The Apple iPad 2 Review
by Brian Klug, Anand Lal Shimpi & Vivek Gowri on March 19, 2011 8:01 PM ESTThe iPad 2
We've already gone over the iPad 2's design in our preview so I won't spend a ton of time here. The first iPad was a pain to hold in your hand, the iPad 2 largely addresses that problem. The device is similarly sized to its predecessor but Apple removed significant volume by tapering the edges of the iPad 2. The tablet is thus more comfortable to hold, lighter and is significantly thinner than its predecessor. Apple likes to point out that the iPad 2 is now thinner than even the iPhone 4.
Apple iPad 2 (top), Apple iPad (bottom)
The Xoom to me was more pleasant to hold that the original iPad, however the iPad 2 takes the crown back from Motorola. I believe we'll see second generation Android tablets that rival the iPad 2's thickness but for now you have to keep in mind that we're comparing a second generation iOS tablet to first generation Android tablets. With smartphone internals and virtually nonexistent cooling requirements, building a thin tablet isn't an impossible task.
The front of the iPad 2 is pretty much unchanged from the original, with the exception of the new VGA front facing camera (720p rear camera). As we'll get to shortly, beneath the front of the iPad 2 are a number of magnets for use with Apple's new smart covers. The front bezel of the iPad 2 is available in both white and black. Surprisingly all of the AnandTech editors who contributed to this review opted for the white and all of us seemed to actually be pretty happy with the choice.
Apple iPad 2 (left), Apple iPad (right)
Flip the iPad 2 around and the back is a very familiar aluminum. Unfortunately with no protection back here you'll often find yourself laying the iPad 2 face down on a smart cover when it's not in use. Even on a clean desk I could hear tons of little particles grinding up against the aluminum. So far the iPad 2 has been pretty resilient, implying that it's made of a harder aluminum than what Apple uses in the MacBook Pro line. That being said, I still worry about scratching the back of the device. Apple makes beautiful products but their beauty isn't always durable.
The button setup hasn't changed since the original iPad. There's the familiar home button on the front (which feels a little softer than the original, but in a good way) and power/lock button up top.
Apple iPad 2 (left), Apple iPad (right)
Along the right side are the mute/rotation switch and the volume rocker. The ends of the volume rocker protrude out further in the iPad 2 than they did with the original - yet another welcome change.
Apple iPad 2 (bottom), Apple iPad (top)
The dock connector is arguably the biggest flaw in the design. Because of the angled edges of the new iPad, the dock connector actually finds itself located in the middle of a slope. As a result inserting a standard dock cable is a bit awkward. On the original iPad you could just line up the cable with the middle of the bottom edge and sneak it in, on the iPad 2 there's more of a guessing game - usually involving me scraping the cable side dock connector against the aluminum back looking for the mate.
Just like last time the iPad 2 is available in both WiFi and 3G versions. The 3G versions add A-GPS support will the WiFi version can only pinpoint your location using WiFi trilateration. Apple offers separate AT&T and Verizon editions of the iPad 2, both of which have the same black antenna bar along the top of the back face of the tablet.
| Apple iPad 2 Pricing Comparison | |||||
| 16GB | 32GB | 64GB | |||
| WiFi | $499 | $599 | $699 | ||
| AT&T 3G | $629 | $729 | $829 | ||
| Verizon 3G | $629 | $729 | $829 | ||
NAND capacities haven't increased, nor have prices. We likely won't see an increase in storage capacity until 25nm NAND ships in greater volume. The iPad 3 will probably start at 32GB and go all the way up to 128GB as a result.
Regardless of carrier, the 3G models require a $130 premium over the WiFi only models. Personally I'd say that some sort of cellular data connectivity is really necessary to make the iPad 2 as useful as possible. Whether that comes from a 3G model or through a MiFi/smartphone hotspot doesn't really matter.
The pricing as a whole is still absurd. Even if you opt for the $499 WiFi version you'll be out another $39 for a case, plus another $39 if you want the HDMI adapter and then there are all of the apps you will likely start buying. This is an expensive platform to buy into and rest assured that there will be an even faster version out next year. Apple hasn't had much pricing pressure from the competition, however as we mentioned in our CES 2011 coverage - ASUS will be shipping a $399 Honeycomb tablet this year that should start to change that.
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shangshang - Sunday, March 20, 2011 - link
but if you enough fanatic hipsters, +1 device can become a primary fashion must-have.And it's not just yuppies. There are so many geeky engineers at my work place that have an iPad so they can just put it next to there desktop PCs. Worst, there are some managers who use an iPad right along side their laptops in meetings. Baffling to me. I can only chuck it down as fashionable. I mean it's the same reason women pay $2000 for an LV purse that most men would deem god ugly.
kasplat99 - Sunday, March 20, 2011 - link
Last fall there was a discussion of a limitation of 16GB on photos in the iPad.http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID...
I haven't been able to find out whether this was resolved with an iOS 4.x update or the problem persists. This probably is not a limitation of the camera connector kit itself, but rather the photos app, either for total number or data size of photos, but regardless it is a serious limitation if trying to use the iPad for photo work or backup on a long trip.
Testing should be done on 32GB or 64GB iPad if anyone wants to check on this.
BlendMe - Sunday, March 20, 2011 - link
While reading the section on the cameras and the camera UI, I was wondering if you couldn't have saved yourself 1/2 page of writing by just switching on rotation lock? I see that the rotating controls are annoying, but isn't that what the rotation lock switch is for? To keep the UI from rotating?dagamer34 - Sunday, March 20, 2011 - link
That's a pretty bad hack for a problem they should have realized themselves if they ever tried to take a picture with the iPad 2.BlendMe - Sunday, March 20, 2011 - link
How is that a hack? That's what the switch is for (unless you set it to be a mute switch). If you use it to lock the rotation in a browser it's considered a feature.Theoretically (I don't have an iPad 2 and won't be able to try one for at least a week) this switch should allow you to place the capture button on any side of the screen.
I'm kinda surprised Anand/Brian/Vivek didn't even mention it, given that most of their reviews are very thorough and in-depth.
Azethoth - Monday, March 21, 2011 - link
I second that notion. My default is to have rotation locked. I loves me some landscape mode and when reading with it flat it freaks out without some rotation discipline.Now that its on the external switch again there really is not much issue.
Still, it was a major UI oversight. I think they got "lucky" that Jobs was sick and didn't see that rubbish and chew someone a new one. Heck, even Gates would have noticed such UI incompetence.
Bosh - Sunday, March 20, 2011 - link
Yes, you can wait and wait and wait and...........WaltFrench - Sunday, March 20, 2011 - link
Aw, cut @geekfool a break: he's waiting because by then, Flash 10.3.0173 will actually have watchable 720 framerates on a quad-core Tegra.There's geek and there's geek. Perhaps geekfool has drunk the Adobe jizz bigtime. With that list of priorities, he's absolutely doing the right thing.
LauRoman - Sunday, March 20, 2011 - link
Great review but it doesn't hold a candle to Charlie Brooker's 3 and a half minute insightful dissection of the differences between the two devices.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qNSn6AtdSGM
kube - Sunday, March 20, 2011 - link
Great review.I have an iPad 1 and plan on upgrading.
The review says that the principal use is email and web-browsing. Like most my use focuses on a few uses. But the most important is reading.
1. books. I use the Kindle app most, but sometimes ibooks. I share lots of books with my daughter, who uses a kindle device. Ebooks have probably doubled my book reading.
2. journal articles. For me, this is revolutionary. I'm a scientist, and over the past decade journal articles have migrated from print to pdf. With applications like "good reader" and especially "papers", my reading experience has changed. Reading a journal article pdf off of a computer screen is a second-rate experience. Reading off of the ipad, for me, is as good or better than reading print. As pdf applications have matured, the ability to high-light or write notes on the pdfs has gotten better. Really terrific.
3. Other pdfs. Viewing pdfs of slide presentations or theses or other stuff is great.
4. Instapaper. Can't believe its legal. While saving standard web pages is nice, it really shines at saving things like extended magazine articles. Things like the NY Times book review or NY Review of books articles. Extremely comfortable reading experiences, and easy to share with friends via email.
Another comment. My college-student daughter has an 11-inch macbook air. Its her only computer and is a terrific device. it seems to be a better device for students. It overlaps the function of the iPad making it hard to justify both.