Semi OT: The new iPAD

[richwhite9]

Still seems to be voice challenged. Skype is coming but GPS and Voice I/O needs some real work.

 

I'll accept the MS mantra: if you upgrade to Windows 7 on desktop don't rush into 8. There's really not much there yet for desktop users.

 

Microsoft has big plans for Skype or else they wouldn't have paid 8 billion dollars for it a few months ago. Rumor has it that it will quickly be changed over from it's antiquated peer to peer network to a more efficient and flexible client server system.

 

Their Lync server (formerly Communication server) is their modern day PBX replacment for telephony and video conference using IP and ethernet or wireless. Call it the Skype Server if you like.

 

I figure they will move as fast on their assault on the telecoms as their stomach for lawsuits allows.

 

Imagine xBox with built in router/wifi instead of buying an extra box from NetGear, and add Lync/Skpe services for consumers for using IP-based phones around the house (for those who like the feel of a 'real phone'), and integration with Windows Phone 8 devices that automatically switch from WiFi around the house or near hot spots to mobile when WiFi isn't available and you can see where this is going. That and the DVR services and mobile device as game controller and motion/gesture controller and xBox is an all purpose home media server.

 

 

 

 

My favorite part of Windows 8: reading on CNET how to create a "shut down" tile. After I installed it as a dual boot I found out how that article evolved. I couldn't find "shut off: so I pulled the battery: it booted right into restore and I was shuttled right back into Windows 8 with my previous session. Worked too well! They I had to learn what Charms were and what was buried under the Power Charm. Then I conceded I too needed to create a shut off tile to get back into the Windows 7 boot or simply go crazy.

[RABid]

Are all the items coming from the manufacturing plants in China? I would guess the iPads are coming from there, but the other items may be coming from inventory in the U.S. or elsewhere. Or, maybe from different plants in China. All just a guess, though.

 

You made me curious so I checked the tracking on the packages.

 

Camera Connection Kit - FedX - SHENZHEN CN

 

Covers - two separate UPS tracking numbers but don't yet show the origin. Labels are created but nothing else. Makes me wonder if they will package them with something else after creating the UPS label.

 

iPads - Separate UPS tracking numbers both originating at EPZ China and first stop being Chengdu, China.

[RABid]

While I was typing that our switchboard operator called to tell me I had a small package. It is my camera connection kit. What is strange is the FedEx tracking list it as coming from China but the package label list it as coming from Elk Grove, CA.

[stillplaying]

While I was typing that our switchboard operator called to tell me I had a small package ...

 

Ouch.

 

Used to get emails offering to extend mine.

[RABid]

[AnotherScott]

While I was typing that our switchboard operator called to tell me I had a small package ...

 

Ouch.

 

Used to get emails offering to extend mine.

I guess the switchboard operator used to work for the Psychic Hotline.

 

Or maybe the TSA.

[RABid]

Are all the items coming from the manufacturing plants in China? I would guess the iPads are coming from there, but the other items may be coming from inventory in the U.S. or elsewhere. Or, maybe from different plants in China. All just a guess, though.

 

You made me curious so I checked the tracking on the packages.

 

Camera Connection Kit - FedX - SHENZHEN CN

 

Covers - two separate UPS tracking numbers but don't yet show the origin. Labels are created but nothing else. Makes me wonder if they will package them with something else after creating the UPS label.

 

iPads - Separate UPS tracking numbers both originating at EPZ China and first stop being Chengdu, China.

 

More information today. The two covers are shipping from two different locations in Tennessee. So, I got the connection kit monday. I'll get the covers Wednesday. The iPads should be here Friday. Another case of getting the accessories before the item.

[RABid]

My iPads are at the UPS international terminal in Louisville KY. Guess they got out of China before Proview could block export. I don't understand the case. Apple bought the name from Proview but now Proview is suing and claims the name was not formally transferred to Apple? Was Proview recently acquired by Monster?

[kanker.]

I believe the claim is that a subsidiary sold Apple the name, but that they didn't have the right to sell it.

[Bill H.]

Walmart is supposed to start selling the least expensive new iPad in a few hours for those who want one right now:

 

http://www.gadgetbox.msnbc.msn.com/technology/gadgetbox/walmart-start-selling-new-ipad-12-01-m-457966

 

I'll pass myself. Go for it guys.

[burningbusch]

Are all the items coming from the manufacturing plants in China? I would guess the iPads are coming from there, but the other items may be coming from inventory in the U.S. or elsewhere. Or, maybe from different plants in China. All just a guess, though.

 

You made me curious so I checked the tracking on the packages.

 

Camera Connection Kit - FedX - SHENZHEN CN

 

Covers - two separate UPS tracking numbers but don't yet show the origin. Labels are created but nothing else. Makes me wonder if they will package them with something else after creating the UPS label.

 

iPads - Separate UPS tracking numbers both originating at EPZ China and first stop being Chengdu, China.

 

Disclaimer, I work for UPS (very low level)

 

You've probably seen the UPS Logistics commercials and on the surface they don't make a lot of sense, but this logistics thing is a big thing for UPS moving forward. The idea is, rather than something like the iPad going from China into Apple's inventory only to be then sent to UPS to get to the customer, UPS receives the product and manages the inventory for Apple. This eliminates additional shipping charges and decreases time to get the product to the customer. If the inventory is held at UPS Worldport in Louisville, it can get to anyone in the USA next day even if ordered late in the day. I don't know if this will be done for Apple on an ongoing basis or only for the launch. Another example is Sprint. UPS inventories and actually configures the phones, rather than Sprint inventorying and configuring.

 

UPS has been investing in this logistics approach for some time and as I understand it have some type of relationship with over 500 companies. FedEx is doing similar things but I don't believe it's on the same scale.

 

Busch.

[therealvicz]

Just got mine delivered today, the TNT delivery guy said he had over 3000 on his van for home deliveries in the West Midlands (UK).

[RABid]

Mine are here. I'm searching the web during lunch trying to figure out how to have seperate Facetime accounts under the same store account.

[HammondDave]

Just bought one.... Upgraded from my IPad 2. The screen is pretty damn impressive. It does generate a little bit of heat, though. Not unexpected with this quality of graphics. We will see if the heat causes long term damage.

 

I am convinced that if Steve Jobs was still alive there would be no way that this thing would be slightly thicker and heavier, or generate any heat at all...

[HammondDave]

Are all the items coming from the manufacturing plants in China? I would guess the iPads are coming from there, but the other items may be coming from inventory in the U.S. or elsewhere. Or, maybe from different plants in China. All just a guess, though.

 

You made me curious so I checked the tracking on the packages.

 

Camera Connection Kit - FedX - SHENZHEN CN

 

Covers - two separate UPS tracking numbers but don't yet show the origin. Labels are created but nothing else. Makes me wonder if they will package them with something else after creating the UPS label.

 

iPads - Separate UPS tracking numbers both originating at EPZ China and first stop being Chengdu, China.

 

Disclaimer, I work for UPS (very low level)

 

You've probably seen the UPS Logistics commercials and on the surface they don't make a lot of sense, but this logistics thing is a big thing for UPS moving forward. The idea is, rather than something like the iPad going from China into Apple's inventory only to be then sent to UPS to get to the customer, UPS receives the product and manages the inventory for Apple. This eliminates additional shipping charges and decreases time to get the product to the customer. If the inventory is held at UPS Worldport in Louisville, it can get to anyone in the USA next day even if ordered late in the day. I don't know if this will be done for Apple on an ongoing basis or only for the launch. Another example is Sprint. UPS inventories and actually configures the phones, rather than Sprint inventorying and configuring.

 

UPS has been investing in this logistics approach for some time and as I understand it have some type of relationship with over 500 companies. FedEx is doing similar things but I don't believe it's on the same scale.

 

Busch.

 

Very interesting. Thanks for the explanation. Looks like UPS has created a whole new merchandise delivery rubric.

[AnotherScott]

JI am convinced that if Steve Jobs was still alive there would be no way that this thing would be slightly thicker and heavier, or generate any heat at all...

Lead times being what they are, I'd be surprised if the specs for this model weren't all set in stone before he passed.

[AnotherScott]

The new iPad has more RAM (1 gig vs. 512 mb for the iPad 2 and 256 mb for the original), but also uses more RAM to manage the quadrupling of the number of pixels for the Retina display. I'm curious how much "free" RAM it has when first booted and nothing else running.

 

Could someone here with a new iPad possibly go to the app store and download the free Diavlo app and report back with how much free RAM it says there is when it is first launched? (It's not an absolute figure, as Diavlo itself has overhead, but at least it could be compared with an iPad and iPad 2 running the same app.)

 

http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/diavlo-device-analyzer/id468619311

[Joe Muscara]

We were talking earlier in this thread about who builds these things.

 

An acclaimed Apple critic made up the details

 

[Adam Minter, a columnist for Bloomberg whos spent years visiting more than 150 Chinese factories] says the reality of factory conditions in China is complicatedworking at Foxconn can be grueling, but most workers will tell you theyre happy to have the job. He says Daiseys become a media darling because hes used an emotional performance to focus on a much simpler message:

 

Foxconn bad. iPhone bad. Sign a petition. Now youre good."

 

Again, I'm not saying things shouldn't be improved. But this critic Daisey has vilified Apple because they're the big target now. He made up his story to make a point and sold it as journalism. Key word being "sold."

[AnotherScott]

He made up his story to make a point and sold it as journalism. Key word being "sold."

Alternate viewpoint: He dramatized facts to create a performance.

 

Interesting link:

http://blogs.kqed.org/newsfix/2012/03/16/listen-to-marketplace-correspondant-and-ira-glass-confront-mike-daisey-about-monologue-discrepancies/

 

It's not black and white. He did bring to light a real problem. It is something artists have often done... and often while taking liberties with facts that they combine with their creativity. Especially since we on this forum are artists of a sort, I think it is especially interesting to look at it in that perspective, as art has often gone beyond literal truths to communicate what is sometimes arguably a deeper truth.

 

Perhaps he should have subtitled his piece, "A docudrama." ;-)

 

As an aside, I remember reading some weeks ago that he placed his script in the public domain... anyone can perform it anywhere without giving him a royalty, or even crediting him (though he'd prefer to be credited). He does seem to genuinely feel deeply about the issue.

[Joe Muscara]

I guess that's what he means in his statement when he says he regrets putting it out as journalism, when it was theater.

[HammondDave]

The new iPad has more RAM (1 gig vs. 512 mb for the iPad 2 and 256 mb for the original), but also uses more RAM to manage the quadrupling of the number of pixels for the Retina display. I'm curious how much "free" RAM it has when first booted and nothing else running.

 

Could someone here with a new iPad possibly go to the app store and download the free Diavlo app and report back with how much free RAM it says there is when it is first launched? (It's not an absolute figure, as Diavlo itself has overhead, but at least it could be compared with an iPad and iPad 2 running the same app.)

 

http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/diavlo-device-analyzer/id468619311

 

About 680mb

[AnotherScott]

About 680mb

Thanks. That's a significant increase from about 315 free on the iPad 2 (running OS 5.0.1, which might make some difference). I could see that being a real benefit for some music applications.

[RABid]

Just bought one.... Upgraded from my IPad 2. The screen is pretty damn impressive. It does generate a little bit of heat, though. Not unexpected with this quality of graphics. We will see if the heat causes long term damage.

 

I am convinced that if Steve Jobs was still alive there would be no way that this thing would be slightly thicker and heavier, or generate any heat at all...

 

My iPad first generation generates some heat, and is thicker than the 2 or 3. They increased the battery in 3 which in addition to the new screen design accounts for the extra thickness.

[JohnH]

We are at dinner. My sister in law just arrived with it. The screen is awesome. I cant wait to get it, going paperless on stage ( mainly lyrics). She's going to use this to teach classes, remote power point , etc. I'm sick of turning my computer on at home , this will help.

[Marzzz]

Went from and iPad2 to iPad3, the weight difference is negligible, not having any noticeable heat problems, there is a speed increase, and the display is awesome. My wife is very happy to get my 2 and upgrade from the original. Now, more music apps, please!

[AnotherScott]

Went from and iPad2 to iPad3...there is a speed increase

What kinds of things are faster? Specifically, anything besides switching between apps?

[Marzzz]

Safari is definitely snappier, that's what I have used the most so far. The old Apple game "Texas Hold'em" which normally took forever to load on my iPhone 3G and still quite a few seconds on my iPhone 4 and ipad2, loads in like 1-2 seconds on my new iPad.

[AnotherScott]

Safari is definitely snappier, that's what I have used the most so far. The old Apple game "Texas Hold'em" which normally took forever to load on my iPhone 3G and still quite a few seconds on my iPhone 4 and ipad2, loads in like 1-2 seconds on my new iPad.

I wonder if this is something about the new hardware, or if it is related to the new 5.1 OS. Are you running 5.1 on your iPad2, to make it a fair comparison?

[ITGITC]

 

Safari is definitely snappier, that's what I have used the most so far. The old Apple game "Texas Hold'em" which normally took forever to load on my iPhone 3G and still quite a few seconds on my iPhone 4 and ipad2, loads in like 1-2 seconds on my new iPad.

I wonder if this is something about the new hardware, or if it is related to the new 5.1 OS. Are you running 5.1 on your iPad2, to make it a fair comparison?

Anandtech's article on the A5X vs. the A5

 

In a nutshell, the processor in A5X is largely the same as in A5: We are looking at two Cortex-A9 cores running at up to 1.0GHz. Some people were anticipating an increase in the clock speed as A5X is expected to be 32nm while A5 was based on older 45nm process node, but it appears that Apple used all the gains of a smaller process node for better graphics.

 

 

 

[AnotherScott]

Right, the processor itself is supposedly not any faster. So I wouldn't generally expect the new hardware to result in faster overall performance, except perhaps for switching among large and/or many apps, which could be faster because additional RAM would allow them to stay in memory instead of having to page out to storage. That's why I'm thinking that speed improvements could be in the OS (or in the case of apps that have been upgraded over time, like Safari, possibly in the apps themselves). That's why I want to see if the speed comparisons are apples-to-apples, running same OS and app version. It's not impossible, though... I think the OS could, itself, theoretically be making use of extra RAM in a way that allows it to perform some tasks more quickly than it can on devices with less RAM. Kind of the way, in the old days, you could get faster performance by putting some system files in a RAM disk.