iPad3 unveiled - new features, faster

Apple's new iPad model, with a sharper screen and a faster processor, will go on sale within the US and 6 other countries next Friday, the corporate confirmed this morning.

Prices aren't changing from the former models. They'll start at $US499. Versions able to accessing cellular networks will cost $629 to $829.

Apple said the recent display could be sharper than the high-definition television set within the front room. The corporate says it'll show more saturated colours than previous models.

The corporate said the iPad is powered by a brand new chip with four processing cores, for smoother graphics.

On the launch event in San Francisco, Apple CEO Tim Cook said, "We're taking it to an entire new level and are redefining the class that Apple created with the unique iPad."

Earlier, Cook said a "post-PC" era dominated by the iPad and other Apple products.

In addition to the U.S., the brand new tablet will go on sale in Canada, Britain, France, Germany, Switzerland and Japan on March 16.

When compared with the iPad 2, the recent model includes a higher-resolution camera at the back, a dead ringer for the only within the iPhone 4S.

Apple also confirmed that the recent model will are available in a version that will use Verizon Wireless' and AT&T Inc.`s "LTE" wireless broadband networks. The offer speeds which are faster than the "3G" networks utilized by previous iPads, and current iPhones.

Apple is updating a number of the software at the tablet to exploit the brand new features. For instance, it's introducing a version of the Mac's iPhoto photo organization and manipulation program for the iPad.

Apple also said it might start letting users store movies in its iCloud remote storage service, so we can be accessed in the course of the internet by PCs and Apple devices. It already lets users store photos, music and documents inside the service.

Apple is likewise upgrading its Apple TV set-top box so it may play movies in 1080p, the top-resolution ordinary video standard.

- Apple says its new iPad shall be thicker and heavier than the iPad 2.

The brand new iPad could be 9.4 millimetres thick, or 0.37 inches. That compares with 8.8 millimetres, or 0.34 inches, for the iPad 2.

The burden goes up from 1.33 pounds (600 grams) to one.4 pounds (640 grams).

Apple hasn't said why the load and thickness is changing. The brand new model includes a better camera, that can add to the thickness. Apple may also be selling a version of the tablet being able to access higher-speed cellular data networks often called LTE. The chips and antennas necessary for that service may also add weight.

It would go on sale within the US, Canada, Britain, France, Germany, Switzerland and Japan on March 16.