AFTER all the hype, after all the excitement, after all the rumours, the mystery about the iPad3 is finally solved.
The big news: it's not the iPad3 it's the "New iPad."
Increasingly the rumour mill about anything Apple has reached hysterical proportions, and Apple is the beneficiary.
Interestingly with the "new" iPad there were no surprises. Apple was either unable to bury the truth and hide the new features, or (I think this is more the case) the upgrades were pretty pedestrian and predictable.
Not that they are not nice to have, it's just that the "new" iPad is really just a faster, better looking "old iPad." So the hype surrounding the launch was never lived up to, and really it would have been difficult to justify the hype, unless you included a fancy new teleportation feature (iTeleport), or perhaps are powering the device with cold fusion (iFusion).
Loads of discussion is appearing on the upgrades offered in the New iPad, with the most profound benefit being the Retina Display, which will be stunning, and the inclusion of fourth-generation wireless (LTE).
The iPad has become the poster child for the next generation of computing, just as the iPhone has become the standard bearer for nextgen mobility. In just a few short years the iPad has gone from interesting spin to mainstream device.
Where I get the most excited about the iPad is in education. Here in British Columbia we are undertaking a conversation to determine the future of education. Check out www.bcedplan.ca, the Ministry of Education is looking for your opinions.
When I look at the iPad I see education written all over it. Students can have access to the web at all times. Courses can be delivered online in school on the iPad. It can be used as an e-reader that holds all student textbooks, which can be updated as often as needed, textbooks that have rich media and communications capabilities embedded in the content.
With this perspective in mind, the announcement made by Apple that excited me the most was not display resolution, nor a faster processor or even LTE support. The late mention that the iPad2 would continue at a nicely reduced price making it more attractive to education was the only time in the whole iPad presentation that I offered a small "huzah."
Actually, I don't think they have hit the price level yet that will completely woo the education market, but they are a lot closer today than we were yesterday. The iPad2 coming in at $399 is still $100 too dear in my estimation.
As to the rest of the features, more is unquestionably better, in speed, resolution etc., but less is far better in the education market, at least where price is concerned.
Steve Dotto is host of Dotto Tech, 6 p.m. Wednesdays on AM650. E-mail your questions and comments to questions@dottotech. com. Visit him online at www. dottotech.com or at www.facebook. com/dottotech.
