Steve Jobs, in his typical black turtleneck and jeans, took the stage in San Francisco today to a standing ovation from the Apple faithful. He promised to unveil some “truly magical products,” and he did: the iPad, Apple’s long-awaited tablet computer.
Jobs called the tablet a “third category” that had to be “better than a laptop and better than a smartphone.” He demoed web surfing, e-mail (in two panels), the touch-screen iPhone-esque keyboard, iTunes, iPhoto, and video.
“When we set out to develop the iPad, we not only had very ambitious technical goals and user interface goals, we had very aggressive price goals,” Jobs said. “We want to put this in the hands of lots of people. … We have met our cost goals. I am thrilled to announce that iPad pricing starts at $499.”
The 16GB iPad with just Wifi will be $499, with 32GB and 64GB coming in at $599 and $699. With both Wifi and the 3G network, the models cost $629, $729, and $829. Wifi models start shipping in 60 days, and 3G models in about 90 days. The 3G models come with one of two no-contract data plans: 250 MB of data for $14.99, or unlimited data for $29.99, both with AT&T. Jobs said international deals will be in place in June or July.
The devices weighs 1.5 lbs, and is a half-inch thick, and has a 9.7-inch display, with full capacitive multi-touch. It has a 10-hour battery life — with a month of standby time.
iPads are designed to run both regular iPhone apps (at twice the size) and specific iPad-only apps. The developer kit will be available today, and The New York Times, Major League Baseball, EA, and Gameloft all demonstrated iPad-geared applications. Apple also showed off a dedicated iWork suite of apps (Keynote, Pages, etc), each for $9.99.
In its role as eReader-killer, the iPad will come with iBooks, more or less iTunes for books, which will “allow you to discover, purchase, and read” e-books right on your iPad.
Holy moly, PopWatchers: Do you want one or what?
More on the iPad:
From EW’s Shelf Life blog: Apple’s iPad: What book lovers need to know
And our own hands-on first impressions
Image credit: Kimberly White/Reuters/Landov
*creamed*
I wonder how much it’ll cost.
LMAO!!
No flash support (hulu and many other websites), no web-cam, no usb port (only proprietary dock)…this is literally an OVERSIZED iPOD TOUCH!! Very big dissapointment.
ALSO, you will go blind if you try and use this as your dedicated e-reader; unlike the Kindle that uses special ink screens that reduce/eliminate eye strain, this device uses a regular LCD.
Nope, it’s not a regular LCD. It’s the newest kind of LED LCD and reads better than the Kindle. Plus, color and video.
it has 3 usb port on the bottom of the ipad
It also has Bluetooth, which means you could conceivably use a third party physical keyboard, or just about anything else that has Bluetooth connectivity. As long as there are drivers.
plus no multi-tasking. They should have used the MAC OS instead of the Iphone OS. The Archos 9 PCTablet blows the Ipad(horrible name) out of the water.
Basically. The biggest difference I can see is that this one will have the option for a 3g data plan
Apple products are for the tragically hip, those who like to show off they have money, and those who are bad with money.
and youre just jealous you dont have the green. have fun with your razr.
i own a macbook and itouch, i am not tragically hip, nor do i have money. i like quality products that work without constant viruses and issues. i’ll never go back to windows.
Thank you Wrong! The decision to purchase Apple products doesn’t make me a person with projected character flaws, it merely makes me personally happy to have things that work, work well, are stylish to look at and fun to use. I’m not rich today, I might be in the future, but that doesn’t mean I’m bad with money or flaunt what I have because I buy a product that fills my need for it. Lighten up, Stephanie. Also if anyone mistakes me for being “tragically hip” they have probably time traveled from a time and place where bonnets were fashionable and electricity did not exist. I can’t wait to get my hands on the iPad and yes, I will save up for one, but for me it will be worth it.
When are you anti-apple people going to go away?
Constant viruses and issues? Clearly you have no idea how to operate a computer properly.
I am actually tragically UN-hip, and I love my Mac. I got hooked on Apple products in the mid-80s (yes, I am that old, therefore unhip) when it wasn’t a choice between Mac and Windows, but between Mac and DOS. I’ve never looked back. And maybe I don’t know how to operate a computer properly, but with a Mac it doesn’t matter. It really does just work.
You can’t lump all people who buy certain products into one category, especially when there is such a difference in the product range….
That said IPods and Iphones have been aesthetically stunning but technically inferior products for years and I see no sign of that changing here. Imacs etc great IPods – pretty looking garbage, with no support or customer service worthy of the name.
Well I haven’t seen one for myself yet but the article makes me want one for sure! I am not an Apple loyal but rather a laptop running Windows XP still. I don’t have an IPOD or an Iphone. But, I do think I want an IPad. Wow! This is a product I can get on board with if it really allows me to surf all of the web.
ALAS!!!!
I wonder how much this will cost.
Damn. I’m so in love with my iPod Touch, too.
Ummm… if you actually, you know, READ the article, you can find out how much one costs. Seriously, do you think you can handle operating an iPad?
When this item was first posted, it was “still developing” – the comment was made before the pricing was announced.
That information was added after this reader made his/her comment. Obviously.
i don’t think i would use this over my laptop or my iphone. the iphone is super portable, my macbook is more functional for a variety of reason. this is basically a suped up kindle. a WAY COOL kindle, that does all the things a laptop or iphone can do… but I already have those devices and am not gonna shell out $1000 for this.
I agree with you. It has to be less then $1000 ’cause the macbook is $999. It wouldn’t make sense if it was more then the macbook But I won’t be buying the iPad anytime soon.
Supposedly it will cost between $600-1000. I know that a pretty big window, but it looks awesome…
thank goodness it’s not a grand! 499 is a much more reasonable price point.
Absolutely right. This is Apple’s answer to the Kindle. Apple is smart enough to know that today’s ADD generation is too distracted to read a book the old fashioned way…via dedicated e-reader!
Looks awesome, but I won’t be giving up my laptop or phone for it.
I’m with you, however it is pretty awesome
I’m with you too. At least with a netbook, you can pop open the screen. It looks like the ipad is just a flat screen. Are you supposed to prop it against a wall or hold it for 1.5 to 2 hours while you watch a video on it?
I can’t afford an iPhone so there’s no way I can get this, but I will dream and drool over it oh yes I will
Calm down people – IT IS WIFI ONLY! Which means its no better than your laptop for web surfing. It’s just a giant ipod touch.
But what if that still excites me just as much?
Two options: 3G or wifi. you can get the 3g with AT&T. There are two different data deals and the best part, no contracts!
Yeah and no service.
Yeah, come on Steven. Read before you post, huh? 3G AND Wi-fi.
i see- its like apples version of a netbook
It looks like a giant iphone.
Either that or Steve Jobs shrank considerably.
Does he sound like a member of the Lollipop Guild?
Would somebody please explain to me what you would actually use this for? That you can’t do with a product already on the market.
(And please do so without falling back on “how cool it is,” or that you love new technology).
I can’t see one single use for this except to show off to your friends that you have it…
And for the record, I love Apple. Every computer I have used at home or work for the last 15 years has been a Mac.
Difficult to say without specifics, really. I suppose that if you have an iPod (but not iPhone), laptop, and Nook / Kindle, you could consolidate those functions into one device and have less to keep up with.
Voy Sov Ree Son, what are you, retarded?
Uh, no. Why do you ask? Because you love this product but don’t have a credible answer to my question and that makes you angry, so you fall back on your 3rd grade taunting skills? Or because of my amazingly witty handle?
I think the article says a lot of what you can do with this. Primarily, it looks like an entertainment device, so you can watch movies, listen to music, browse the web, and play games with it. But they’ve also developed the iWork suite for it, so you could get some work done with it. You would also have acess to Google’s shared documents suite, so you could use it to work in the cloud. I’m somewhat disappointed that it doesn’t use a larger solid-state hard drive, but it’s not meant to be a laptop.
That’s what I was wondering. I mean, you couldn’t really use it as a laptop since typing with your head pointed down at it (instead of straight forward) would give you a super sore neck. Plus even the the 64gb is a tiny amount of storage unless you are just searching the net or watching stuff streaming I am not sure this thing has much value.
There is a case available for the iPad that will hold the device in a variety of positions for reading, typing, etc. You can still access the touch screen even when it’s in the case.
That’s what it sounds like to me too. It appears to be more of a reading device than anything else. It doesn’t sound like it is meant for typing, watching videos, or teleconferencing. Does it even have Skype? Can you burn CDs and/or DVDs in it? No thanks. I’ll stick to my laptop. It was cheaper and probably can do a heckofa lot more stuff than ipad.
For me, I spend several hours a day reading and annotating PDFs. My iTouch is too small for this. When I am laying in bed or eating in a restaurant, this would be a perfectly sized device to do my PDF work. It is light and more easily transportable. It is like a kindle on steroids. Plus I get internet anywhere anytime for only $30/month. That rocks.
Ah ha. Thanks for your answer. That makes perfect sense. However, please try not to be that guy who can’t disconnect from work long enough to eat… Especially in public!
I travel for a living, and this fills a need for me because it’s lightweight, I can keep my tour books on it, I can download my photos, I can send emails and even attach a keyboard to it if I wanted to. And when I say goodnight to my tour group, I can watch the tv shows I have downloaded that I can’t watch while in a foreign country, giving me a feeling of home. I doubt I would read a novel on it, because I like the tactile feeling of a book, but for research and non-fiction, absolutely. For me, this is convenience, comfort, portability and it fits my research needs. It may not for a lot of people, but when you live out of a suitcase, and are constantly taking care of 40 guests, this device is highly desirable and I can see so many ways to use it at work and to relieve pressure on my spine from my carry-on bag weight. I’m thrilled about the iPad, it’s so much more than books! So, this is just one person in a niche profession saying hurray, but I hope it helped.
Thanks for your answer. For the first time since rumors of the “Apple Tablet” began, I actually understand its appeal– at least for you, and other “professional travelers.” Now, what the rest of the jokers who plan to rush out and buy it on launch day just because it’s shiny and new are going to do with it that they can’t do already, remains to be seen!
After graduating from college I only use my computer for surfing the web, checking email, posting pics, etc. It’s hard to lug my Laptop around when all I want to do is read Entertainment Weekly online. The I Pad (I feel dirty just saying it!) fits all my needs. I guess it’s for us people who want a device for entertainment only.
Have you thought about trying a netbook? I carried it all over Europe in my backpack.
I use my laptop almost exclusively for only 2 things: web-surfing and downloading stuff from iTunes (music, movies, TV shows and podcasts). As far as I can see, this device does those things and is much more portable. I very infrequently do some light word-processing or number-crunching, and I imagine the iWork apps will handle those jobs fine. Plus it has the added advantage of being an e-book reader. I’ve been debating getting a Kindle but now I think I won’t need to. Bottom line: everything my laptop does but more portably, and also e-books.
And on the 134,537,288th day, God created the iPad.
36,859 years old? Whoa… (and I know this because I can operate a calculator!)
This looks pretty cool… but do I need it? And by the way, Steve Jobs wears mock-turtlenecks. Hehe.
LOL…I didn’t take the time to figure out how many days 4 billion years is. I just typed a big number. :0)
Sorry Brandon, the world is WAY older than that.
I heard it was under $1K. I’ve been waiting to hear about this because I’ve been toying with buying a macbook. This does just look like a big iPod Touch.
Macbook? iPad? Hmmm. Does anyone know if it has photo capabilities like iPhoto?
definitely go for a macbook
It will have iPhoto capabilities. But I don’t think you would want this as your only computer, because it isn’t *exactly* a computer.
macbook if you want to do anything other then surf the net.
Yawn. Old news. On one hand, it’s a e-reader that does everything it should. On the other (bad) hand, it’s Apple’s usual style over substance. And OMG… the price.
It does everything the Kindle can do and more. Is in color, and also does movies, music, games, documents, the web again in color. I don’t think twice the price of the Kindle is unreasonable.
Um…exactly what substance do you think it’s missing?
I think Apple should introduct this iPad fist in India and then in USA. In India you don’t see laptop with everyone, so people might attract to iPad. While in USA we all have at least one laptop in our home so we really won’t care for iPad. A fully loaded laptop (hardware and software) can do much more than iPad.
I don’t it iPad will get more success than iPhone… iPhone is still great.
$499… sounds decent
… that’s $499 for 16GB. Not decent, just laughable.
It isn’t $499 for only 16GB. It isn’t like you give them five one-hundred dollars bills and in exchange they give you 16GB worth of space. You’re also getting the hardware with it…no, 16GB isn’t a lot, but then again this isn’t meant to replace a desktop’s 1TB hard drive.
It isn’t meant to be your sole computer, it’s meant to be a part of your digital hub. Plenty of people are satisfied with 16GB iPod Touches. This is really a big souped up Touch. For that amount of screen real estate and price, it doesn’t seem laughable at all. It would be more like the usual Apple to price this at a grand.
Just wait six months til they double it, and buy the second gen.
Also, to be fair, the high-end Kindle has only 4GB storage. Granted, it’s books-only.