{"id":46064,"date":"2012-03-19T14:09:15","date_gmt":"2012-03-19T12:09:15","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/?p=46064"},"modified":"2012-03-19T15:15:34","modified_gmt":"2012-03-19T13:15:34","slug":"ipad-3-hands-on","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/columns\/46064-ipad-3-hands-on.html","title":{"rendered":"iPad 3 hands-on"},"content":{"rendered":"

The latest iteration of Apple\u2019s tablet PC landed in 11 countries around the world on Friday (16 March 2012), followed by a flurry of reviews and comparison articles.<\/p>\n

This is not a review, but rather my first impressions after spending a day or so with MyBroadband\u2019s shiny \u201cnew iPad.\u201d<\/p>\n

As with its predecessors, the iPad 3 box houses the bare essentials: a 10W charger with a USB port, a USB to Apple Dock connector cable, and a country-specific plug head for the charger. It also has the little folder with the welcome card, product guide, and stickers.<\/p>\n

A study in \u201ctoo similar\u201d<\/h3>\n

In fact, the similarities between the boxes of the iPad 2 and iPad 3 is disconcerting. You may even be hard-pressed to tell the two devices apart in a side-by-side comparison.<\/p>\n

Though many would blow this off as a non-issue, the fact that Apple opted against branding \u201cthe new iPad\u201d with an easy-to-spot model number could cause heartache for less savvy consumers down the line.<\/p>\n

\"iPad

iPad 3 and iPad 2 boxes side-by-side - iPad 3 box on left<\/p><\/div>\n

Considering that both the iPad 2 and iPad 3 will be sold in stores, it could be very easy for scamsters to sell the older model as \u201cthe new iPad\u201d to unsuspecting customers.<\/p>\n

There are a few differences between the boxes of the two devices, but they are very subtle.<\/p>\n

If you\u2019ve got both devices in your hands it\u2019s easy to tell that the iPad 2 is lighter and thinner, but without such a direct comparison it is difficult to tell them apart.<\/p>\n

\u201cResolutionary\u201d<\/h3>\n

Setting up the iPad 3 is as easy as any other device running iOS, and if you\u2019ve backed up to iCloud or iTunes then all your apps and settings can be transferred to the new device easily.<\/p>\n

If you\u2019re not on an uncapped connection, I wouldn\u2019t recommend restoring a backup from iCloud, however.<\/p>\n

Once up-and-running, the iPad 3 behaves exactly as you\u2019d expect it to. Its usability and feature-set is much the same as the Apple tablets that have come before.<\/p>\n

Though the iPad 3 offers a slightly better processor and a much improved camera over the iPad 2, the screen is the device\u2019s killer feature.<\/p>\n

The new \u201cRetina\u201d display certainly delivers the goods: text is crisper, high resolution images look prettier, and colours are more vibrant.<\/p>\n

\"iPad

iPad 2 vs iPad 3 - full brightness - showing a Flipboard page (iPad 3 on the right)<\/p><\/div>\n

Worth the upgrade?<\/h3>\n

However, the Retina display is not a \u201cmust-upgrade\u201d kind of feature, and that\u2019s not necessarily a bad thing.<\/p>\n

If you\u2019re planning on watching a lot of HD video, or using your iPad for image and video editing, then the iPad 3\u2019s improved display may be worth the upgrade.<\/p>\n

On the other hand, if you\u2019ve just bought an iPad 2 then you don\u2019t need to worry that the new model has rendered yours obsolete.<\/p>\n

iPad 1 owners have more of a reason to upgrade, but unless you need the faster processor, cameras, or improved display you should be able to hold on for at least another generation.<\/p>\n

If the real issue is that you just want an excuse to upgrade, then the iPad 3\u2019s Retina display should be reason enough.<\/p>\n

Related articles<\/h3>\n

Win an iPad 3 with MyBroadband<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

iPad 3: What\u2019s in a name?<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

LTE \u201c4G\u201d and the iPad 3<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

iPad with LTE: what does it mean for SA?<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

iPad 2 price cuts in SA<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Can you tell the difference between the new iPad and the old new iPad?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":46066,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[21,29],"tags":[605,5126,35,2438,9866],"class_list":["post-46064","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-columns","category-gadgets","tag-apple","tag-hands-on","tag-headline","tag-ipad-3","tag-retina"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46064"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/15"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=46064"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46064\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":46070,"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46064\/revisions\/46070"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/46066"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=46064"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=46064"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=46064"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}