*** The all new Apple iPad thread - Keep all iPad stuff in here ***

I think they will release UK prices along with the US 3G details.

However I'm sure I read some where that you get 2 weeks to return stuff in the US - they will probably annouce the availability 2 weeks after the wifi launch to stop loads of returns. So I bet they will announce on Tuesday next week.
 
n111ck said:
Got mine today - £430 + £20 delivery from Ebay.

Very impressed screen is excellent - although very reflective like a Macbook. In fact the unit actually looks like a smaller Macbook Pro screen without the keyboard.

It is very responsive - you can tell it has a better CPU etc than the 3GS.

Only thing is at work now with no wifi so it cant actually do much!

:D
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It doesn't, it uses exactly the same CPU, GPU and RAM as the 3Gs. In fact it is essentially the 3Gs with bigger screen and battery.:)
 
You're both partially correct, the hardware is new and custom to apple, however it superficially appears very similar to the 3GS chip just in new packaging. The evidence suggests however that the ipad is noticeably (in use and in benchmarks) faster though, which either means the code is better or it's running at a higher clock or it's more efficient per clock. Or a combination thereof...
 
bigredshark said:
You're both partially correct, the hardware is new and custom to apple, however it superficially appears very similar to the 3GS chip just in new packaging.
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Well it is instruction compatible! :) The Internet seems to be a little vague on details saying it could be a Cortex A8 or an A9 (the A9 would explain the speed increase over the 3GS) however it also has a PowerVR SGX built in (the A4 is a system on a chip) whereas the 3GS does not.
 
Just buy a new iPhone charging plug, it's only converting 240V to 5V via USB.

Also looks better than having a travel adaptor plugged in 24/7.
 
Ol!ver said:
That's so wrong it's scary.
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Apparently the A4 processor is essentially the A8 ARM processor and the PowerVR SGX 535 GPU in one chip.

http://gizmodo.com/5510191/deconstructing-the-ipads-a4-chip-its-still-a-giant-iphone

iFixit partnered with semiconductor reverse engineering firm Chipworks to crack into Apple's semi-mysterious A4 chip, which is the proprietary brain the powers the iPad—and presumably the product of Apple's acquisition of processor company PA Semi. Here's what they found: A single core ARM Cortex A8 processor, and what looks and performs like a PowerVR SGX 535 GPU. (Though the GPU couldn't be IDed for sure.)

Here's the thing: The iPhone uses an ARM Cortex A8 processor, just at a lower clockspeed. The PowerVR SGX 535 GPU is what's in the iPhone 3GS. In terms of processor architecture and graphics capabilities, the iPad is, again, just a big iPhone—not to mention the fact that it has the same paltry 256MB of RAM.
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EDIT: Wow, i've stirred up a hornets nest! However that's the info that seems to have come out from a company that appear to know what they are talking about.

theheyes said:
It is clocked higher though surely?
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Actually yeah it is. :)
 
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Two of the guys got theirs from the US end of last week, had a fiddle today. The hardware is lovely for sure, bit heavier than I expected and certainly heavy enough to be annoying for reading tbh. Typing was surprisingly good in landscape, a bit awkward one handed though. Screens nice, but really really should have been 16:9 imo.

For me, the hardware is brilliant, but serves no real purpose. Exactly what I thought when it was announced.
 
Here's the thing: The iPhone uses an ARM Cortex A8 processor, just at a lower clockspeed. The PowerVR SGX 535 GPU is what's in the iPhone 3GS. In terms of processor architecture and graphics capabilities, the iPad is, again, just a big iPhone—not to mention the fact that it has the same paltry 256MB of RAM.
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The iPad should have more RAM than the 3GS, a little phone approaching a year old. I can't shake an aversion to buying the 1st generation iPad because I think it's been gimped a little too much for cost and/or fast-track-to-market reasons.

I'm sure all the classic built in Apps are nice and snappy as it is, but as legit multi-tasking and more ambitious Apps arrive, who knows.
 
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wush said:
The iPad should have more RAM than the 3GS, a little phone approaching a year old. I can't shake an aversion to buying the 1st generation iPad because I think it's been gimped a little too much for cost and/or fast-track-to-market reasons.

I'm sure all the classic built in Apps are nice and snappy as it is, but as legit multi-tasking and more ambitious Apps arrive, who knows.
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It has the same amount of RAM as a PS3, so it shouldn't be a problem really.
 
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