Why not to buy the new iPad (yet)



The new iPad is out.  Apple says that it is so much better than the iPad 2.  But is it really?  When I buy a new laptop, look up the specific processor that is in that laptop.  I can research how fast that processor is compared to other processors.  But with the iPad I can not do that.  The only information that is available right now is that fact that the graphics of the new iPad are supposed to be two times faster than that iPad 2.  When I buy something more than a hundred dollars I like to actually know what I am buying.  Is it too much to ask for the actual specs before I purchase the item.  I am not saying that the iPad is a poor devise or that Android rules and only Android tablets should be bought, I am only saying that one has the right to know the performance of a five hundred dollar computer before (keyword) one buys it.  By looking at what Apple themselves told about the new iPad it seems as if it has a great screen, a better camera, and a better graphics engine (and optional 4g).  But those are not the only specs that I care about.  What about the processor itself, is it any better than the old processor? Why did Apple not include a quad core processor?  The point is until someone else has reviewed the iPad I do no think that it is worth buying.  If you want a great camera on a tablet (for the record using a tablet a a camera seems difficult to me), a great screen or 4g, then buy the iPad.  If these things are not extremely important, do not bother. 

What do you think?  I would love to hear your opinion.

Comments

  1. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

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  2. Nice try at FUD. You are too focused on gear-headed specs. Specs don't matter. Is the display beautiful? (on my iPad, I see the dots in the iBooks and Kindle apps and it bugs me) Is it fast enough for the tasks I do? (my iPad certainly beats opening my laptop and waiting for it to start for many basic tasks) Does it have sufficient battery life to fly across the country while reading and watching movies? Is it intuitive to use such that you can hand it to your kids on said flight and they are self-sufficient for hours?

    iPad 2 hits most of these criteria and revolutionizes the screen. I've already purchased it sight unseen because Apple has not had a dud in the past 5 - 10 years. I trust them to do the right thing. And I vote with my $$$s.

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    1. We simply disagree in buying philosophy. I think that it makes sense to only buy products that I know the specs of, on the other hand you are willing to trust a manufacturer to produce good products. I would rather trust my personal research, you would rather trust a great company. And if you are buying the new iPad for it's great screen, and are willing to totally trust Apple then for you it is a great buy. For me I would rather actually know what I am buying so that I can make sure that I am making a good investment.

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    2. screwed people never accept they were screwed

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    3. What u said applies to any SSD laptop, I have a 13.3" Dell Adamo XPS that is 2 years old, and it still starts up in less than a minute, is slimmer than the iPad and it certainly has more capabilities than a tablet. It is all about personal preferences, but I prefer a 4 - 4.5" cell phone that can be used as a tablet ( many phones have almost all the specs u mentioned, the speed, the awesome screen, the fun apps, games & books in a much compact easy to carry around size..and they make & receive calls too! Not to mention that it is much easier to take a photo with a phone than with a tablet). just saying that not mentioning the appropriate specs just coz a company thinks that its products are above others looks stupid to me!

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    4. Jason...do the math... you say that trust Apple yet Ill bet you had the ipad ipad2 and have ordered the ipad3 sight unseen...youve got about $1800.+ into a 2year period ..granted you probably got 600 for your old ipads. So youve about 1200 into your "specs don't matter ipad3"...My series 9 ultrabook boots in about 3 secs...pretty quick id say...

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  3. Do you even know what a "core" is? How much are you willing to pay for 1 core? Two? Three? Four? If they told you it had 16 cores would you be willing to pay more fore the device? What if the OS couldn't access the cores effectively? What if the device had 32 cores but ran slower than the iPad v.1? How much would you pay then?

    If the processor is not 1 iota better, but the screen is 10x faster and 20x more responsive and the internet is 2x faster, how does that impact your purchase price? And what if the processor is 3x faster but the screen is 1/2 as responsive and page loads take 3x as long because the screen technology slows things to a crawl to provide a beautiful, albeit, slow load?

    What Apple sells is an experience and not a set of specs. Computers are a commodity; because of that, people buy on specs. Or maybe they are a commodity because companies sell on specs. Apple is not a commodity. It provides a unique product. Specs or no specs.

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    1. Apple sells a big iphone with an app drawer for a homescreen and fancy screen transitions to keep you preoccupied for 9 months when the next release happens.

      But on a different note, why would you need a quad-core processor for the above? Apple's simplicity may have prevented them from innovating. I really can't see this version selling better than its 2 predecessors

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    2. Apple is a commodity, it's currently trading at 545.17.

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  4. Specs really don't matter , There are many Android Tablets which have much better specs but poor performance then iPad 2.
    If really stuck on the specs then here they are
    1: The Screen 2048-by-1536 resolution, 44 percent greater color saturation, and an astounding 3.1 million pixels — in the 9.7-inch screen
    2: A5X chip : PowerVR SGX543MP4 Quad Core GPU/2 Core A9 Cortex CPU.
    Provides 4 times graphics and 2 times overall performance then Tegra 3 (Which has Quad Core A9 Cortex CPU,plus a fifth low-power core and 8 GPU cores).
    3: 10 hours battery life (42.5-watt-hour) /9 Hours with LTE
    4: 5 MP Camera f-2.4 lens , HD (1080p) Video.

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    1. I would like to know where you found the information that says that the A5X chip has two times the overall performance of the Tegra 3 because I have not been able to find that. The other specs that are shown tell me that it has a nice camera and a great screen, but do no actually tell me how fast the tablet is which is something that I would like to know before I spend five hundred dollars. on it. Like I said in another replies benchmarks are also important but the only benchmark that Apple gave us is the graphics. I just would like to know how fast the new iPad is.

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  5. Matt, I actually appreciate the perspective you've put it in. I too would prefer Apple be more transparent with the device they're selling. When I upgrade a PC, or even a Mac, I'd like to know what's under the hood, and is the upgrade cost worth it for that upgraded hardware. It cracks me up when someone posts such a general statement as "Specs really don't matter". If Apple was able to double the speed of an iPad, without changing the hardware, I don't think I'd spend half a grand for it. There better be improved "specs" in there, so "specs matter". And to just "trust them to do the right thing", wow Jason, did you buy their Newton sight unseen back in 1993? Also, still want to know how the A5X is 2 times better than Tegra 3; can't wait for a comparison on that. (I can say I'm faster than Usain Bolt, but not mention it was at swimming). Last thing, I own an i5 iMac and used to have iPhone 3GS, now Android. I like the Apple product, just tired of people that think they are the only option out there.

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  6. Specs specs specs!! Is that what you really care about?
    How about a product that works flawlessly? How about that?
    I come to realise that none of that crap spec of yours matters, and a good prove are android tablets. Bifed up with specs but totally garbage and undfriendly to use. Been buying Apple products for 5 years and not even once i been let down. They simply work as they should. And that's all i want, and not the specs crap.

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    1. I agree, although I have given up my iPhone for a Galaxy Nexus and my iPad version 1 for a Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9 (LTE version with dual core 1.5Ghz and 1GB RAM +16GB storage, Honeycomb 3.2)which specs wise would smoke the iPad, I gotta tell it like it is. The iPad first generation was more responsive and fluid, never crashed and always left me with a pleasant experience. I am talking user experience in satisfaction with the overall performance of the device as a user. That being said, I wish I could say the same about the Galaxy Tab, the opposite is true, you would think with better specs and a decent operating system that it would be better than the iPad, nothing could be further from truth. The device reboots randomly, transitions between applications are very slow, sometimes it freezes for several seconds and then starts working again. Othertimes, it will not wake up, etc. A good reboot gets it going again, but that doesn't last long. It's great when its working, but I gotta tell you, its no iPad. Of course I enjoy the Android operating system, but from a pure user experience standpoint, the iPad wins hands down every time. On the phone side, while I must admit that Ice Cream Sandwich (Android 4.0) is great, once again, it does not provide the fluid experience that IOS provides on the iPhone, at least not for me. I just ordered the new iPad for no other reason than I just want my tablet to work, period and so far Apple seems king in that dept. As soon as Apple gets a larger screen on their iPhone, say 4+ inches, I will probably come back (Main reason for switching to Android was bigger screen)unless Android surprises with a more fluid experience down the road. My two cents as a user in the field of both platforms.

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  7. Who cares what it costs? It is a new Apple device. Take my checkbook, please!!! Oh, wait. I just came to my senses. Forget the whole thing. I will stick to my laptop which does all that and much more!

    Plus, my wife won't let me buy it. She keeps asking for food. Silly woman!

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