2011: Year of the iPad 2
Apple Inc. announced the iPad 2 on March 2, 2011. Apple CEO and Co-Founder Steve Jobs, on medical leave since January 17, 2011, launched the iPad 2 as he has done with previous product roll outs. Jobs received a standing ovation when he walked onto the stage and said, "We've been working on this product for awhile and I just didn't want to miss today". Before unveiling the iPad 2, Steve Jobs made some other announcements and concluded, "A lot of stuff is going on and it's all good". Scott Forstall, Senior Vice President of iOS Software, unveiled the new iOS 4.3, which will be reviewed in a subsequent blog post.
iBooks Steve Jobs announced that users have downloaded over 100 million books from the iBooks store since the launch with the original iPad in April 2010. Random House is bringing their 17,000+ books to the iBooks store. Harper Collins, Hachette Book Group, Macmillan, Penguin, and Simon & Schuster are publishers already on iBooks. Over 2,500 publishers are now distributing on the iBooks store.
iTunes, App, and iBooks Stores There are now 200 million accounts on these Apple stores, with credit cards and 1-click purchasing. Steve Jobs noted that "Amazon doesn't publish their numbers, but it is very likely this is the most accounts, with credit cards, anywhere on the Internet."
App Store Over $2 billion has been paid to developers from selling their applications on the App Store.
iPhone Apple has now shipped 100 million iPhones.
iPad 2 Steve Jobs called the iPad 2, "Apple's third post-PC blockbuster product." First was the iPod in 2001. Second was the iPhone in 2007. Third was the iPad in 2010. "Every one of these has been a blockbuster. The majority of our revenues come from these post-PC products". Jobs reiterated how Apple describes the iPad: "Our most advanced technology in a magical and revolutionary device at an unbelievable price." Jobs said almost 15 million iPads were sold in 2010, "The Year of the iPad", in just 9 months, from April to December. This generated $9.5 billion in revenues for Apple in 9 months. Jobs noted, "Some have said this is the most successful consumer product ever launched." Apple's 2010 iPad sales were more than every Tablet PC ever sold. iPad has more than 90% market share. Jobs then said, "our competitors are just flummoxed." The App Store as over 350,000+ apps, of which 65,000+ are "specifically tailored" for the iPad. Jobs then said iPad competitors have at most 100 apps for their version of the tablet PC. Jobs claims the Apple retail stores enable a fast roll out of iPad and were "built for moments like this". Jobs then showed a video, "2010: The Year of the iPad".
iPad 2 Features The list of iPad 2 features is impressive:
* Price still starts at $499
* All-new design, 33% thinner, up to 15% lighter. iPad 2 is thinner than iPhone 4 and now 1.3 pounds, from 1.5 pounds
* Dual core A5 chip, twice as fast
* Super fast graphics, up to 9X improvement
* Battery life still 10 hours
* Two cameras, with FaceTime, HD video, photography
* Smart cover, magnetic auto-align, auto sleep/on, acts as stand for typing & viewing, polyurethane or leather
* LED backlit display
* Multi-Touch, use fingers to do everything
* iOS 4.3 with new features plus FaceTime and PhotoBooth
* Instant on with flash storage
* Wi-Fi and 3G (AT&T and Verizon)
* Gyro, accelerometer, and compass
* AirPlay streaming video, music, photos
* Video mirroring for HDTV or projector (HDMI mirrored video out)
* AirPrint, wireless printing
*Availability: In USA on March 11, another 26+ countries on March 15
* iMovie for iPad (App Store $4.99), video editing app/software, multitrack audio recording
*GarageBank for iPad (App Store $4.99), virtual touch instruments. 8 track recording and mixing
Apple (YouTube) "Apple Announces iPad 2" Watch Apple unveil iPad 2 at a special event on March 2, 2011, in San Francisco. iPad 2 is thinner, lighter, and faster with two cameras for FaceTime video calls and HD video recording. Yet it still has the same 10-hour battery life.
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