The new iPad 3G retains its revolutionary multi-touch screen, and comes in three configurations: 16GB of solid-state memory for $629, 32GB of memory for $729, and 64GB for $829.
AT&T 3G data plans for the iPad come without a contract, with monthly costs of $14.99 for 250GB of data and $29.99 for unlimited data.
Apple promises that the iPad 3G will switch seamlessly between 3G and available Wi-Fi networks. With the AT&T plans, users have access to over 20,000 Wi-Fi hotspots across the Unites States, including coffeeshops and bookstores such as Starbucks and Barnes & Noble.
The iPad weighs only 1.6 pounds and is half an inch thick, making it more portable than any laptop on the market. The new version has a 10-hour battery life. Apple store representatives have vowed they would provide free support to those needing help setting up their iPads.
Customers living in Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Spain, Switzerland, and the U.K. will have to wait until the end of May to buy the latest iPad in local stores. Pre-orders outside the United States will be available May 10.
Adobe Flash Ban
On the day prior to the iPad 3G release, Apple CEO Steve Jobs published on the Apple website detailed rationale as to why he has instituted an Adobe Flash ban for Apple mobile products, including iPhones, iPods, and iPads.
Jobs identified six major reasons for the policy, including Apple’s desire to adopt the open-web standards of HTML5, CSS, and JavaScript, the poor record Flash has for security and its penchant for causing Macs to crash, the incompatibility of some Flash programming with touch-operated computers, and Job’s belief that applications written for specific device architectures perform better—in contrast to Flash’s cross-platform philosophy.
For the complete rationale, see Steve Jobs’ “Thoughts on Flash” on the Apple website.
In an April 29 interview with the Wall Street Journal, Adobe’s CEO Shantanu Narayen fired back at Jobs. Narayen argued that Apple’s forcing developers to work on Apple devices alone will make it “cumbersome” for developers who wish to write software that will work with different devices.
“We have different views of the world,” Narayen said. “Our view of the world is multi-platform.”
