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Gadget

Apple debuts $499 Mac tablet – the iPad

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After more than a year of frenzied speculation, Apple finally unveiled its tablet computer in the form of the iPad. The company still had some surprises, most notably a starting price of just $499 {about £309}, which is cheaper than an unlocked iPhone.

‘Apple is pitching the device as the best way to surf the web, play games and read books on the go’.

The iPad is calculated by Apple ‘for browsing the web, reading and sending email, enjoying photos, surveillance videos, plaving games, reading eBooks, and much more’ . It will be available in US starting in March, but other markets including the UK will have to wait until later this year.

Looking somewhat like an overgrown iPod Touch, the iPad is based around a multitouch enabled, 9.7 in backlit·LED show. It’s just 0.5 in thick aand weighs only 700g. The set alight, compact form factor is vital. as Apple is explicitty targeting the iPad as a device that, while not as portable as a phone, is still lighter arid more convenient than a laptop.

The user interface is a mix between the iPhone and the Mac. The underlying OS is essentialty the iPhone as. The iPad’s screen uses IPS (in-plane-switching), which offers a wide, 1780 viewing angle and Quick response era ‘for browsing the web, reading and sending email, enjoying photos, surveillance videos, plaving games, reading ‘Apple is pitching the device as the best way to surf the web, play for video so that it displays a clear picture with consistent games and read books on the go’ colours even if you view it from the side.

This is vital, as Apple is pitching the device as the best way to consume media, surf the web, play games and read books on the go. Also, the company emphasised the iPad’s claimed 10-hour battery life, which is longer than the predictable laptop. ‘We use the e-pub format, the most standard open book format in the world,’ said Apple CEO Steve.