So Apple has finally released the latest version of iPad with the name of iPad new, containing several cutting edge features as well as a few surprises for everyone. There shouldn’t be any two opinions in the fact that the new iPad would be a highly popular device but we would have to see how long it would take for the new iPad to beat the previous version and claim the top position in the market. In comparison with the first generation version of iPad, the new iPad has clear advantages. Other than the immensely improved technical specs, there are various apps and software enhancements that would not be available on the first generation iPad. However, when it comes to comparison with iPad 2, the situation dramatically changes.
 
iPad 2, at present, happens to be the most popular version of iPad and is being used by millions of users worldwide. Even the onslaught of Android devices could not disturb the popularity of iPad 2. During the event of the new iPad announcement, Apple also announced that the sale of iPad 2 would be continued which means that the software enhancements that we would see on iPad 3 would most probably be also available iPad 2. This further means that the new iPad would only have a few technical specs that would provide it an edge over the previous version of iPad. According to various tech experts, it might take as long as eight months for the new iPad to surpass iPad 2 as the most popular tablet of all time. When iPad 2 was released, it claimed about 50 percent of the iOS tablet impression in a limited period of six months. This would be a difficult target for the new iPad 2 since the price of iPad 2 has been drastically reduced by Apple which has made it even more attractive for the users, particularly those with constrained budget limit. Besides, the use of the first generation iPad would also continue, even though Apple would terminate the sales of that device. Apple dropped the price of iPad 3 from $499 to $399 and this is certainly quite a huge difference. This would compel many users to ignore some of the cutting features of the new iPad and instead go for iPad 2. But Apple had to make this move, keeping in consideration the Android tablets, some of which present a perfect alternative to the Apple Tablet, such as Galaxy Tab and Kindle Fire.

Now that the new iPad was released everyone would want to have it particularly when it is quite reasonably priced. But it seems that Apple would make sure that the older versions of iPad keep selling and for this, Apple is drastically lowering the price of the previous versions. During the last Apple event during which the new iPad was announced, it was also announced that Apple would continue the sale of the previous version of iPad on a lower price. Apparently this move was a result of the constantly increasing competition in the market of the mobile devices.
 
The new iPad is no doubt a worth having gadget in the presence of amazing specs such as Retina display, iSight camera and faster A5X processor. The price of new iPad would start from $499 just like the previous version when it was released last year. But still, if your budget is constrained and you can’t really afford to go for this latest version, you don’t need to worry since the price of the previous version has been drastically lowered. If you go to the special deals sections on Apple’s online store, you would find some amazing offers there. For example, you can purchase a WiFi, 16 GB OG iPad with a nominal price of just $299. But what is even more amazing, with the addition of merely 50 more bucks, you can actually get you hands on a second generation iPad with 16 GB storage. Further, if you happen to be a premium user, there is even more attractive offer for you. For premium users, the store has a special offer of 64 GB Wifi and 3G version of iPad 2 for $679. Good thing is that all these devices are accompanied with a one year warranty. Interestingly, there are rumors that soon another tablet with a jaw-dropping price of just $129 would be made available on the online store, although it has not arrived as yet.
 
This is certainly a wise and timely move from Apple. Although Apple is still at the top of the tablet market and iPad happens to be the most popular tablet of all time, Android tablets has been giving tough competition to Apple for the last couple of years. Keeping this in consideration, Apple really needed to bring something extra to retain its position in the market, and the above offers are a manifestation of steps in this direction. Further, Apple is also expected to release a mini iPad, which would be a 7 inch device, to compete smaller tablets such as Amazon Kindle Fire and Galaxy Tab 7.

Apple’s iPad remains to be the most popular tablet device of all time with no other tablet posing serious threat to it. However, when we consider tablets with smaller size, Amazon Kindle Fire has proven to be immensely successful. Previously, not everyone was considering 7 inch tablets a viable area of production, but Kindle Fire has changed the entire perception. As for Apple, Steve Jobs had a clear position on this matter and he ruled out any possibility of manufacturing a 7 inch version of iPad. Now, however, it seems that things have changed at Apple as well as the company is considering manufacturing a smaller version of iPad, mainly to compete with Kindle Fire.

According to the resources related with this news, Apple is considering production of 8 inch versions of iPad, which might be called iPad mini. Production of these devices has not kicked off as yet but might be started any time in near future. The production, if it really happens, would most probably be started after the release of iPad 3 since at present, Apple would be devoting the full concentration to iPad 3 release which would take place in a few weeks. The resources revealing the news of the possibility of producing 8 inch tablet have not come with detailed technical specifications of this device. However, it was told that this 8 inch version of iPad would showcase a screen resolution of 1024 x 768. Other technical specs would most probably be less than the standard version of iPad since  Apple wants to compete with Kindle Fire market, the price of this new device would have to be considerably lower than the standard version of iPad. According to the resources, although mass production of these devices has not started as yet, the test panels are being produced by AU Optronics and LG Display. What’s more, this mini version is expected to have support for LTE networks. However, all this is just speculation and there is no official announcement form Apple to take any such initiative. It might turn out to be just another hoax and to know about the actual truth, we would have to wait for a few months. But if this actually turns out to be true, we would be having two versions of iPad this year, another new precedence form Apple.