Apple today sent out invitations to select media for an event to be held Wednesday, March 2, at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in San Francisco. The Yerba Center is the same site where the original iPad was introduced last year. The invitations included a graphic of the iOS calendar app icon that is peeling away to reveal an iPad underneath, which all but confirms Apple will be introducing the iPad 2. A tagline cheekily reads, “Come see what 2011 will be the year of,” a reference to the recent popularity of tablet computers. The event will start at 10:00 am.
The iPad 2 is widely expected to get some rather obvious upgrades in speed and memory and to introduce a new CDMA (Verizon-compatible) model. Other more uncertain rumors are listed below.
- Dual-core A5 processor (featuring an ARM Cortex-A9 running at 1.2GHz)
- 512MB of RAM
- Imagination SGX543 dual-core graphics chip
- Front-facing camera for FaceTime
- Rear camera
- USB port
- Light Peak port
- Anti-reflective display to better compete with Kindle
- Higher resolution screen, maybe even a Retina Display (this is a highly debunked rumor)
- Sim card slot
- 35% thinner profile
- Lightweight high-strength carbon fiber body
- Improved speakers
