The Apple iPad - the new "tablet computer" killer

Apple’s new device is called the iPad.

According to Apple’s announcement this morning from Steve Jobs, Apple currently has the phone market covered. They have the notebook category. But it needed to find something “in between” - and therefore, a new category of devices they have named their iPad.

The new Apple iPad supports: Browsing the web. Doing email. Enjoying and sharing pics. Watching videos. Enjoying music. Playing games. Maps. Reading ebooks. Super smooth scrolling. iCons fly in when you unlock it. It has iTunes store built right in. YouTube, and YouTube in HD. Replaces the old paper calendar with a similar size version.

Hardware Details:
.5 inches thin
1.5 pounds
9.7 inch IPS display
1GHz Apple A4 chip
Full capactitive multi-touch
Available in 16GB, 32, 64
Wifi & Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR
10 Hour Battery Life (they claim)
App Store - supports iPhone Apps
Built in Apple Software
Speaker, Microphone
Accelerometer & Compass
iWork - for the iPad

The Specs:

Size and weight:
Height:
9.56 inches (242.8 mm)
Width:
7.47 inches (189.7 mm)
Depth:
0.5 inch (13.4 mm)
Weight:
1.5 pounds (.68 kg) Wi-Fi model;
1.6 pounds (.73 kg) Wi-Fi + 3G model

The other announcement is iBooks. The new iBookstore allows for easy book browsing and purchases, includes a great reader too. All in one really great app. We use the ePub format.

The uses for the new iPad are unlimited. It’s the true “cross-over” platform and device. including leisure activities to light business work. It is also expected to take colleges and universities wireless for textbooks.

“At that price, they’ll sell millions,” Hakim Kriout of New York-based Grigsby & Associates told Bloomberg News. (Kriout’s firm owns Apple shares.) “It’s very, very affordable for what it does. This is going to add a huge revenue stream for Apple.”

As for connectivity, the iPad works on WiFi networks, and there are models that will have 3G connectivity. AT&T will offer unlimited data for $29.99 a month, or $14.99 for 250 Mb/month. There are six models in all, ranging in price from $499 to $829, depending on the amount of storage you want and whether you want 3G.

For more information, visit http://www.apple.com/iPad/

January 27, 2010 in Blog   |   No Comments

Amazon adds Apps to Kindle

Amazon Thursday (January 21, 2010) announced a SDK (software development Kit) for its popular Kindle e-reader. These tools will let developers create and sell Apps (applications for the Kindle). The news comes days before Apple is expected to announce a new e-reader/device that is expected to be part e-reader and tablet computer, The Yankee Group projects in a new forecast that the U.S. e-book reader market will nearly double to $2.3 billion by 2013, from $1.3 billion this year.

The competition from Apple will be the Kindle’s most formidable competitor to date. It also comes a day after Amazon said it was hiking the royalty rate for authors for each e-book sold via the Kindle to 70% — the same rate Apple pays developers on app sales through iTunes.

Some Kindle Apps in the works include a Zagat guide for restaurants worldwide, games from Electronic Arts and word games and puzzles from smaller game publisher Sonic Boom. The third-party apps won’t be available in the Kindle Store until later this year. Starting next month, Amazon will allow developers to download the software development kit in a limited beta.

“We’ve heard from lots of developers over the past two years who are excited to build on top of Kindle,” said Ian Freed, vice president, Amazon Kindle, in a statement. “The Kindle Development Kit opens many possibilities — we look forward to being surprised by what developers invent.”

Apple, has been coy about its designs on the e-reader market. But recent reports that the company is in talks with a wide range of publishers including HarperCollins and The New York Times to supply content for its forthcoming tablet device suggest it’s taking dead aim at the Kindle.

The release of yet another App Store and digital marketplace shows the trend for Apps and Digital Content to grow over the coming years (see the Mobile App Stores Sales expected to hit $6 Billion in 2010 article).

January 22, 2010 in Blog   |   No Comments