NYTIMES.com's play by play of the ipad3 unveiling.

[TheCat]

Start from the bottom of the blog. 

http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/03/07/live-blogging-apples-ipad-event/

[TheCat]

Official Press Release:

Apple Launches New iPad
New iPad Features Retina Display, A5X Chip, 5 Megapixel iSight Camera & Ultrafast 4G LTE

SAN FRANCISCO―March 7, 2012―Apple® today introduced the new iPad®, the third generation of its category defining mobile device, featuring a stunning new Retinaâ,,¢ display, Apple’s new A5X chip with quad-core graphics and a 5 megapixel iSight® camera with advanced optics for capturing amazing photos and 1080p HD video. iPad with Wi-Fi + 4G connects to fast networks worldwide, including AT&T’s and Verizon’s 4G LTE networks, and still delivers the same all-day 10 hour battery life* while remaining amazingly thin and light. Beginning today, iPad 2 will be offered at an even more affordable price starting at just $399.

“The new iPad redefines the category Apple created less than two years ago, delivering the most amazing experience people have ever had with technology,” said Philip Schiller, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Marketing. “The new iPad now has the highest resolution display ever seen on a mobile device with 3.1 million pixels, delivering razor sharp text and unbelievable detail in photos and videos.”

The new iPad’s Retina display delivers four times the number of pixels of iPad 2, so dense that the human eye is unable to distinguish individual pixels when held at a normal distance, making web pages, text, images and video look incredibly sharp and realistic. The 3.1 million pixels in the Retina display are more than one million more pixels than an HD TV, and with 44 percent increased color saturation the new iPad displays colors that are unbelievably richer, deeper and more vivid. Movies are now capable of playing at full 1080p HD-resolution, delivering an incomparable viewing experience on a mobile device.

The powerful new A5X chip with quad-core graphics was specifically designed by Apple to deliver a fast, responsive user experience while supporting the incredible Retina display. With double the graphics performance of the A5 chip, the A5X provides a superb balance between performance and power efficiency so users can enjoy all the benefits of the stunning new display while experiencing a smooth Multi-Touchâ,,¢ interface, immersive gameplay, incredible visual depth and all-day battery life that iPad is known for delivering.

The 5 megapixel iSight camera features advanced optics for taking stunning pictures and recording full HD video. Backside illumination allows you to take great photos in low-light conditions and a new video image stabilization feature removes the bumps and shakes typically seen when filming with a hand-held device. Images can be enjoyed on the large Retina display, then edited, enhanced and easily shared with friends and family using the built-in Photos app on iPad.

iPad Wi-Fi + 4G with built-in next generation 4G LTE has the most comprehensive support for fast networks worldwide including HSPA+ and DC-HSDPA, and now both CDMA and GSM iPad users have the ability to easily roam internationally. The world-ready iPad delivers blazing download and upload speeds so web pages load incredibly quickly and email with large attachments can be sent and received easily. Personal Hotspot can be used to share the fast network connection on your iPad with up to 5 other devices using Wi-Fi, Bluetooth or USB**.

With iOS 5.1, the latest update to the world’s most advanced mobile operating system, the new iPad has a number of new features and enhancements including: a redesigned Camera app with video stabilization technology; the ability to delete photos from Photo Stream; support for dictation in English, French, German and Japanese; and Personal Hotspot. iOS 5.1 also works seamlessly with iCloud®, a breakthrough set of free cloud services including iTunes® in the Cloud, Photo Stream and Documents in the Cloud, that works seamlessly with your iPhone®, iPad, iPod touch®, Mac® or PC to automatically and wirelessly store your content and push it to your devices. When content changes on one of your devices, your other devices are updated automatically.

The new iPad also supports dictation, another amazing way to get things done just using your voice. Instead of typing, tap the microphone icon on the keyboard, then say what you want to say and the new iPad listens. Tap done, and iPad converts your words into text. You can use dictation to write messages, take notes, search the web and more. Dictation also works with third-party apps, so you can update your Facebook status, tweet, or write Instagram captions.

Apple also introduced the iPhoto® app, along with major updates to iMovie® and GarageBand®, completing its suite of iLife® apps for iOS. iLife and the iWork® apps, Pages®, Keynote® and Numbers®, have all been updated to take advantage of the new iPad Retina display. iPhoto includes breakthrough Multi-Touch features so you can use simple gestures to sort through hundreds of photos and find your best shots, enhance and retouch your images using fingertip brushes and share stunning photo journals with iCloud. iMovie now gives you the ability to create amazing Hollywood-style trailers as you record HD video, and GarageBand introduces Jam Session, an innovative and fun new feature that allows a group of friends to wirelessly connect to play instruments and record music together live on their iOS devices.

iPad runs almost all of the over 585,000 apps available on the App Storeâ,,¢, including more than 200,000 native iPad apps, from a wide range of categories, including books, games, business, news, sports, health, reference and travel. The iTunes Store® puts the world’s most popular online music, TV and movie store at your fingertips with a catalog of over 20 million songs, over 90,000 TV episodes and over 15,000 movies. The new iBooks® 2 app for iPad lets users experience an entirely new kind of ebook that’s dynamic, engaging and truly interactive. iBooks created with Apple’s new iBooks Author offer gorgeous, fullscreen ebooks with interactive animations, diagrams, photos, videos, unrivaled navigation and much more.

Pricing & Availability
The new iPad Wi-Fi models will be available in black or white on Friday, March 16 for a suggested retail price of $499 (US) for the 16GB model, $599 (US) for the 32GB model and $699 (US) for the 64GB model. iPad Wi-Fi + 4G for either AT&T or Verizon will be available for a suggested retail price of $629 (US) for the 16GB model, $729 (US) for the 32GB model and $829 (US) for the 64GB model. iPad will be sold in the US through the Apple Store® (www.apple.com), Apple’s retail stores, and select Apple Authorized Resellers. iPad will also be available in Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, Puerto Rico, Singapore, Switzerland, UK and the US Virgin Islands on Friday, March 16. Customers can begin pre-ordering their new iPad today, and the incredible iPad 2 is now offered at a more affordable price of $399 (US) for the 16GB Wi-Fi model and just $529 (US) for the 16GB Wi-Fi + 3G model.

iOS 5.1 and iTunes 10.6 are available today as free software updates. iPhoto, iMovie 1.3 and GarageBand 1.2 are available today for $4.99 (US) each from the App Store (www.itunes.com/appstore). Keynote 1.6, Pages 1.6 and Numbers 1.6 are available today for $9.99 (US) each from the App Store. Updates are available for free to existing customers. By the end of March iPad will be available in Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Macau, Mexico, The Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain and Sweden.

*Battery life depends on device settings, usage and other factors. Actual results vary.

**Personal Hotspot requires supporting data plan. Customers should check with their carrier for availability.

Apple designs Macs, the best personal computers in the world, along with OS X, iLife, iWork and professional software. Apple leads the digital music revolution with its iPods and iTunes online store. Apple has reinvented the mobile phone with its revolutionary iPhone and App Store, and is defining the future of mobile media and computing devices with iPad.

[wsansewjs]

I honestly care less about iPad3 and its "magical features". Nothing's new with this iPad 3 that is innovative. I dare to say that iPad3 is a spec-bum from the previous generation, iPad 2.

In my personal opinion, you are better off buying iPad2 to take advantage of the price-slash, and the software will always update for another 2-4 years until the new iPad 4 (which hopefully Apple can get their heads together and actually INNOVATE this one out).

-Josh

[IamAmerican]

@wsansewjs, Apple lacks for innovation...that's a new one for me.

[KenFSU]

I was able to unload my iPad 2 a few weeks ago before the resale value plummeted, and after nearly four hours of frustration today, I was able to place a pre-order for the iPad 3 (first world problems, I know). I disagree, and feel this upgrade will be hugely significant. Resolution was a complaint with the iPad from day one, and we're now going to a device that has one million more pixels than a 50" 1080p HD television. That borders on insane. For a device that is basically nothing but a screen, there is no single better improvement that could have been made. Throw in LTE capability, and you're really talking a game changer here in a lot of ways.

It's just a shame that iOS itself still feels so frustratingly stuck in the past. So many things about the software frustrate me beyond belief (and will continue to do so until a jailbreak for the iPad 3 becomes available).

P.S. Here's the press conference. Just isn't the same without Steve Jobs:

http://events.apple.com.edgesuite.net/123pibhargjknawdconwecown/event/index.html

[thekillingwax]

I'm let down with the lack of other new features but the screen really is a big deal. I was hoping for more memory and faster processor but whatever. My ipad 1 is still okay for what I use it for but I've stopped reading books on it because it is so lo-res, the text looks awful, gives me a headache after 10 minutes or so. I'm honestly just considering a cheap kindle for reading because I don't think I want to spend that much on a new ipad.

[mtraininjax]

Resolution was a complaint with the iPad from day one, and we're now going to a device that has one million more pixels than a 50" 1080p HD television.

Resolution in the sun is still a HUGE issue. How do you roll out a new revision and not realize that the $99 Kindle is kicking your ass with people who use a tablet to read books and magazines? Steve Jobs, where art thou!

[KenFSU]

Yeah, as much as I love the iPad, I've always found reading books on the device to be a pretty miserable experience. It's awkward and bulky, and the combination of backlight and glare can be a real eye strain. I much prefer e-ink on devices like the Kindle and Nook, though above all else I'm a true sucker for physical books/magazines/newspapers.

[thekillingwax]

If the ipad was only about reading books, I could understand the complaint, you're not going to find a non e-ink tablet that's functional in direct sunlight. You're also not going to find an e-ink device that's good for anything other than reading plain text. I think there's room for both of them. My wife has completely replaced her PC/Laptop usage with the ipad, I still like using a keyboard and playing games, so I mainly read on it. Magazines that are properly designed to use it (and are not just scanned pdf's!) are pretty amazing. I'm pretty interested to see the new one in person. But if you're only interested in reading mainly books and some news magazines, I always suggest the kindle because it's the closest book experience you'll get, the text is just fantastic.

[ChriswUfGator]

I still have my iPad 1 that I'm perfectly happy with. I looked at the iPad 2 and thought it was a waste of money, they basically stuck cameras on it and called it new. I know a lot of people use videoconferencing or FaceTime whatever you call it nowadays, so I guess that's useful for some, just wasn't something I'd use personally. The new one, iPad 3, I think might be worth checking out, the screen sounds like a pretty significant upgrade.

[ben says]

I still have my iPad 1 that I'm perfectly happy with. I looked at the iPad 2 and thought it was a waste of money, they basically stuck cameras on it and called it new. I know a lot of people use videoconferencing or FaceTime whatever you call it nowadays, so I guess that's useful for some, just wasn't something I'd use personally. The new one, iPad 3, I think might be worth checking out, the screen sounds like a pretty significant upgrade.

Same scenario here. Honestly, with the way my iPad 1 has been working, may wait one more generation. After all, they do come out with a new one every year. My sister got the iPad 2, and never uses the camera. The high resolution with the iPad 3 is obviously fantastic, but I'm not sure it's worth upgrading if I have a product I still like and use.

[peestandingup]

I think once you guys see the screen on the new one (and how apps take advantage of that) you'll be blown away & want to throw your current one in the trash. Its been regarded as the best LCD in a consumer product ever. Seriously, I listened to a couple podcasters do a hands on & they kept turning away from it because apparently they thought the screen was so "alive" that it wasn't real life they were in. And to look at it for any length of time would mean they'd get sucked further into the altered reality that the iPad was in.

That could have been drugs though, but still. I want!

[thekillingwax]

Finally got to see it in person. It looks good. Text is nice and sharp, reading is better. Glad I didn't buy one before seeing it though, I'll stick with my old ipad1 for now- it's just not worth the $600+ upgrade in my opinion. Early reviewers waaaay over-hyped the display, it does look fantastic but all this stuff about it being the second coming of jesus in tablet form is way off. They had it next to an ipad2 and my wife couldn't see the difference until I pulled up a book and shrunk the text to the lowest setting. Actually bought a Nook Simple Touch (e-ink) and I've been going crazy with it.