Meet the iPad HD?
Joshua Topolsky via This is my next
Our sources are saying that not only will there be a newly designed iPhone coming in the fall, but there is going to be a new entry into the iPad family as well. As hard as it might be to believe, the new tablet is said to sport a double resolution screen (2048 x 1536), and will be dubbed the “iPad HD.”
I don't see any reason Apple would introduce a updated iPad 2 in the fall with its only major feature being a higher resolution screen. This past weekend I set out to buy a 16 GB WiFI iPad 2 for a birthday present and struggled to find one in stock. With seemingly no competition and still a fervent demand for the regular iPad 2 why wouldn't Apple just wait until next spring to add the high res screen to the iPad lineup?
The idea behind the product is apparently that it will be a “pro” device aimed at a higher end market — folks who work in video and photo production possibly — and will be introduced alongside something like an iPad version of Final Cut or Aperture. This product is specifically said to not be the iPad 3, rather a complimentary piece of the iPad 2 line. Think MacBook and MacBook Pro.
I also don't get this comparison. The "Pro" Apple machines have always had many distinguishing factors when compared to the regular version not just a higher res screen. For example the MacBook Pro is made of metal vs plastic, has more ports, faster processor, more ram, better graphics, and a higher resolution display. How could a retina iPad justify a Pro moniker when it could conceivably do everything a normal iPad 2 can do? I don't think of the iPhone 4 when compared to the 3Gs as a pro model, I think of it as the newer better model.
