Latest rumours about the Apple iPad launch

Apple has invited journalists to "come see our latest creation" in the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in San Francisco today at 10 am local time (6pm GMT). The assumption is that the event will be used to launch the new Apple tablet computer. If it isn't, Apple will be responsible for the biggest anti-climax in history - or at least since last September when Apple fans last expected a tablet launch. Apple CEO Steve Jobs ramped up hopes yesterday when he said during the company first quarter earnings announcement: "The new products we are planning for release are very strong, starting this week with a major new product."

Countless rumours have circulated in recent weeks about how the tablet might look and what it might offer. Here, The First Post pulls together the most realistic projections...

When can i buy an 'itablet'?The Wall Street Journal claimed at the beginning of January that "people briefed on the matter" say the tablet will be on sale two months after launch, ie. by March 27. CNET reports that the tablet is already in full production with up to 10 million units likely to be shipped in 2010.

However, a note to investors from Shaw Wu, an analyst with Kaufman Bros, says the shipping of the device will be delayed until June due to the "minor issues" of battery life and durability.

What will it cost?An analyst with Piper Jaffray, says Taiwanese sources tell him the average price will be $600 (£370). However, Shaw Wu's note to investors predicts a $999 (£620) price tag: a price that would, according to the Wall Street Journal, include unlimited access to wi-fi hotspots. But just hours before Apple's event, Twitter updates from Jason Calacanis, the founder of technology website Engadget, revealed the cost to be $599, $699 or $799 (£369, £430 or £492) in the US depending on screen size and configuration.

What will it be called?Apple owns a number of suitable trademarks, including iPad, iSlate, Magic Slate, and TabletMac. However, iPad was filed as a trademark in Canada and Europe as recently as July 2009, while iSlate was filed in 2006-2007. It seems iPad is the current frontrunner, especially as Microsoft has just announced a new line of 'Slate PCs'.

What will it look like?Probably a jumbo-sized iPhone. Estimates of the size of the touch screen vary from between 7 and 11 inches, although 10 inches seems most likely. Apple itself has reportedly said it will be "small enough to carry in a handbag but too big to fit in a pocket".

A very convincing picture of a device purporting to be the new tablet - bolted down to the table, and with an iPhone on top for comparison appears here, along with the news that the tablet will have an aluminium casing.

Shaw Wu's note says the new device will be a "super" iPod touch: "This tablet product has been described to us as a hybrid between an iPhone/iPod touch and a Mac but in terms of software and components, it appears closer to the former... where video, gaming, web browsing, e-books and the ability to run multiple apps would be enhanced with the much larger screen."
 
There is also debate over whether the screen will be LCD or organic LED. The latter is much lighter, thinner and uses less energy than the former. But there are probably not enough OLED screens in the whole of Asia to mass produce an OLED tablet.

One slightly more out-there suggestion is that the tablet will have a 3D display that doesn't require the user to wear special glasses. The technology is probably not good enough to be included in this generation of tablet, though.

What will it feel like?Apple applied for a patent in December for a "multi-touch tactile keyboard". The patent raises the intriguing possibility of a normally flat touchscreen that, when in typing mode, has raised edges similar to a keyboard. Last month, an anonymous source told the New York Times that users would be "surprised how you interact with the new tablet".

This seems to have fuelled a separate rumour that the new tablet will include handwriting recognition, via a method that does not require the use of a stylus. Jason Calacanis's Twitter updates claim there are two thumb pads on either side of the tablet, intended for "mouse gestures".

What will it do?Apart from the inevitable video, music and web-browsing capabilities, the Apple tablet allows you to use more than one 'app' at the same time - something the iPhone, currently, does not allow. The operating system is apparently a version of the iPhone OS that does allow multiple apps, so perhaps iPhone users will have something to cheer them today, too. Some people are setting great store by the number of video game developers invited to the January 27 launch. The suggestion is that the new tablet will be a "major gaming platform", utilising the multitouch interface popularised on the iPhone.

What about the ebook capability?The tablet is widely expected to herald a new era in publishing. Apart from HarperCollins and other book publishers' reported negotiations to provide ebooks for the new device, it is thought that magazines and newspapers are lining up to provide electronic editions.
 
The New York Times is thought to have been in talks with Apple since June 2009 - and the American liberal journal of choice would be a perfect fit for a company rooted firmly among the metropolitan elite.

Conde Nast has optimised a version of its technology magazine Wired for a tablet-sized computer - although whether this was wishful thinking on the publisher's part or had any input from Apple is open to debate.

Meanwhile, Murdoch's News Corp, Conde Nast, Hearst, Meredith and Time Inc have announced they are forming a consortium to "prepare print publications for a new generation of digital devices".

Will it have a webcam?A France Telecom exec last week 'accidentally' blabbed that the new tablet would have a webcam. More importantly, Engadget's Jason Calacanis revealed on Twitter there would be two cameras - one in front and one in the back.

How will it connect to the internet?Apple is reported to have approached several UK mobile phone operators about the possibility of selling its tablet, raising the possibility of a subsidised tablet enabled with 3G mobile broadband. Last time Apple negotiated with the mobile phone networks, it gave O2 an exclusive deal to sell its iPhone - Apple fans are desperately hoping lightning doesn't strike twice.

Despite these talks, the Shaw Wu investment note reckons wi-fi would be the "most likely option" for network access as the 3G network is already "strained" - mostly due to the success of smartphones such as the iPhone. However, the UK mobile networks also offer access to wi-fi hotspots around the country.

What does Steve Jobs think of the iTablet?The Apple CEO is reported as saying: "This will be the most important thing I've ever done." ·