Apple to Launch iPad in the U.S. on April 3
IT News Online Staff
2010-03-05
Apple announced that the iPad will be available in the U.S. on April 3, for Wi-Fi models and in late April for Wi-Fi + 3G models. All models of iPad will be available in Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Spain, Switzerland and the UK in late April. The iPad will ship in additional countries later this year.
From March 12, U.S. customers can pre-order both Wi-Fi and Wi-Fi + 3G models from Apple's online store or reserve a Wi-Fi model to pick up on April 3, at an Apple retail store.
"iPad is something completely new," said Steve Jobs, Apple's CEO. "We're excited for customers to get their hands on this magical and revolutionary product and connect with their apps and content in a more intimate, intuitive and fun way than ever before."
The iPad lets users browse the Web, read and send email, view and share photos, watch videos, listen to music, play games, read ebooks and much more. The device is 0.5 inches thick and weighs 1.5 pounds, thinner and lighter than any laptop or netbook, and delivers battery life of up to 10 hours.
Apple said the iPad's Multi-Touch interface makes surfing the Web an entirely new experience, dramatically more interactive and intimate than on a computer. Users can read and send email on iPad's large screen and almost full-size "soft" keyboard or import photos from a Mac, PC or digital camera, see them organized as albums, and view and share them using iPad's slideshows. iPad makes it easy to watch movies, TV shows and YouTube, all in HD. Users can flip through the pages of an ebook downloaded from Apple's new iBookstore, while listening to their music collection.
The App Store on iPad lets users wirelessly browse, buy and download new apps. The iPad includes 12 new apps designed especially for iPad and will run most of the apps on the App Store. Apple said developers are already creating new apps designed for iPad that take advantage of its Multi-Touch interface, large screen and high-quality graphics.
The new iBooks app for iPad includes Apple's new iBookstore, which will feature books from the New York Times Best Seller list from both major and independent publishers, including Hachette Book Group, HarperCollins Publishers, Macmillan Publishers, Penguin Group and Simon & Schuster.
The iTunes Store gives iPad users access to the world's most popular online music, TV and movie store with a catalog of over 12 million songs, over 55,000 TV episodes and over 8,500 films including over 2,500 in high definition. All the apps and content one downloads on the iPad from the App Store, iTunes Store and iBookstore will be automatically synced to one's iTunes library the next time the user connects with his computer.
The iPad will be available in Wi-Fi models on April 3 in the U.S. for a suggested retail price of $499 for 16 GB, $599 for 32 GB, $699 for 64 GB. The Wi-Fi + 3G models will be available in late April for a suggested retail price of $629 for 16 GB, $729 for 32 GB and $829 for 64 GB.
The iBooks app for iPad including Apple's iBookstore will be available as a free download from the App Store in the U.S. on April 3, with additional countries added later this year.
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