Tech Talk

The buzzword last week was iPad, and that is because Apple finally revealed what it called the “magical” iPad.

No less that Apple CEO Steve Jobs unveiled the Ipad last January 28, and he referred to it as a “truly magical and revolutionary product.”

“What this device does is extraordinary,” Jobs said. “It is the best browsing experience you’ve ever had. … It’s unbelievably great … way better than a laptop. Way better than a smartphone.”

The product was presented for demonstration at an  invitation-only event in San Francisco, and it operated without a hardware keyboard, with Jobs typing on what he described as a nearly full-size touchscreen keyboard. “It’s a dream to type on,” he said.

The iPad has a nearly 10-inch screen, about half-inch thick and weigh around 1½ pounds. It is available in 16-gigabyte, 32-gigabyte and 64-gigabyte versions.

Jobs said the iPad will be lightning fast: “It screams.” The device will have a 1 GHz processor, an announcement that coaxed “oohs” and “ahs” from the audience.

The price of this new device starts $499 for the 16-gigabyte version, $599 for the 32-gig version and $699 for the 64, Jobs said. Having 3G mobile access will cost an extra $130 on each, he added.

Two mobile plans will be available through AT&T, and there will be no contracts, allowing customers to opt out at any time, according to Jobs.

Some tweets I’m reading about this iPad isn’t really very encouraging. I haven’t read them though, so I’ll still give this iPad a try… that is, if I can even afford one.