Apple has finally released the much hyped iPad in the United States today. If you are looking to get your hands on iPad, or if you just got hold of one?, we’ll guide you through all the basics that you might need to know to kick start things. Here is all what you need to know about the “magical” Apple iPad.
pre-ordering
The first and foremost thing which everyone did was to pre-order the iPad online from Apple Store online, which is actually a good idea considering that every Apple product runs out of stock soon after it has been launched. If you’ve pre-ordered your iPad, either it’ll be shipped to your home today, or you can pick it up from your nearest Apple Store. Shipping started a week before the official launch so the odds are that you should be expecting your pre-ordered iPad really really soon.
picking it up from the store
Missed the Pre-order? Don’t worry, apart from pre-ordering your iPad online, you can pick it up from an Apple Store near you. Make sure you reach the store in time so you get your hands on an iPad before the stock runs out. Lines outside are said to be long ones, almost a déjà vu of 2007 iPhone launch event. Best Buy is holding the iPad on launch, so by chance if there’s no Apple Store near your place, start hunting for the nearest Best Buy store.
price and features
All the info on iPad pricing, availability and features can be found here.
iPad accessories
There aren’t a lot of accessories which you can get for the iPad right now. The only thing which you’ll get for your iPad on launch is the basic iPad Dock and Dock connector for VGA. Rest of the accessories, including the Keyboard with Dock will ship either later this month or in May, so you have to hold your horses on this one. But stay alert for accessories by third party manufacturers, you won’t find a case for your iPad by Apple itself on launch, but there are cases on Amazon floating around which you can get for your iPad.
iPad apps
On launch day there are over a thousand apps on the App Store already just for the iPad, you can even use your favorite iPhone and iPod touch apps on the iPad as well. Just like the iPhone and iPod touch, there are a lot of amazing apps and games to try and buy. You can check out our iPad Apps Gallery, or check out the iTunes App Store for all the iPad apps you can get.
iPad review
First of iPad reviews are already up on the Internet. From Wall Street Journal, to USA Today, to PC World, to New York Times, to Engadget and Gizmodo – all have great things to say about the product. One thing however most of them have agreed upon is the fact that it is not really a notebook/netbook replacement, but rather a great companion which could do tasks like email, web browsing, music, videos, book reading and so on with great ease. You can read what they all have to say about the iPad here. We’ll also have our own review once we get our hands on the device itself by earlier next week.
unboxing videos
You can check out the unboxing videos which we have posted earlier on Redmond Pie by various different publishers around the world, and we will update them as soon as we get our hands on more videos and also expect an unboxing video by us as well very soon.
comparison with Kindle and others
The head to head comparison between Kindle DX and iPad, and the upcoming HP Slate (with Windows 7) and iPad can be found here:
- iPad vs Kindle DX – The Definitive Comparison
- iPad vs HP Slate – Where Do You Stand in this Mac vs PC War?
- Microsoft Courier or the Apple iPad ?
what about jailbreak?
There is no ETA on jailbreak for iPad yet, but Geohot and others are already working on jailbreaking the iPhone OS 3.2, which the iPad comes with. Stay tuned as we’ll let you know whenever there is an update on this!
turn your iPhone into iPad
Have an iPhone already? and not interested in getting an iPad? We have a guide here to turn your iPhone into iPad ! Do check it out!
UPDATE 1: Jailbreak iPad with Spirit is Real ! More info here.
UPDATE 2: Apple Posts Up Solution to Fix iPad Wi-Fi Problem. More info can be found here.
UPDATE 3: Jailbreak iPad with Blackra1n is confirmed by Geohot! More info here.
For more, visit our iPad Activity Center for all things Apple iPad !
You can follow us on twitter or join our facebook fanpage to keep yourself updated on all the latest from Microsoft, Google and Apple.