Reports are indicating that the next generation iPad, likely to be called the iPad 3, will be announced early in March and will be launched about a week after that to follow on from the mid-March release date of the iPad 2 last year.
With just a week expected between the announcement and launch a number of developers are beginning to prepare Retina resolution graphics just in case the new model does have a Retina display. Remember that when the iPhone 4 launched there were a few weeks in which developers could recreate graphics to match the higher resolution screen. This thought also follows along with an email sent out by this week to Apple developers which requested that all images for the iTunes store were sent in a Retina resolution which hints that the 3GS is coming to the end of its life soon. Also, it could be a hint that we will soon see the same email about submitting higher res iPad screenshots to the store.
It was a big day for Apple yesterday and certainly a day where an industry is shaken up a little. As well as launching iBooks 2 with Textbooks and iBooks Author for the Mac, Apple also launched iTunes U for the iPhone and iPad. The app follows along with iTunes U that has been available in iTunes on the Mac or PC for a while, but allows you to sync your notes, courses and content between devices so that you can study whilst on the move.
Before I begin I'll just comment that this needs to be taken with a pinch of salt as it contains an iPad 3 (or 2S) rumour.
A case manufacturer has created a new case that has been designed for an iPad 2S. The company believes that the new iPad will be a small update similar to that of the iPhone 4 to 4S. The main difference with dimensions will be that it is slightly thicker as previously rumoured.
iConvert is a dock for the iPad that has a scanner built in. The dock has a feeder tray that allows paper to be fed through a document scanner. When an iPad is docked with the scanner, you can load up an app and any data scanned can be captured and then sent direct to the app running on the iPad.
An interesting story has revealed that some fake iPads were sold by some major Canadian retailers. What was actually sold was a lump of clay which was put in an official iPad 2 box which was then professionally sealed. It is believed that about 24 of them were sold this way.
Now that iOS 5.1 Beta 3 has been seeded to developers, we are now seeing reports and hints at what could be included in future updates. One of the first discoveries is that the iPad and perhaps the iPod touch could be getting some form of Siri.
The beta of iOS 5.1 has some indications that the next iPad and iPhone will run a quad-core processor. That particular processor is expected to be an Apple A6 provided by Samsung. Although a quad-core chip is not really a surprise, what is good to see is that the iOS 5.1 beta has references to such a processor.
Jeremy Horowitz of iLounge has commented on Twitter that the iPad 2 will continue to live on after the iPad 3 has launched. This is no real surprise. He also comments that the iPad 3 will be 1mm thicker to incorporate an iPhone 4S like 8 megapixel camera and lens system.
Digitimes is reporting that there will be two new iPad models launched this year. When they say two models, they don't just mean black and white or 3G vs non-3G. They actually mean that a second and cheaper iPad will be launched to target the mid-range price of $299. The main difference will be that the high-end model which is priced around that of the current iPad 2 will have a higher resolution screen. Both the high-end and mid-range models will use the Apple A6 processor.
60beat has launched a new games controller for iOS devices. The controller is called GamePad and is unique in that it uses the headphone port of any iOS device to function. As it uses a 3.5mm jack, all power is provided by the iPhone, iPad or iPod touch meaning that no charging/batteries are needed.
Facebook released Timeline to all desktop users in the middle of December. A few days later the universal iPhone/iPad app for Facebook was updated although Timeline was only given to iPhone users on this app update.
We now hear that by the end of January another update will happen which will allow iPad users to be able to use Timeline via the Facebook app.
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