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"  Apple products have legions of fans and so it was with bated breath that tech enthusiasts waited for the introduction on Wednesday of its new tablet - the iPad. As you may recall, when Google launched its G1 phone, I blogged about how it compared to the iPhone, by many considered the state-of-the-art smartphone. So how will the iPad rank when compared to other tablets?  While we haven&amp;#039;t yet gotten our hands on the iPad, these are its basic features:   It has a 9.7&amp;quot; touch screen, weighs about 1.5 pounds and is only half an inch thick. It basically looks like an enlarged iPod Touch. Compared to other upcoming tablets like the Hewlett Packard Slate and the JooJoo, this is lighter, but falls in the range of traditional tablet size.    It can run applications developed for the iPhone and iPod Touch, with a host of new programs tailored specifically for the device.    The app generating the most buzz right now is iBooks - so far five of the six largest publishers (all but Random House) have signed on to provide e-book content for the iPad. The interface for reading on the iPad is considered one of its high points.  Bottom line, the iPad looks to be a user-friendly device capable of surfing the Internet and perusing a users&amp;#039; music, photos and books. There are major drawbacks, though. For starters, it doesn&amp;#039;t have a built-in camera. Its operating system is also based on the iPhone OS, meaning that it doesn&amp;#039;t allow you to use multiple applications simultaneously. So let&amp;#039;s say you&amp;#039;re on your computer looking through pictures and want to stream Pandora in the background - it&amp;#039;s not going to happen. The browser is also lacking Flash support, which on the iPhone isn&amp;#039;t as big of a deal, but on the iPad is annoying if you want the ability to run something like Hulu to watch movies. Of course while lacking in some major performance traits like multi-tasking, Flash support and a built-in webcam, Apple enthusiasts will definitely love the simplicity and sleek design that is associated with all Apple products and certainly this device.  The iPad will be available in stores in March for $499-$699, depending upon memory. Apple also announced that subsequent models will use 3G connection through AT&amp;amp;amp;T priced at a premium. So if you were debating purchasing a tablet you may (or may not) want to hold off until then. Meanwhile, let us know what you think of the iPad. "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.goodhousekeeping.com/institute/a21867/does-the-ipad-live-up-to-hype/>