really!
Let’s look a bit at those hardware specs in a broader (i.e. desktop) context. In the early 2000’s, major Hollywood picture, ‘Cold Mountain’ was edited on PowerMac G4 machines, using Final Cut Pro (v3.0). The machines were stock (off-the-shelf) configurations:
PowerMac G4
Dual 1GHz processors
256MB RAM
compare with the new iPad
1.2GHz processor
512MB RAM
Now, the obvious difference is the display (1024×768 on iPad, vs. 2560 x 1600 of the 30″ Cinema Display), but a lot of the editing work for Cold Mountain was done in the field, on ordinary PowerBooks, with display resolution almost as low as the iPad.
The hardware muscle of the iPad is quite powerful. There is no reason for not having really powerful apps for it as well.
All points taken. And I understand that the apps may need an update, but I believe that a 7″ tablet will become a category. There is the possibility that instead of “Too big to be portable, too small to be useful” it may actually be “portable enough for a purse, etc. and be large enough to be more useful and readable than a smartphone.” I love the size of my iPad, and the portability of my iPhone, but I think there will be enough people who would prefer an 7″ iPad, to make it an additional product category.
“separate CDMA and GSM versions”
Too bad there will be no incentive for ATT and Verizon to compete on price since your iPad will only work on one or the other.
It’s difficult to know the numbers of who might use the iPad as a camera/camcorder. Those who wouldn’t, can’t imagine why one would. Those who would, can’t imagine why one wouldn’t.
Who would have thought that independent filmmakers would use an iPhone to shoot with? And yet more and more of that type thing is happening. I have a pro photog friend that sends out his iPhone “picture of the day”… and they look great. If they can put a decent camera in the phone, why disappoint unsuspecting iPod Touch/iPad buyers?
Leave the chat camera in, but don’t put back camera on until it is a good as the one on the phone.
The principle stands… and Apple knows better… If you can’t do it right, don’t do it.
@nomoremsbs I bought my iPad strictly for school and loved it the size was perfect for the on screen keyboard…. Unfortunately my rent had to be payed and my gf gave me the option to either sell my iPad or my 360 and well my iPad went so now I got a 32gb iPod touch
I just need 1 thing, a better resolution, everything else could stay the same. Who doesn’t agree is because doesn’t have an iPhone 4
This and other news in the tech journal: Duh!
Well, I hope the camera specs are wrong. Can’t Apple put in a camera at the same as the iPhone 3G or 3GS? Better for Skype and FaceTime.
same specs I mean
The higher the resolution on the front facing camera, the slower the image transmission and the bigger the lag time….
The rear-facing camera on the iPad 2 is for augmented reality apps, it’s not intended to be a ridiculously large replacement for your digital camera. 1 megapixel is fine for augmented reality.
Dual core makes sense – mirrors the multi-core path taken in the desktop and laptop computer markets. Higher resolution would have been nice, but the current iPad display is quite functional as-is.
Increased RAM was a no-brainer – Apple had to at least match the iPhone 4. I was surprised that the original iPad was released with only 256MB.
I expected Apple to use the iPhone 4 camera because of economies of scale and established engineering integration expertise. But it doesn’t matter too much to me because the miniature embedded cameras in mobile devices are only for convenience, anyway. If you want a good, low-noise digital photo then you need a *real* camera with optical zoom. If things are in motion (especially indoors), then you need a large-format detector array (SLR-type) to obtain the necessary sensitivity.
It appears that the iPad2 will be an incremental improvement on a solid first generation product. That may not seem insanely great, but we have become a bit jaded with respects to Apple’s overachievements over the past decade.