iPad HD Live Launch: What To Expect

All eyes will be on San Francisco later today as Apple unveils their new iPad. The event, which kicks off at 10am local time (6pm GMT), is widely expected to see Apple announce an iPad HD, rather than a more plainly titled iPad 3. But what can we expect of the new device from Apple? An improved camera seems like a given, along with additional storage space (32GB seems likely to be the smallest model). Better battery life is also top of the wish-list for most Apple devotees and has no doubt been considered. Design wise we don't expect the iPad HD to look much different than its predecessor. The screen will be the same size, but significantly sharper (hence the HD name), most likely utilising a IPS LCD display. A new iOS seems feasible (iOS 6), though we don't expect this to launch at the same time as the iPad HD - more likely 6 to 8 weeks down the line. Accessories from previous iPad models will almost certainly be cross-compatible with the new model, though a new wave of cases will be needed to fit perfectly with the minor changes which will be made to the size of the overall casing. The processor is expected to be only a slight upgrade on that which is found in the iPad 2 (a dual-core A5). 4G capability has been widely tipped, but we think the iPad HD may beseem to be more likely for Apple to launch an iPad 4G in late 2013/early 2014 when the technology is widely used and it can be made less of a drain on battery life. It is thought that the iPad HD could be on sale in the UK as early as next Friday (March 16th). The price of the iPad 2 is expected to be slashed prior to the launch.