By: Tech Savvy
I’m talking to you, guy or gal who just won all those bets you placed on the Super Bowl. Put that money away and step back from that glowing Apple display case. Look, here’s the truth: you could get your Valentine an iPad and probably get some really great sex in return. Maybe even a few weeks of really good sex, cause at the heart of it, yeah, the iPad is pretty frickin awesome. But that’s all you’d get, a few hundred bucks for a few weeks. Because come mid-March, it’s all gonna dry up. So listen close.
Tablet devices are at the beginning of their gradual takeover of the laptop computer as we currently know it. The basic track pad, keyboard, and high-quality-but-not-touch screen layout has already seen developments like Apple’s multi-touch, glass, track space. While the laptop will stick for some time, see some improvements, and probably get cheaper, the focus is unquestionably on the tablet revolution and Apple’s iPad began this craze. However, at this point the iPad has been out about ten months, with the one-year anniversary in late April. So while the idea of the iPad is still new and hot, the actual product is old and busted.
iPad 2 and Android’s Honeycomb OS are on their way!
Rumors of the iPad 2 began even before the original iPad was released. Leaked factory pictures left all the fan boys certain that the device would have a camera on it. When release day came and no camera was to be found, those in the know declared they’d be waiting a year before purchasing, cause that sucker was real.
Now, with a Macotakara.jp post showing photos of new glass panels (you’ll most likely want to run that through Google Translate), as well as rumors of an Apple event toward the end of this month and a release in March, it’s clear we’ve been right all along. Over at MacRumors.com, there’s talk of a faster processor, more memory, a better speaker, a possible plain ol’ USB port, a slightly different form factor and, of course, dual-cameras for Face Time, as well as less substantiated rumors of better screen resolution. And while you shouldn’t hold your breath for 4G or LTE data in this model, there’s going to be enough in this new one to make you seriously regret buying that three-week old iPad “Classic”.
Furthermore, tablet computing on the iPad is soon to be one-upped by the Android platform’s new operating system, Android 3.0 Honeycomb. In a recent press conference held on February 2nd and posted to YouTube by the Android Developers, it’s clear to see that Google knows what tablet users want. While even the iPad 2 will stick with the one-button-for-everything concept, Honeycomb tablets take the four-button idea of Android phones, and turns them into an on-screen-multi-button approach that will make navigating your device simply, well, simpler. Pull up music controls, settings for volume and wireless, even change up your home screen layout and widgets all with single touches, not multiple and confusing click patterns.
The widgets look incredible too! From access to your Gmail inbox and your calendar on the home screen itself, to your Google Books collection that you can flip through ‘til you find the one you like, Honeycomb re-imagines the idea of the tablet OS. Honeycomb will first come to the Motorola Xoom (though there’s already a hacked port onto the Barnes and Noble Nook Color), and that device boasts dual-cameras, a multi-core ARM processor, and a true 720p screen. Plus, Xoom LTE is rumored for second-quarter, while you now know you won’t see iPad 3 until another year from now.
No matter what your personal preference is, you just need a little patience. Yeah yeah, a little patience. Don’t drop hundreds of dollars on what will be obsolete in less than a month. Instead, buy your Valentine some old school candy at Crossroads Market to tide them over until the new tablets launch. Then sit back and let a full year of returned sexual favors begin.
