UPDATED 14:44 EDT / MARCH 09 2012

NEWS

Pundits Talk About the New iPad

People have different reactions of the new iPad. Some are impressed, some are disappointed, and some are just downright confused. Apple has yet to announce the name of the new device and just went on addressing it as “the new iPad”. There aren’t any radical technology upgrades either despite iPad having so much room for improvement.

“We are surprised that the new iPad does not take advantage of Apple’s previous acquisition of Polar Rose, an artificial intelligence company for advanced facial recognition, and that they have not evolved the Siri experience more,” said Rakuten Buy.com CEO Neel Grover. “There is an immense opportunity for future tablets and other mobile devices to leverage new AI technologies to provide not only a better user experience on these devices, but an intuitive ‘smart layer’ to help users manage their personal and professional lives on these devices.”

Apart from the uncertainties, Apple set the launch date on March 16 and has decided to drop the price of iPad 2. “The iPad 2 price cut may have more significance to makers of cheaper tablets who haven’t been able to match Apple’s success,” analysts said. It’s pretty much the same strategy they did with iPhone 4 when they released 4S.

According to analysts, Apple will continue to reign on top of the tablet industry with its new 4G-enabled third-generation iPad to take on high-end competitors such as products running on Windows 8.

“Apple’s ability to increase the screen resolution, graphics capabilities, and integrate 4G LTE without compromising battery life on the new iPad will be a key differentiator versus the competition and a tough act to follow,” JP Morgan Securities analyst Mark Moskowitz wrote in a note.

It also looks forward to compete in the low-end market, rivaling Amazon’s Kindle Fire which has been really loud lately. Pundits believe that if there’s any tablet out there that can rival iPad, that would be Kindle Fire. Despite having no significant technology advancements, Apple will continue to be number one.

“The new iPad announcement today is very exciting news for the mobile industry. Not only does it introduce new technology to consumers, but it also paves the way for reduced pricing on the iPad 2, which will now start at $399. Of the 65% of those we surveyed who planned to buy a new iPad saying they would also consider buying an iPad or iPad 2 at a reduced price instead, we expect increased penetration by Apple into the tablet market. The trends we are seeing in increased adoption of tablets align with the results of our recent Mobile Media Consumption Study, which shows that North American mobile consumers are already spending more time on mobile connected devices than TVs or PCs.”

Of course, Salesforce CEO Marc Benniof also has something to say, and they’re not pretty. He’s notorious for speaking his mind, and he let loose a salvo of offensive tweets. Before the event took off, Benniof tweeted that he’s “in the cheap seats listening to horrible pop music.” He also wasn’t impressed with the announcement of Apple TV saying, “We all hope we’re not here to see this clunky 1080p AppleTV.” He was also a bit irritated by the non-disclosure of the new device’s name, addressing at as “lame name”.

He also complained about Apple’s lack of diversity. “Apple has all white men on stage . No women or racial diversity so far” and “the only racial and gender diversity in Apple’s keynotes is in the movies they show at the launches.” He also went on comparing Tim Cook with Steve Jobs because the iPad 3 launch was “horribly boring.” “Tim Cook didn’t thank or remember Steve Jobs at iPad3 launch. There would be no iPad3 without Steve Jobs. Steve you were the best we had!”


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