Apple Unveils New iPad 989
adeelarshad82 writes "As expected, Apple announced the new iPad complete with a Retina Display, quad-core processor, 4G LTE, and an improved camera. The new iPad will run the rumored A5X processor, which according to Apple will provide four times the performance of the Tegra 3. The revamped tablet will also include a 2048-by-1536 display, apparently the most in any mobile device. And finally with 4G LTE, the new iPad will provide up to 73 Mbps download speeds; partners for which include Verizon, Rogers, Bell, Telus, and AT&T."
Quad core (Score:5, Informative)
Quad core graphics, not quad core CPU...
Which is an... odd way to talk about graphics (Score:5, Insightful)
Graphics is so highly parallel that the concept of a core doesn't really apply to graphics processors, at least ones I've seen. You talk about them in terms of shaders, ROPs, TMUs and so on.
Re:Which is an... odd way to talk about graphics (Score:5, Insightful)
The concept of cores absolutely does apply – the term "it has 2000 fragment shaders" is a misnomer – in reality, it should be "it can run 2000 fragment shaders on its 2000 shader cores".
Re:Which is an... odd way to talk about graphics (Score:5, Informative)
But in general it can't. GPUs are designed differently and don't actually run a large number of different shaders in parallel. They use a combination of multicore processing and data-parallel execution to run the same shader (or a small number of shaders) on a large pool of data in parallel. A lot of it is more similar to SIMD instructions available on many CPUs than multiple cores.
Re:Which is an... odd way to talk about graphics (Score:4, Informative)
A dual-core CPU as first produced by Intel really was only 2 CPU's on a single die.
However a real multicore CPU has multiple calculation cores while sharing certain parts (e.g. a common L3 cache or the ALU) and using a ultra-high-speed inter-core communication system
Furthermore a x86 CPU is huge due to it's sheer size of internal high-clock memory, X86 instruction set with additions like 64-bit, Hyperthreading,....
ARM CPU's as found in your mobile devices are a lot smaller due to a different (smaller) instruction set and being optimized for size, not high performance.
A GPU core on the other hand is even smaller (only several thousand transistors as compared to several millions in an average CPU) as it has only one and one purpose alone; mathematic calculations.
At least that was true untl OpenCL and Cuda came along, now they can execute -with great performance loss as compared to int and float calculations- other commands.
Re:Which is an... odd way to talk about graphics (Score:5, Interesting)
Oh I don't know about that. I gave a talk only last week in which I described AMD's latest GPU (HD7970) as having 32 cores and I ran that content past some of the chip's architects first. If you look at the design of the chip it quite clearly has 32 cores: 32 scalar cores each of which having 4 16-wide SIMD units hanging off the side.
Of course, how the marketing department at Apple defines cores is open to question, but 4 strikes me as a reasonable number for an embedded GPU. The ARM Mali designs are around that kind of core count.
Cores: the reason (Score:5, Informative)
For whatever reason, the PowerVR mobile GPUs are described in number of cores.
Well there's a technical reason. To go back to the grand parent:
You talk about them in terms of shaders, ROPs, TMUs and so on.
These are organised in a module. The various different models in a range a distinguished by the number of such modules. (That's what the number of "Streming Multiprocessor" is in tables of GeForce cards).
Either by product binning: the factory makes GPU with 8 such modules, then test how many of these are actually usable and how many have defects and then activate between 1 and 7 of them and sells them as a different product in the same range. From "GPU Destructor 990 XL-Deluxe Elite" (with 7 of the 8 core activated - and needs 3 12v connectors) down to "GPU Destructor 120 Light Laptop Edition (only 1 usable core, but sips only 30 Watts). (And some time less core are activated than actually usable due to demand and offer economic laws, leading to users who try to unlock core and convert one card to the next one in the series simply by flashing a new firmware - a classic with some GeForce series).
Or by producing variants: Desktop range a based on a 8-module design, Laptop range have a 4 module design at a finer process, so it uses a lot less energy.
(I know some ATI/AMD GPUs are organised so).
In the case of PowerVR, from what I remember, GPUs were designed to be able to work in parallel (I think: each GPU taking care of a different tile of the deferred tile-based rendering). So it's very likely that maket speak "4 core GPU" means "4 modules" which in fact is "4 powerVRs working in parallel" (for a speed increase approaching 4x).
Re:Quad core (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Quad core (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Quad core (Score:5, Funny)
No, he works at Foxcomm. :P
Re:Quad core (Score:5, Funny)
Hmm, I was going to post a jocular response, but then remembered that these are real people with parents and siblings committing suicide that we're joking about.
Re:Quad core (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Quad core (Score:5, Insightful)
no. It's like you paid for the critical operation that kept me alive. IT didn't matter how much it was, if you didn't do it, I would have died.
Re:Quad core (Score:5, Insightful)
In dollar terms, perhaps not. In crowd-psychology terms? It was huge. It was Apple being able to allay investors' fears: "Look, we have this commitment from a hugely successful hugely profitable company like Microsoft. Do you really think they'd give us this money and make this commitment if they thought we were circling the drain and about to fold?"
There's a reason why their stock went up about 33% that day, added ~800 million to their market cap, and effectively doubled their stock price from the time Gil Amelio left. When you're a publicly traded company that needs money to keep operating, having a big, wealthy company say "These guys are doing great things and we want to work with them," is a pretty helpful vote of confidence.
Hipsters ASSEMBLE (Score:5, Funny)
Camp in line to receive the latest helping of mana!
Re:Hipsters ASSEMBLE (Score:5, Funny)
You're just pissed no one is queuing up to buy Gameboys any more.
Re:Hipsters ASSEMBLE (Score:4, Funny)
Hipsters have moved to 'droid. Where have you been, man?
Re:Hipsters ASSEMBLE (Score:4, Insightful)
I think it's actually spelled "manna" in this context, but hell - there could be something there trading Greater Mana Potions, sure.
Re:Hipsters ASSEMBLE (Score:5, Insightful)
This thing is a $500 compact 2048x1536 LCD monitor for all I'm concerned, and to me that's a very welcome product. I don't give a rat's whisker about Apple's ecosystem otherwise.
(Now, to wait for sanely available purchases and software support to allow that use...)
However, to be fair to your stated point, the iPad line really is the first time that Apple has made an inexpensive product relative to the market. Pre-iPad, tablet PCs were slabs that were more expensive than laptops, typically starting in the $1500-2000 range. The iPad came out far cheaper than any competitor could have hoped to (due to price lock-ins from suppliers as prices were increasing), and pulled off a good form factor. Things have normalized more nowadays, but Apple actually had an undercutting product.
Re:Hipsters ASSEMBLE (Score:5, Insightful)
Nice upgrade, but no big surprises in the new iPad (Score:5, Interesting)
Re:Nice upgrade, but no big surprises in the new i (Score:5, Insightful)
That's OK. iPad is still in the rapid growth phase. They need to appeal to people who don't yet have an iPad, not people who already have a slightly older model.
Re:And yet the market is disappointed (Score:5, Informative)
Right. So when you didn't think AAPL was growing it was a "big yawn". Now you know it is, it's "bubble". How childish are you?
This despite the fact that my post you replies to said iPad growth, not AAPL growth. Here, take a look at those.
http://frncs.co/apple/ [frncs.co]
Or look at it another way. Only 2 years on the market and Apple already sells more iPads than any PC manufacturer sells PCs.
Bubbles are irrational rises in stock price based on sentiment. AAPLs rise is based on unprecedented sales growth.
Re:Nice upgrade, but no big surprises in the new i (Score:5, Insightful)
"Without Steve Jobs doing the dramatics, watching the Live Blog was almost as exciting as Watching Grass Grow."
Tim Cook may be as wooden as a door, but that man knows distribution. Jobs may have had the charisma, but Cook deserves a lot of the credit getting Apple to where it is today.
Re:Nice upgrade, but no big surprises in the new i (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Nice upgrade, but no big surprises in the new i (Score:5, Interesting)
Everyone who ever took a photo cares about white balance. They might not know the phrase white balance. But they care if the pictures look too orangey or too blue. And auto white balance means that problem is mostly fixed without ever having to learn what white balance means.
Re:Nice upgrade, but no big surprises in the new i (Score:5, Insightful)
The best camera is the one you have with you. The iPad in your backpack is better than the DSLR in your closet at home.
Someone take that awesome display... (Score:5, Interesting)
And put it in a netbook with a Thinkpad-style trackpoint... I'd buy that right away.
Good luck with that... (Score:4, Insightful)
Judging from the history of these things, Apple probably has the entire supply tied up for the next 18 months.
Re:Someone take that awesome display... (Score:4)
Yeah, I'm pretty ticked that the new Lenovo X220T (T is for tablet) has a 1366x768 screen. You're telling me an iPad3 -- an iPad -- is going to have ~4 times the screen real estate? GAR GAR GAR GAR
Re:Someone take that awesome display... (Score:5, Informative)
You're not getting any more screen real estate on the iPad3, you're just getting twice the resolution. There's a difference. The browser for instance will still tell websites the device width of the iPad3 is 1024x768. So the same website on the iPad2 and iPad3 will have the same layout and width, but the iPad3 will look less pixilated.
Because so many applications suck in DPI (Score:5, Insightful)
Why do all notebook displays suck in dpi?
Because so many applications suck in DPI. Vertical market applications may not have been tested at any DPI other than the Windows default of 96. So if you set your window system's DPI so that text remains readable [pineight.com], your applications are likely to become ugly at best or unusable at worst. This has caused a lack of demand for laptop-sized high-DPI panels.
73mbps... (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:73mbps... (Score:5, Funny)
Bask in the afterglow of that glorious 5.19 minutes.
73mbps != 4G (Score:5, Informative)
You will never get that speed on the device. I have a 4G LTE cell phone and it doesn't even get 10% of that speed.
Hell it shouldn't even be allowed to be called 4G. The 4G standard is 100Mbps for high mobility devices (cellphones in cars) and 1Gbps for low mobility devices (people walking down the street or in their homes). This is a fraud in advertising.
Re:73mbps != 4G (Score:5, Informative)
Hell it shouldn't even be allowed to be called 4G.
That's what the standards body thought too, but the telcos started marketing 3.5G as 4G and the standards body did the worst possible thing and caved.
Re:73mbps != 4G (Score:5, Insightful)
That's what the standards body thought too, but the telcos started marketing 3.5G as 4G and the standards body did the worst possible thing and accepted the money.
FTFY :)
Look it's Malibu Stacy. (Score:4, Funny)
but she's got a new hat
Upgraded Apple TV announced (Score:5, Informative)
Re:Upgraded Apple TV announced (Score:4, Interesting)
On the contrary, most of those suck if you're not a tech geek. I've tried 3-4 different boxes, and the ATV2 was the simplest to set up and the simplest for my family to use, without needing constant hand holding. I got a Roku and practically nothing worked on it. I even set up the ATV2 and Roku side by side and the Roku streaming choked on Netflix while the ATV streamed without stopping to buffer every couple of minutes. At the time, they were both $99. Guess which one got sold on eBay?
I've also tried WMC, XBMC, Popcorn Hour, and one or two other (though it's been a couple of years). None of them are as simple as the AppleTV with Plex for streaming local media. FWIW, I did try the Plex client on Roku and, at least for a month after the release of the current gen of players, Plex was hopelessly broken. It may have been fixed by now.
Bandwidth (Score:5, Funny)
You have exceeded your bandwidth quota for the month. All network apps disabled
siri (Score:5, Insightful)
I am pretty surprised that siri is not fully implemented on this device. it is only being used for dictation
Re:siri (Score:4, Insightful)
My guess is they are artificially holding back on that small switch for the next iPhone release or iOS 6.0. Siri is much more useful on an iPhone than on a tablet in it's current state. Until they allow Siri to (officially) start interacting more with some 3rd party apps and controlling settings in iOS then there isn't as much of a point by putting it on a tablet. They aren't as mobile as phones.
Re:siri (Score:5, Insightful)
Mobile computing companies are all deathly afraid that their customers will wake up one day and realize that a tablet and a phone are the same device, just in different sizes. That is why you can't get cellular voice service on a tablet, and probably why you can't get siri as well.
God forbid, users might choose between tablet or phone, instead of having both.
The Screen (Score:4, Interesting)
That screen is just incredible. I mean, here I am working on a dual monitor setup - two 22" 1680x1050 monitors, side by side. That's about 3.5 megapixels. But along comes the new iPad, with a 3 megapixel screen in a 10" form factor - 85% of the pixels in about 15% of the area. Crazy. I'm not planning on buying one right now (already have iPad 1, which at this point I'll use until it dies), but I'm really glad that somebody is pushing screen resolutions above the relatively low 1080p we seem to be stuck with today on virtually every LCD.
Re:The Screen (Score:5, Insightful)
I'm not sure why the media is playing down this as non event upgrade. I agree with the parent that the new screen is incredible.
5 years ago I could get 1920x1200 in a 17" laptop. Now they are all gone with 1920 x 1080 the highest offer (which are even hard to get with 1600x900 being more common), which is a sucky resolution for CAD & programming work.
Maybe with windows non vectorness the PC comapnies had too many returns when people with poor eyesight returned hi res offerings?, but man I would love a 2560x1600 17"/19" laptop.
Re:The Screen (Score:5, Interesting)
That screen is just incredible. I mean, here I am working on a dual monitor setup - two 22" 1680x1050 monitors, side by side. That's about 3.5 megapixels. But along comes the new iPad, with a 3 megapixel screen in a 10" form factor - 85% of the pixels in about 15% of the area. Crazy. I'm not planning on buying one right now (already have iPad 1, which at this point I'll use until it dies), but I'm really glad that somebody is pushing screen resolutions above the relatively low 1080p we seem to be stuck with today on virtually every LCD.
The sad thing this device exposes is how current desktop operating systems don't handle resolution independence nearly as well. I have 3x1080p 24" screens on my work desktop setup, and I still have to squint to see stuff because Windows7 and the apps I run have built-in assumptions about pixel sizing. Hopefully Win8, ChromeOS or OSX-next help to resolve this.
Re:The Screen (Score:5, Insightful)
The reason for it is not to push the resolution beyond 1080p, which is fairly pointless on a screen that size. They did it because they have to double the previous generation 1024x768 screen so that all the old apps can scale exactly 2:1. The decision not to make apps resolution independent like most other systems is forcing Apple's hand.
It's actually not so good for web browsing. Images at 1:1 scale are too small and 2:1 is too large like 1024 is. 1280 pixels is the sweet spot for browsing which is an awkward 2:3 that is exactly what they tried to avoid with apps.
Too large? Absurd. (Score:4, Interesting)
1280 pixels is the sweet spot for browsing
It is silly to think in terms like that for browsing.
On a smaller screen the increase in pixel density is very useful, because you are mostly looking at fairly scaled down web pages. The text can render readably even down to as small as five points or so, which makes the whole browser more usable because you spend less time zooming in and out to read.
The iPhone4 screen has been fantastic for reading, I am REALLY looking forward to this newer high DPI screen for reading all kinds of things, browsing among them.
Oblig Oatmeal (Score:5, Funny)
http://theoatmeal.com/comics/apple [theoatmeal.com]
the new ipad (Score:5, Insightful)
Is literally the new name. Am I the only one that thinks this is lame. Would Steve have ever okay this?
Re:the new ipad (Score:4, Interesting)
I seriously do not get the problem some people seem to have with this.
I have a 2011 Macbook Air, not a Macbook Air 3. My friend drives a 2002 Chevrolet Cavalier, not a Chevy Cavalier 17 (or whatever it would be). Apple just announced the 2012 model iPad. What is the big deal?
Most brands drop "numbered sequels" after a certain point. MS Office anyone? Or how about Windows? (Yes, they went BACK to numbers, that probably had something to do differentiating the fuck away from Vista).
And no, "The New iPad" is NOT *literally* the new name. You think that's going on the box? It's just the "iPad". This year's iteration. The end.
Tim Cook is no Steve Jobs... (Score:5, Interesting)
Re:Tim Cook is no Steve Jobs... (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Tim Cook is no Steve Jobs... (Score:4, Funny)
Well, this is the best and biggest iPad they've made, so the obvious choice is - The iPad Maxi !
Comment removed (Score:4, Informative)
Hopefully this will usher in higher-res monitors (Score:5, Insightful)
I'm just hoping I'll finally be able to get a monitor with a similar resolution for a reasonable price. If Apple can make a 10" display with that many pixels, plus other computer guts, for $500, I don't think a 22-24" monitor with that resolution for $500 is too much to ask.
Re:Hopefully this will usher in higher-res monitor (Score:5, Insightful)
Fingers crossed also that it might prompt a return to a more useful aspect ratio in affordable monitors.
The one downside... (Score:5, Interesting)
This is exactly what everyone predicted, and I'm fine with that. I'm just a hair disappointed that the front camera is still VGA. [apple.com] Even if FaceTime is bandwidth-limited or someting, it'd be nice to take pictures of, say, yourself and your kids in greater than 0.3MP.
Oh, and the name--iPad, iPad 2, The new iPad. :-( Reminds me of my file versioning system: index.html, index-old.html, index-new.html, index-newer.html, index-newest.html, index-final.html, index-absolutely-final.html, index-final-i-swear-to-god-i-mean-it-this-time.html...
waiting for the competition (Score:5, Insightful)
... which will hopefully have an open platform version somewhere so I can run my own stuff on it.
3G and LTE? (Score:4, Interesting)
So, there are two models, an AT&T one and a Verzon one, but they both have UMTS/HSPA/GSM bands that would cover the "world" but also AT&T 3G service.
So, can I buy the Verizon model and slip in an AT&T card for now? 4G won't get to my area for a couple of years yet, but Verizon is more likely to have the better coverage when it happens.
who's on first (Score:5, Funny)
Abbott: The new iPad.
Costello: Yes, the name of the new iPad?
Abbott: The new iPad.
Costello: Yes, the device just released today by Apple.
Abbott: The new iPad.
Costello: I know! What’s the name of the new iPad?
Abbott: The new iPad.
So where are the rest of the super hi-res screens? (Score:5, Interesting)
Alright, so count me as a doubter that didn't think they'd pull out the super hi-res screen and keep it at the same price. So all of a sudden Apple comes out of nowhere with screen resolution that leapfrogs everything out there, including pretty much all of the LCD desktop monitors that I've used. So where is everyone else with super hi-res screens on commodity LCD monitors, laptops, etc.? Let alone Android tablets? When and where will we see those?
Re:So where are the rest of the super hi-res scree (Score:4, Informative)
There are already a bunch of Android tablets announced with 1080p screens, starting with Asus TF700. They are probably not aiming higher than 1080p because Android apps can generally adjust pretty well to screen of a different size and proportions.
Re:So where are the rest of the super hi-res scree (Score:5, Interesting)
Apple painted themselves into a corner resolution-wise. They have to double it, or not change it at all.
For some reason iOS developers all forgot how to code for multiple screen resolutions -- even though they've (for the most part) been doing it for years, and handling highly variable aspect ratios at the same time.
Even when I'm targeting a specific mobile device, I make sure that the layout adapts correctly to various resolutions and aspect ratios. It takes very little extra work and the rewards are great when your needs change in the future and you need to port it to a different device or class of devices with different resolutions and aspect ratios.
Re:Thicker and heavier than the iPad 2 (Score:5, Informative)
Re:yawn (Score:5, Insightful)
I saw somewhere that there are about 1300 of said Chinese co-eds at the gates every day trying to apply for a job at the plant
Re:yawn (Score:4, Informative)
Because they don't have much of a choice [slashdot.org]
Re:yawn (Score:4, Insightful)
Just imagine if they had shitty third rate execs who only got $90 million in bonuses.
They might have to pay the workers 40 cents an hour! The sky would fall in.
Re:yawn (Score:5, Funny)
They have these things called "jobs." You should look into that.
Not any more. I'm surprised you didn't see the coverage. It was everywhere. I wish Dennis Ritchie had gotten as much.
Re:yawn (Score:5, Informative)
Not by much. Inflation rate is pretty much nil these days (CPI when ipad2 launched ~217, CPI today ~227). @$500, that's only about $20... Since the wholesale electronics probably got cheaper it's probably a wash for Apple's profit.
On the other hand, median wages have been falling, so relative to typical purchasing power, the price has gone up.
Of course just like any electronics, the specs always get better for new models, so that isn't anything to sneeze at.
Re:Still don't want one (Score:5, Informative)
So get a bluetooth keyboard.
Re:Still don't want one (Score:4, Interesting)
Re:Still don't want one (Score:5, Informative)
And now you have 150+ employees who get less work done than ever before.
Re:Still don't want one (Score:5, Insightful)
But I bet they feel more prestigious.
Re:Still don't want one (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Still don't want one (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Still don't want one (Score:5, Insightful)
So don't buy one. Geez. I don't have a need for a dump truck, a B-52 or a complete set of Star Wars action figures, but I don't particularly care if other people find them interesting or useful.
Do you log into the American Dolls website to say you don't want one of those either?
Re:Still don't want one (Score:5, Funny)
That's just crazy talk.
EVERYBODY wants an American Girl doll.
Re:Still don't want one (Score:5, Funny)
I dodged that bullet. My mom got my daughter and american doll with matching pony. My daughter could car less, but that wouldn't be very likely.
OTOH, she loves her model rocket, and is looking forward to this summers robot building project.
so, what I am saying is.. I Win.
Re:Still don't want one (Score:5, Funny)
No pun intended, but it'd make a great thin client alternative to a laptop.
Consider you had a "case" that you could dock the iPad to that had a battery, keyboard, mouse, charger, and possibly speakers. Combine some VPN software and RDP/VNC and it'd be pretty sweet for the occasional traveler.
Re:Still don't want one (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Still don't want one (Score:5, Insightful)
You can easily get two laptops for the price of one iPad.
Re:Still don't want one (Score:5, Funny)
Yes, but then you'd have to carry around two laptops.
Re:Still don't want one (Score:4, Funny)
You can easily get two laptops for the price of one iPad.
Heck, in terms of mass - with those two $250 laptops you're getting 10-20x the value in kilograms/dollar!
Re:Still don't want one (Score:5, Insightful)
Because you aren't the target market. The target market is people who want to read email, watch youtube, check facebook and surf the web. Tablets are for consuming on.
I own an iPad 1. Its more convenient to sit on my couch, read a magazine that was delievered wirelessly, play a quick game that I either got for free (or paid $.99 for). It's nice at work to listen to music, and the battery life is amazing. Lasts from 8 in the morning until I go to bed. No need to lug around a cord for my laptop. No I can't create on it, wouldn't want to. I have a desktop and a laptop to do "real" computing on.
Re:Still don't want one (Score:5, Interesting)
I have a desktop and a laptop to do "real" computing on.
But how long until the iPad becomes so deceptively capable that people buy it as their only computer?
Re:Still don't want one (Score:5, Insightful)
Let's see...what apps did Apple cover in the keynote? Autodesk Sketchbook, GarageBand, iMovie, iPhoto, the iWork suite and a couple games. Yeah, no content creation at all.
It doesn't surprise me that you were modded up, as Slashdot is full of geeks that spend their lives in front of keyboards. However, it might surprise you to discover that the world managed to create a great many things before keyboards were ever invented. It's hardly a requirement for creativity, and in many tasks is even a hindrance.
Demanding that the iPad come with a built-in keyboard to suit your needs is like musicians demanding the iPad come with guitar strings or artists demanding it come with stylus support and a set of digitizer pens. The iPad is generic. If you have specific needs, buy a damn accessory.
Re:Still don't want one (Score:5, Funny)
yes, we need EVERYONE to be content creators. because if there's one thing i learned from teaching guitar lessons for 5 years, EVERYONE is a rockstar.
Re:Still don't want one (Score:5, Funny)
You're holding them wrong.
Re:Not quad core processor (Score:5, Informative)
Re:lol (Score:5, Insightful)
The same resolution as my old CRTs, which I absolutely, wholeheartedly welcome back.
Re:New iPad (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Queue the stupid (Score:5, Insightful)
I don't get the Apple hate... well, I get part of it. It must feel good to trash some product/company, makes you feel superior (I guess). Since their success defies geek sensibilities (?) their customers must all be sheep or something.
But isn't this just the free market at work? It isn't as if they are like Microsoft* in the 90's, using their monopoly to rake users and customers over the proverbial barrel. They are selling into a very competitive market, doing the best thing of inventing stuff people want (not just pulling a Microsoft* and hanging out for ~4 years working on their copy), and raking in the money as stuff flies off the shelf to happy customers in record numbers. Selling the number of items they do, week after month after month after year, and maybe just maybe they've figured out the key component of the market: selling stuff customers want to buy.
If the only way you can rationalize their success is claiming the bulk of their sales is to fashion conscious wealthy hipsters chasing status symbols, you are deluded worse than the customer base that exists in your imagination. That explanation might fly for low numbers over a few quarters, but this is the same crap critics have been leveling for nearly 10 years of their gizmo selling. Time to grow up and deal with it. Or even better, do the "free market competition" thing and create better (better as in defined by the market) alternatives. Or, hang in the shadows crying about how the market isn't obeying your carefully constructed world view.
They're working constantly to keep ahead of Google/Android... customers and the industry benefit, right?
*Not trying to throw Microsoft under that bus, but that's just how its turned out over the last ~12 years or so.
Re:Queue the stupid (Score:4, Interesting)
You could have made the same arguments for MS in the 90s, the big difference being that Apple screws developers more than users. The popularization of curated computing is the worst thing ever done in the history of computing (for the industry itself and users, of course worse things have been done using computers). And that's all Apple's fault.
If that isn't bad enough for you, Apple is now abusing patents worse than IBM or MS ever did, among other litigation like suing manufacturers for the use of concentric rectangles with rounded corners, and and is currently the #1 employer of ethically questionable labor.
The way I see it if you hated MS in the 90's you should sure as hell hate Apple now.
Re:Queue the stupid (Score:5, Insightful)
There's the fact that this was the worst point in your crappy post. Apple makes a tiny profit off the App Store but they treat it as a loss leader. Most of the money goes first to developers, then to credit card companies, then to store maintenance, then a tiny profit left over for them.
But, Apple Haterz gotta Hate. By any means necessary.
Re:So what does all that mean? (Score:4, Informative)
Wait until Apple begins to deprecate the OS on your current iPad, you'll find out ;)
Re:battery life (Score:5, Informative)
Same as current iPad2 (10h, 9h with 4G).
Wow, if that isn't pointless nitpicking... (Score:5, Interesting)
264 dpi, 2048x1536 in 10 inches... maybe your complaint is about some imagined deficiency, but if you'd care to explain how this is actually a failure, I'd love to hear it. Are you actually complaining that if you freeze frame and squint really hard from two inches away you can actually make out... (gasp)... pixels? Because you couldn't make them out at normal viewing distance.
In other words, tell me how your post isn't just a knee-jerk, pointless, anti-apple jab with no redeeming value.
A laptop costs more than a desktop and does less. (Score:5, Insightful)
Your move, Einstein.