By Tech Powered Dad | March 7, 2012
The much awaited iPad 3 was announced today, but apparently it’s not called iPad 3 after all. Instead, it’s the ” new iPad.” Apple seems to want to break with the practice of incremental numbering of their iPads. I can understand the logic (do we really want to talk about the iPad 11 down the road?) but still hope there’ll be a simple way to keep the generations straight going forward.
So what do you get with the new iPad? First, a really great display. The new iPad has a 2048 x 1536 “retina display” and is said to be “stunning.” There’s also significantly better battery life (42.5 hours vs. 25 hours on the iPad 2). The camera has also gone all the way to 5 megapixels from .7. There are also a number of incremental improvements in things like processor speed and blue tooth improvement.
What can be said about the new iPad from an educational standpoint? Honestly, I’d say not much. I have an iPad 2, and it already has loads of educational potential. The new improvements are the kinds of things I’d expect as our technology moves ever forward, but from what I’ve read, they are mostly cosmetic. Yes, I want a faster processor and a beautiful display, and as an educational consumer, I expect Apple to continue to make these kinds of improvements. I’m just not sure that the new iPad will open up significantly new opportunities for teachers and students. That’s mostly up to the app developers right now.
That said, I’m excited about the device. One of the prime uses of my iPad is media, particularly video, and I’m for anything that improves that experience. Since Apple has kept the price of the new iPad the same as the iPad 2 (starting at $499), if you were already thinking about purchasing one, it’s a no-brainer to wait for the new version.
You can preorder the new iPad at the Apple store by clicking here. It’ll be available in stores on March 16.