The Ipad 3 – Has the future arrived?
Posted September 01 2011 
Less than a year has passed since the release of the iPad's second incarnation, predictably named the iPad 2, and yet rumours of another tablet computer from Apple are already rife. But before you go queuing up of outside the Apple store, it is worth contemplating if the rumours are likely to be correct. Why would Apple launch a new version so soon, and what new features can we expect from the iPad 3?
It appears that the rumours about the iPad 3 began circulating online, conveniently started by anonymous Apple employees, who apparently stated that the iPad 2 was a rush job, leaving off many of the features that it had been expected to carry. For example, the iPad 2 was expected to have retina display, but when it was released earlier this year, that feature was not present. Inevitably, the lack of momentous differences between the first and second Ipad's, have led people to speculate on features the next one will have.
There are several things that can be taken as certain for any new product Apple releases, it will be lighter, faster and live longer than the previous versions. Therefore we can take, increased ram, a better processor and more storage space as a given. So what else is the iPad 3 likely to have that the Ipad 2 doesn't?
Firstly, it will probably have the retina display that was predicted for the iPad 2. This will mean a much better display and picture quality similar to that of the iPhone 4. For those of you who haven't seen an iPhone 4, retina display means that the pixel density is so incredibly high, it makes it impossible to see any individual pixels, regardless of picture size. So if you zoom into a picture, it will still be 100% clear. This is great news for people who want to watch movies, take pictures, or play games with the new iPad. However due to the iPhone 4's primary function and size, it is more likely to be used in closer proximity to the users face, making the retina display more necessary than for a tablet computer that will presumably sit on the users lap, considerably lengthening the distance from the face, and therefore decreasing the need for high pixel density. This said however, clarity of vision is never a faux pas, and would be a welcomed feature non the less.
Another feature that the iPad 3 is predicted to carry is a dual core processor. As mentioned above, a better processor is pretty much a given, but Apple are rumoured to be designing their own kind of super duper processor. The Apple A6, which is a quad-core processor, is therefore bigger, better, stronger and faster than the A5 processor in the iPad 2, and will of course be designed by Apple themselves. However this rumour does not add up. If Apple are supposed to be releasing the Ipad 3 next month, they will not have this processor ready in time. This means one of two things will happen; there will be an update of the iPad 2 in the form of an iPad 2 plus. This will contain some extra features, but will still have an A5 processor. On the other hand, the release date rumours could be a red herring, and we shouldn't expect a new iPad until 2012 when the A6 processor will be ready.