Phil Schiller announced in the big iPad unveiling event that Apple is offering a completly new version of iWorks specifically designed for iPad. Each application in iWork has an impressive UI designed to make it easy to work with documents, slid shows, spreadsheets etc. Each application integrated the Media inspector for quick access to your music, videos and photos.

Pages

Like its desktop counterpart, you can create publications with standard text and images. However, you can also use gestures (pinch for example) to move images around the publications and more. What’s interesting about this feature  is that it could make placement possibly easier than using a mouse with the desktop version, as long as the proximity “drop” is accurate.

Slide Shows with Keynote

From what we could see during Apple’s presentation, you can rearrange slides by pressing on each and then move them accordingly. In addition, there is a unique slide management feature in that you can tap multiple slides, and with a gesture, it moves the slides into a bundle. This should definitely be a timesaver for many folks. Lastly, we learned that the iPad also has an optional cable for connecting with a projector, making it easy to use the device as your primary presentation tool.

Numbers

From what was demonstrated at the Apple Event, the iPad version of Numbers automatically displays fields and sums (which then infers what the output will be). Otherwise, this version seems relatively comparable to its desktop partner.

Source:  http://theappleblog.com/2010/01/27/iwork-for-the-ipad-productivity-on-the-go/

Cost and availability:

Connectivity: Two versions of iPads available-One with WiFi and the other with Both WiFi and 3G. The WiFi standard is latest 802.11n and 3G versions support speed up to 7.2 Mbps on HSDPA networks. In US,  AT&T will provide the 3G service. The 250 MB data plan costs  $14.99 a month and unlimited mobile data plan will cost $29.99 a month.

Processor: iPad is powered by Apple’s  1GHz , A4 Chip, Flash memory, ranging from 16 to 64 GB .ipad photo

Dimensions and built: 0.5 Inch thick, Weighs 1.5 Pound, enclosure is made of highly recyclable Aluminium.

Display: High resolution9.7-inch multi touch screen display, LED back light, Using IPS (Inter plane switching) technology  with an ultra-wide 178 degree viewing angle.

Keyboard: Touch screen soft keypad. The tablet uses multi-touch finger gestures and swipes like the iPhone . Facility to connect the iPad Keyboard Dock with a full-size traditional keyboard.

Battery backup: 10 hours long backup and Adaptive Charging technology deliver up to 1,000 charge cycles without a significant decrease in battery capacity over a typical five year lifespan.

Applications: Bundled with 12 new applications designed especially for the iPad, and will run almost all of the over 140,000 apps in the App Store. You can use the applications purchased for iPhone or iPod. Every application works in both portrait and landscape, automatically animating between views as the user rotates iPad in any direction. The new application iBook allows users to read ebooks from Apple’s iBook store.ipad Photo 2

Can we run multiple apps on iPad? In such a magical device as iPad we expect to do a little bit of multitasking – opening more than one app at a time. But we are not sure if that is possible or not. We didn’t hear anything about it during th event.

Didn’t hear about App development for iPad: iWork for sure adds an impressive dimension for Apple iPad, we have not actually heard an explicit statement whether we can develop iPhone and iPad apps on Apple iPad.  May be we can – may be. The only mention of app development was how the iPad will have apps developed specifically for it.

Does Apple iPad support Adobe Flash? We haven’t heard any word on the Flash support. We were informed that the iPad runs on a variation of iPhone OS, and whose default browser Safari does not support Adobe Flash. Hence the impression that iPad may not have Flash support. Or does it? We just have have to see.

Verizon or no Verizon? One of the biggest speculation for so time now is that iPhone and iPad would be coming to Verizon’s network. But the event only announced data plans available from AT&T and no word about Verizon. I would like to see how iPad 3G works on Verizon network.

What is the default Search Engine? There was speculation that Microsoft Bing would become the default search engine on iPad. Not only did we not see a hint of this at Apple’s event unveiling the iPad, but we saw the iPad running Google Maps and Google Street View. So is it Google or Bing? No info as of now…

In contrast, Walt Mossberg wrote, “It’s about the software, stupid”, meaning hardware features and build are less important to the iPad’s success than software and user interface, his first impressions of which were largely positive. Mossberg also called the price “modest” for a device of its capabilities, and praised the claimed 10-hour battery life.

Tech reporter Leo Laporte offered a mixed initial review, praising the iPad’s speed but panning the lack of a camera, video output, USB or FireWire ports, and multitasking, specifically the inability to run a chat application along with other applications. He also mentioned the device’s “locked down”, closed nature, noting that some at the announcement protested Apple’s “full control” of the software. He concluded that the iPad should be viewed as an “appliance” for media consumers, not really a computer in the traditional sense.

Yair Reiner said the iPad will compete against e-book devices such as the Barnes & Noble nook and the Amazon Kindle while offering 70% of revenue to publishers, the same arrangement afforded developers on the Apple App Store. (A week before the iPad’s expected release, the Amazon Kindle store increased publishers’ revenue share to 70% as well.

Others, including PC Advisor and the Sydney Morning Herald, have said the iPad would also compete with proliferating netbooks, most of which use Microsoft Windows. CNET lists ways the iPad compares unfavorably to a netbook, including no camera for video chat, no Flash, and the difficulty of typing on your lap. The Seattle Post-Intelligencer noted that the iPad will only support installing software from the App Store.

Several days after the unveiling, Stephen Fry said people must actually use the iPad to truly appreciate its purpose and quality and commented that common of the criticisms of the device fall away after use. Fry noted the iPad’s speed, responsiveness, smooth glide, richness and detail of the display, heft in his hand, and rightness of the user actions and gestures.

Apple Newton MP100 Tablet Computer

Apple’s development of a tablet computer began with the Newton MessagePad 100, which was introduced in 1993. The effort led to the creation of the ARM6 processor core with Acorn Computers. Apple also developed a prototype PowerBook Duo-based tablet computer named the PenLite, then canceled the project as it was too similar to the Newton line. Apple brought out several more Newton-based PDAs, and discontinued the last of the line, the MessagePad 2100, in 1998.

Apple renewed efforts to develop a tablet as early as 2000. Apple CEO Steve Jobs canceled the project twice, once due to insufficient battery life, and again due to inadequate memory. After returning from medical leave, Jobs devoted most of his attention at Apple to completing the device, striking deals with print media companies before the product’s announcement.

The product was announced on January 27, 2010, at an Apple press conference at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in San Francisco. The device’s imminent release had been rumored for several months with iSlate and iTablet among speculated names.

The iPad will come with the following applications: Safari, Mail, Photos, Video, YouTube, iPod, iTunes, App Store, Maps, Notes, Calendar, Contacts, and Spotlight. It will also include the iBooks application, which displays books and other ePub-format content downloaded from the iBookstore. Apple has ported its iWork suite from the Mac to the iPad; the Pages, Numbers and Keynote applications will be sold for $9.99 apiece in the App Store.