The (new) iPad3

[Ray3]

Well, I just couldn't help myself - I finally got through to Apple via phone at 5 PM yesterday (eastern time) and ordered one of these bad boys (black, 32GB, wi-fi only). Will be delivered on 3/16. Also ordered an Apple TV. Wanted both if these guys since the iPad 2 came out, but decided to wait for this version.

Retina screen, Air Play, iTunes Match, Bluetooth 4.0 possibilities - all works together nicely. Also, I have the grandfathered Verizon unlimited plan and had the 2GB/$20 per month data plan turned on for using my wife's smartphone as a hotspot. Very nice to have wifi available for her Galaxy tab while we are cruising down the highway. Plan to use the iPad this way too.

Not sure what I am going to do about the Apple TV yet. I googled "Apple TV jailbreak" and found out two things:1) easy to do and undo and 2) jailbreaking REALLY expands the things that can be done with the thing.

Very excited.

[Mike4AU]

I am waiting for B&H to get them in stock.

[engtaz]

not iPad3 just "new iPad".

[madpoet]

I ordered, but then cancelled. I have been through so many tablets over the last 2 years and the one I keep coming back to is my original ipad. Works great, no complaints. The new one is nice, but not worth spending the almost $800 I would need to get an equivelant to my ipad 1. I carry my ipad everywhere for email, light internet, etc;

That said, I also have a Transformer Prime and it kicks the ipad's ass ;) If it had a wireless radio then my ipad would be a goner.

[sbdman]

Good review here; Cnet review.

What amazes me is the resolution; 2,048x1,536! I thought it was difficult to tell the difference between 720 and 1080P at less than about 10', but I guess at arms length, it's very noticeable. Looks like those new 4K res cameras will be selling.

And all those apps.

[Kevin_Wadsworth]

A co-worker of mine has the Transformer and it's pretty cool. Yeah physical kepboard option!

One are that Apple excells at is apps for tablets, particularly games. hopefully Android will one day catch up.

Ray - what type of phone do you have? That same has the Galaxy Nexus and downloaded an app that does free wifi tethering. (I have an Incredible and the app does not work on my phone.)

[madpoet]

THere are a couple tethering apps out there that work for the Incredible ;) I've got the Rezound now myself.

[Ray3]

I ordered, but then cancelled. I have been through so many tablets over the last 2 years and the one I keep coming back to is my original ipad. Works great, no complaints. The new one is nice, but not worth spending the almost $800 I would need to get an equivelant to my ipad 1. I carry my ipad everywhere for email, light internet, etc;

That said, I also have a Transformer Prime and it kicks the ipad's ass ;) If it had a wireless radio then my ipad would be a goner.

I looked at the Transformer as well, but I had gotten my wife A Galaxy 7.0 Plus for duty as an ereader for Christmas and felt that was all we needed for the Android experience.

Really have been lusting for the iPad since they were introduced. The combo of stuff I mentioned in my original post is pretty compelling and tightly integrated, so I wanted to try it all out. Especially since I don't have a Roku or Sonos.

[Ray3]

A

Ray - what type of phone do you have? That same has the Galaxy Nexus and downloaded an app that does free wifi tethering. (I have an Incredible and the app does not work on my phone.)

We have an HTC Incredible that has a hotspot toggle and it works pretty well. Before we upgrade the phone, I want to see what the iPhone 5 has to offer.

[engtaz]

The new iPad will blow you away with the graphics.

[Ray3]

The iPad and the Apple TV arrived today and after a day of playing with them, I'm really pleased. Fast, stunningly clear, all I was hoping for. Apple did these very well. No buyer's remorse at all.

[Mike4AU]

Ordered the new ipad today and it will arrive Wed.

Ray, tell me about Apple TV. My impression is that I could hook it up to my AVR via HDMI and optical audio, then could transmit stuff on the new ipad, wirelessly, to the Apple TV.

Stuff like HD Netflix movies.

Tell me more, please.

[Ray3]

Mike,

Understanding I have been doing more with the beach and sight seeing in Charleston since I got it, several interesting things got me to the Apple TV.

First was the ability, via Air Play to mirror what was on my iPad to the TV screen. I've tried it and it works great - both wired and wirelessly.

Then you get to hook all your networked stuff (movies, pics, music) together and share it to your TV or iOS devices. I did a quick test with a downloaded copy of iTunes to my laptop and a movie and it worked great. Again, both wired and wirelessly.

The next level above Home Sharing is iTunes Match (not Apple TV dependent). $25/yr and all of your media lives in the cloud and you have access with all of your devices. Up to 25,000 songs.

There are a few apps in Apple TV - Netflix, Wall Street Journal and several more.

Does 1080p and has Bluetooth 4.0 (VERY big improvement for battery efficiency for 4.0 devices).

I wish I could give you more detail, but I am not in proximity to my home theater equipment because we are on vacation, so I haven't been able to put it through it's paces yet. Googling on Apple TV reviews should get you some pretty good info. BTW - I have connected only via HDMI; optical cable note needed. I'll be plugging it into my Denon 3808 when I get home. If that works well, I'll probably add one to my Denon 1910 in the other setup.

Having said all of the above, I thought it was a no brainer for $99. Being able to use it as Sonos substitute that ALSO plays movies and diisplays pics is incredible. Here is where it gets interesting - do a search on Apple TV jailbreak. Incredible expansion of capabilities and additional apps. You can even install XMBC on the thing. I'm looking forward to trying that.

All in all - it's well worth the $99 to me so far. Hope that helps Mike.

[Mike4AU]

Yes, this is a big help. Now I need to figure out how to rearrange my stuff running thru my AVR.

[corndog71]

I just got mine and holy crap is this thing fast! It took me 10 minutes to upload everything I saved to the cloud! Over wifi I was opening up websites instantly. It's a substantial improvement over my 1st gen ipad.:applause:

Edit: Ok, now that I've had a chance to view some of my favorite pics on it, I have to report that I am blown away by the resolution of this screen! 7 year old 5 megapixel pictures are stunning and better than I've ever seen them. This is how digital photography SHOULD look like! Bravo Apple!