Apple has officially unveiled the successor to the iPad, the tablet that shaped the market. The iPad 2 will ship in the United States March 11th, 2011 in a Wifi only configuration and a Wifi + 3G configuration. The Wifi only models will retail at $499 for 16GB, $599 for 32GB, and $699 for 64GB. The Wifi+ 3G models, from both AT&T and Verizon Wireless, will cost $629 for 16GB, $729 for 32GB, and $829 for 64GB. Both 3G and Wifi only models will be offered in black and white.

The design of the new iPad has been refreshed. At 9.5 inches by 7.31 inches by .34 inches, the iPad 2 is significantly smaller than the previous design. Plus, at only 1.3 pounds, the iPad 2 is not only lighter than the former model but is also one of the most compact tablets announced. However, Apple did not compromise on the battery in this smaller enclosure. The iPad 2 will still get a full ten hours of performance from its internal 25-watt cell.

Inside, the iPad is significantly improved as well. Sporting a blazing fast dual core 1GHz A5 chip, the new iPad is twice as fast as before. Moreover, thanks to a new but unnamed GPU, graphics performance is about nine times as powerful as before. The iPad also sports both a front facing VGA camera and an HD rear facing camera allowing users to capture and create outstanding mobile videos. One of my favorite features, the iPad 2 also supports full video-mirroring via VGA and HDMI adapters!

The new iPad is clearly an evolutionary update to the previous design. Although faster, lighter, and thinner than before, the iPad 2 is not a completely new product. It is, however, one of the most powerful and attractive tablets on the market. No one will feel slighted by the elegance and efficiency of the new iPad. Will you be upgrading on March 11th?

iPhone OS 4.0 Video Recap:

Media Event Recap*:
iPad
-450,000 iPads sold to date (300,000 at launch)
-1 million pad app downloads day 1 (3.5M through today)
-600,000 ibook downloads
-3,500 iPad apps in app store today

App store
-4 billion app downloads
-185,000 apps

iPhone
-JD power award three years running (2008-2010)
-64% mobile browser usage belongs to iPhone
-50 million iPhones sold (85M including iPod Touch)

iPhone OS 4.0
-Over 1500 new API’s
-quick look, photo library access, in app sms, full access to camera
-accelerate for “hardware accelerated math functions”
-Over 100 New Features (All)
-spell checker, 5x digital zoom, change homescreen wallpaper

Big 7 Updates:
• Multitasking

-drains battery very quickly & terrible performance
-new way to multitask 3rd party apps and avoid battery drain
-double click home button to reveal a window overlay of open applications
-great implementation of multitasking
-7 multitasking services (API’s) for multitasking:

1. Background Audio (Pandora)
2. Voice over IP (Skype)
3. Background location (baseband always connected to cell towers)
4. Push notifications
5. local notifications
6. task completion (upload to flickr)
7. fast app switching (apps save state and stop running, then resume)

• Folders

-Drag apps onto each other to make a folder
-automatically named after category of apps, can be renamed

• Enhanced Email

-unified inbox
-multiple exchange accounts
-organize by threads
-fast inbox switching
-open attachments in apps from app store

• iBooks for iPhone

-iPad/iPhone integration (wirelessly sync books, current page, and bookmarks)
-buy once, read anywhere

• Enterprise Improvements

-improved Data Protection
- wireless app distribution
-mobile device management
-SSL VPN support

• Game Center

-social gaming network
-achievements, leader-boards, match making

• iAd Mobile Advertising

-emotional and interactive ads (almost like ad itself is app)
-keep user in application
-Apple sells and hosts ads, 60/40 revenue split (devs/apple)
-Very quick to implement in app
-ads can use API’s (show theaters near you)

• iPhone 3GS and iPod Touch 3rd generation get all features
• iPhone 3G and other iPod touch models get limited features with OS 4.0, no multitasking
• iPad gets update this fall

*These are the exact notes I took during the media conference. Please forgive any abbreviations and the informal nature of this recap.

Unfortunately, Pure Digital has been slow to respond to their competitors. With other products offer 1080p recording, external memory expansion, and more, Pure Digital is behind on the spec sheet. Working to their advantage however is usability. The Flip line has always been easy to use and remains the easiest way to go from camera, to computer, to DVD or social network. With all that in mind, I’ve formulated a list of five ways the Flip can, and should be, improved within the next few months to continue to aggressively compete with other low-cost, easy to use camcorders.

1. Memory Expansion:
   You will never be able to get enough storage. Point blank. I’m always looking for more storage to record video content to so allowing users to install large and inexpensive SD cards on the fly is a great attribute. This won’t impact the quality of your content but it will provide peace of mind on vacations and long events.
2. Increased Battery Capacity:
   The Flip Ultra HD allows users to swap rechargeable battery packs or standard AA battery’s pretty quickly which makes longer events easier to manage. Unfortunately, the device will power down during the swap so you won’t be able to record extra long video clips. For me, user replaceable batteries aren’t a big issue but improving battery life to easily get through a day on the trail is a big request.
3. Still Shots:
   The Flip line isn’t able to take pictures. You can use the included software to export a freeze frame as an image but the hassle isn’t worth the degraded quality. Simply put, these pocket camcorders should be able to quickly snap a photo. There is no reason your nearly $200 product cannot take pictures.
4. Improved Video Quality:
   I specifically didn’t say 1080p recording. Often, resolution is marketing hype and most consumer cameras in the market fall under this label. Pure Digital needs to improve the vividness of recorded video, low light recording, and perhaps include an auto-focus, optical zoom lens. It’s a hassle to use a camera that doesn’t focus on the subjects you are recording. Granted, the fixed-focus lens on current cameras works, but it’s too hard to fit the scene into the proper distance while focusing on capturing the scene in all it’s glory.
5. Image stabilization:
   Pocket camcorders are meant to quickly capture the moment or preserve your memories on a budget. With this in mind, the camera is constantly in your hand as you walk and talk. The issue is, there is so much judder in the videos you record it’s nearly unwatchable. A true, high quality optical image stabilizer is a must on the next incarnation of these camcorders. Without this upgrade, it will be hard to continue to recommend the flip line.

Overall, the Flip line is a great blend of quality, simplicity, and price. At this point, pushing the market forward are competitors with more powerful and beefy devices. Flip has the opportunity to retain their dominance in this niche but Pure Digital must fight proactively to continue to be the perennial powerhouse.

Prior to launch sometime later this year, Bungie has already begun to hype up the game. In this new ViDoc, Bungie details a little bit of the design process behind Halo Reach. Bungie never ceases to amaze me, I cannot wait for Halo Reach!

For more information on Need for Speed Shift, and other Need for Speed titles, check out their twitter and youtube profiles.

At a quick glance this device features a 2.8 inch VGA display, HSDPA (3G), WiFi, GPS, and a MicroSD memory card slot for expansion. However, looking deeper into the specs that 2.8inch display is in fact a touch screen. Additionally, the device includes a 3.2MP primary camera, with a flash and video recording capabilities, and a VGA front-facing camera for mobile video calls. Powering this beast is a 1530mAh Lithium-ion battery making the battery a noteworthy feature. Finally, this is a SIM unlocked windows mobile 6.1 professional smart phone.

Remembering that this is an unlocked phone, the price is a little high. Running around $450 it’s not the most expensive smart phone I have used but it is more expensive than other carrier-locked alternatives.

For more information on this smart phone check out Clove Technologies and the official Acer webpage.

…this may be set in the halo 3 world but you probably will be playing as someone other than the master chief

Well, I’m happy to say my prediction was correct; Halo 3: Recon is an expansion to and takes place before the action in Halo 3. You will be playing as an Orbital Drop Shock Trooper (ODST), one not as powerful as the master chief, in order to recapture the covenant infested city in New Mombasa. Besides some news maps, the multiplayer in this new game will essentially be the same as Halo 3.

With this in mind, Bungie has said that

“We’re not viewing this as a full game.”

So hopefully we will see a lower price point than the regular $60 USD but this has not been confirmed. An interesting comparison was made when Luke Smith told kotaku

“I would think of it [Halo 3: Recon] as our Frozen Throne,”

Referencing the very successful and fun expansion to Warcraft 3. The game is set to be released Fall 2009.

• Decrease in call set-up failures and dropped calls.
• Significantly better battery life for most users.
• Dramatically reduced time to backup to iTunes.
• Improved email reliability, notably fetching email from POP and Exchange accounts.
• Faster installation of 3rd party applications.
• Fixed bugs causing hangs and crashes for users with lots of third party applications.
• Improved performance in text messaging.
• Faster loading and searching of contacts.
• Improved accuracy of the 3G signal strength display.
• Repeat alert up to two additional times for incoming text messages.
• Option to wipe data after ten failed passcode attempts.
• Genius playlist creation

This update also address several security issues. Apple even gives specific instructions on how to install the new firmware.

I am still testing this firmware and will get back to you with an update regarding my personal experiences.

Update:
My personal impressions of this new software is in the video bellow. Honestly, apple made a huge mistake shipping buggy software at launch and this 2.1 software update is what the original firmware should have been.