iPad 2: How’d I Do?

Posted by on 2011-03-02 in Computing

So, last night I predicted. Today they announced. How did I do? Well… Not bad, but certainly not perfect. For reference, Apple posted the Specs page for the iPad 2, so you can follow along at home.

Here’s what I predicted:

  • Improved, anti-glare, scratch-resistant IPS screen at 1024×768 (same resolution as iPad 1). They may make a big deal about improved color performance.
  • Dual-core A5 CPU at (roughly) 1.2GHz based on Cortex A9 ARM, with improved graphics
  • 512MB RAM
  • 16GB/32GB/64GB
  • Improved external speaker, and maybe microphone improvements mentioned too.
  • Front and rear cameras, but I think the front camera will be the high-res HD-capable one. The rear camera, if it exists, will be a lower-quality one similar to the iPhone 4′s front camera
  • No on-board USB port or SD card slot, but they might include a “camera connection” dock-connector in the box which includes both (satisfying EU). If I’m wrong and they do build something in, it’ll be the SD card slot, not the micro-USB.
  • Thinner and lighter, of course.
  • Gyroscope like the iPhone 4.
  • And this is really a leap, but I’m going to go with a single model capable of both GSM and CDMA rather than two separate models. No LTE, since these networks aren’t “ready yet” (in Apple’s opinion), but they might fully support HSPA+ this time around.

What did I get right and which ones did I totally miss? Read on to find out…

Which did I get right or mostly right?

  • Dual-core A5 CPU: I was wrong about the raw clockspeed (the specs sheet lists 1GHz), but it is a dual core A5 with improved graphics. No word on Cortex A9, but we can assume it is.
  • 16GB/32GB/64GB
  • Thinner and lighter: I must say, I’m surprised how thin they managed to make it, I thought it would be marginal.
  • Gyroscope
  • No on-board SD card slot or micro USB: I’ll give myself half-credit. No mention of a pack-in camera connector accessory.

We’ll call this one a draw:

  • Front and rear cameras: it does indeed have both, but in the same configuration as the iPhone 4, rather than the way I suggested

Jury is still out:

  • We don’t know about RAM yet until someone does a tear-down (which I expected), but I bet I’m right
  • Improved external speaker, and maybe microphone too: Unless I missed it, they didn’t mention anything, but I still think it is possible. We’ll see.

Where was I wrong?

  • Improved, anti-glare, scratch-resistant IPS screen: I was right that the resolution was unchanged, but they never even mentioned the screen. A little gun-shy about the Retina Display rumors, I guess.
  • Single device handles both CDMA and GSM: Bummer. They couldn’t (or didn’t anyway) solve this problem. Maybe LTE next time, but perhaps not.

I didn’t mention this explicitly last night, but I’m also surprised that they didn’t even mention iOS 5. They did spend a bunch of time on iOS 4.3, and I was surprised they did as much with it (the JavaScript engine improvements should be very nice in concert with the new CPU). Still no word on file system improvements though. Big bummer there.

The HDMI out adapter will probably prove very useful and popular for presenting on HDTVs. I’m going to need to order a few of these for the office right away. I wonder if that will work on the older devices or if it is only for iPad 2 and newer systems? It would be pretty cool to have the same capability with my iPhone 4. One related little thing that I noticed in the specs that looks great is this gem: “Dolby Digital 5.1 surround sound pass-through with Apple Digital AV Adapter (sold separately).” AC3 passthrough? Sure, I’ll take it!

Also, I noticed they don’t appear to be offering any pre-ordering at all. The Apple Store page for the iPad 2 lists “Order starting March 11 and get free, fast shipping.” So no pre-ordering and having it delivered on day one. If you want it day one, you have to go to a store and wait in line. I wonder if this is because of the press they got from the lack of Verizon iPhone 4 lines? They need the lines to build the hype machine?

UPDATE: Hmmm… Interesting. They did drop the price on the original 16GB Wifi-only iPad down to $399. However, it is listed only as “clearance”, so this is almost certainly a stock-clearing option, rather than an actual iPhone 3G/3GS type of repricing move.

Also, that speaker grille is there, so it does look like the speaker has probably been improved at least somewhat. We’ll probably have to wait for full reviews to get the final word on this.

UPDATE AGAIN: Good news:

In case you’re wondering whether Apple’s forthcoming Digital AV Adapter is worth your $39, you might be pleased to know that said HDMI dongle is also compatible with the latest crop of iOS devices before the iPad 2. This includes the iPhone 4, fourth-generation iPod touch, and even the first-generation iPad.

UPDATE A THIRD TIME: So, now that the NDA is over, we have the final details.

  • The RAM is indeed 512MB.
  • I was wrong. The speaker is worse. They put the grille on there because they had to. They moved the speaker around back, but appear to have used a similarly speaker, so the audio is no better than the iPad 1 and maybe a little worse.
  • The mic moved. No details on the quality or components, but people say it works basically the same.

We still don’t know exactly what CPU core design is in that A5. I’m still betting it is a Cortex A9, and that they were just conservative on the clock speed to keep battery life high. The move from the older CPU design to the A9 would be a great place to save power. One of the biggest advantages to the Cortex A9, aside from Out-of-Order Execution, is the improved power management. That’s why Nvidia has been able to be so successful with the dual core Tegra 2 even in the smartphone space. You get the second core free, and better IPC as a bonus.

And, of course, I didn’t see the cover coming. No one did. The cover looks very cool.