On that day, only the WiFi version was available for purchase, which would set you back $499 for 16GB of storage, 256MB of RAM, and an 1GHz Apple A4 processor. The tablet was officially unveiled to the world on January 27, 2010, but didn’t go on sale for another two months, roughly. The 3G version was released on April 30, with international users being able to buy one on May 28 of that year.

Look ahead to today, and Apple has already flown through four generations of iPads, the newest sporting a Retina display, a 1.4GHz Apple A6X processor, 1GB of RAM, and up to a whopping 128GB of storage. There’s even the iPad mini, which is a smaller 7-inch version of the full-size, 9.7-inch variant.

The iPad has certainly come a long way since it’s release three years ago, and while it has ultimately gotten thinner and faster, the original iPad is still a remarkable piece of machinery. Heck, I still have my 1st-generation iPad going strong to this day, and it’s showing no signs of stopping quite yet. To get a bit of nostalgia flowing through your veins, check out our full review of the device, which also went live three years ago today.

DelBene would emphasize that iPad owners could use the online versions of the Microsoft Office apps, but the web applications are known to have their fair share of problems, which is something that could be remedied with an official app. DelBene replied to one of the questions with, “Do we need to have the PC software that’s running on every single device?. We look very much at ‘What is the experience that we are looking to have on those devices’.”

Reuters brings up a great point when they stated that putting Microsoft Office on iPads would prove to be detrimental to the sales of the Microsoft Surface tablets. One of the major pulls of the Microsoft Surface tablets is its amazing productivity aspect, and a major component of that is the native Office apps installed on it. It’s arguably one of the best tablets for productivity, compared to Android tablets and iPads. To take away one of its major selling points would be counterproductive.

DelBene continued to emphasize the web versions of its Microsoft products, saying “We have enhanced the web applications pretty substantially, in partnership with Apple.” DelBene didn’t state specifically that they weren’t going to ever release Microsoft Office onto the iPad. Perhaps when the Microsoft Surface tablets, and Windows 8 tablets in general, start getting enough traction, iPad owners will get their Office apps.

[via Reuters]

By analyzing the previous launch events held by Apple, Gene Munster believes that the Apple always holds a launch event in the Spring time. Combing through the 11 major product launch events held by Apple since the launch of the iPhone 3GS, Munster believes that the Spring event always centers around iPad updates, and that with it being the first Apple event of the year, it is going to feature something major. The ‘something major’ is speculated to be a complete redesign of the full-sized iPad that resembles the design of the iPad Mini. He also believes that the next iPad mini could be introduced at the event, and this time it will carry a Retina display.

Munster goes deeper into the details, and found that the average time between Apple’s launch events is 123 days, or about 4 months. He also analyzes that the longest time between events was about 216 days, or 7 months, and that was the gap between the iPad 2 launch in March 2011 and the iPhone 4S launch in October 2011. By taking those times into consideration, and also considering that every other company will be holding major launch events around that time, he believes that the event will be held in between March and April.

Apple TV is also due for an update sometime within the next 6 months, and Munster believes it will be updated to ‘prime the pump for the ultimate television’. Considering that Apple has just launched the iPad Mini and 4th gen iPad in October, there could be a change in the schedules of its launch events. We all remember how upset iPad 3 owners were when the 4th gen iPad was release just 7 months after they bought their devices.

[via AppleInsider]

To Apple, this is probably just another day of meetings and agreements. But to Staples, this is a huge win, and it’s apparent due to the excitement from its executives. Erin LaFlamme, Strategic Accounts Coordinator for Staples, tweeted, “Thanks #Apple for letting #Staples sell you…oh, and for the delicious apple products to celebrate at… ”. Mike Goggin, Field Services Manager for Staples, tweeted, “Staples just finalized a deal to begin selling Apple products #finally”.

This agreement has been long overdue in the U.S., especially considering that Canada’s Staples stores have been carrying Apple products for quite a while now. The availability of Apple products in Staples’s U.S. retail stores should increase the convenience of purchasing an Apple device for many consumers. Not everyone has an Apple store nearby, so Apple enters into agreements with retailers to get their products into the hands of as many consumers as possible.

None of the tweets about the Apple/Staples agreement said anything about when Apple’s products will be available at Staples, but it shouldn’t be too long from now. There also wasn’t any confirmation on what Apple products would be for sale at Staples, but if it’s anything like the Staples in Canada, you should expect to see Apple’s whole selection of products, including iPods, iPads, Macbooks, and Apple TVs.

[via AppleInsider]

From the video, the app looks to be extremely intuitive, and it lets you choose from tons of different 3D shapes. From there, you can then add color, as well as different types of eyes, noses, and mouths to create a unique face on your figurine. Then once you’re done, you can print out the layout via AirPrint and then fold together your creation.

One of the coolest aspects of the app is the preview pane, which lets you see what your 3D paper figurine looks like before you even print it out and put it together. It updates in real time and even lets you rotate it to get a 360-degree view of the figurine, that way you can correct any mistakes or improve on some areas before you print out the final product.

The app will be compatible with all iPad versions except the first-generation iPad (not enough memory), and we’re not sure if it’ll be available for the iPhone and iPod Touch or not, but either way, it looks like the type of app that would be way better on an iPad anyway. The company hasn’t released any more details on the app other than the video, but you can submit your email address to let them notify you when the app gets released.

The app sells for $5.99 and you get a lot of cool new features along with it other than just controlling the flying machine. The app allows you to record video, capture images, and track objects from within the app. The app also controls autonomous flight and allows you to execute pre-programmed Drone animations and control the lights on the toy as well. The app will work on both the iPhone and the iPad.

Other features include the ability to save the settings for your Drone inside the app so if you reset you don’t have to enter settings again. The app allows iPad 2 users to mirror the screen to their TV. The app allows for control options you don’t get by default with reversed for left hand users, elevation control inversion and the ability to stalk a target with yaw and elevation or yaw, elevation, and pitch. The video is recorded in H.264 encoded QuickTime and can overlay flight data including altitude.

[via iTunes]

That was good news because you could still use that “I only read the articles” excuse that has served many over the years. The inevitable question of comes along with the launch of the online version of Playboy. Just how did Hef get the iPad version past the prudes at Apple? The answer is pretty easy, he didn’t . The iPad service isn’t an app, it is a digital version of the mag optimized for the Apple tablet so it didn’t’ have to go through the approval process.

The service is apparently a website optimized for the iPad and naturally called iPlayboy. The service promises access to 57 years of the magazine and 682 issues. The iPlayboy service promises it is meant to “appeal to that sense of collective nostalgia and affinity.” The service also calls itself “the world’s sexiest time machine.” iPlayboy will cost $8 monthly, $60 for a year, or $100 for 2-years.

[via The Register]

There’s gold and silver awards in each of the following three categories: Display of the Year, Display Application of the Year, and Display Component of the Year. The first two categories had the same two manufacturers in first and second, Apple and Samsung. Samsung is more than likely crying and stomping their feet because everyone knows that their AMOLED displays are wild and they’re gunning for the top. That said, here’s the results:

Display of the Year
Gold Award: Apple iPhone 4 Retina Display
Silver Award: Samsung Mobile Display On-cell Touch AMOLED

Oh my goodness what a battle that was! Those winners and every other winner is explained in a bit more detail in the press release below. Continuing on with the Display Application of the Year, it’s again Apple and Samsung in the first and second place. Whether or not Apple is pumping their first for their winning iPad entry is anyone’s guess – Samsung on the other hand just can’t seem to win enough awards for it’s undeniable Galaxy S line of Android phones.

Display Application of the Year
Gold Award: Apple iPad
Silver Award: Samsung Galaxy S Mobile Smartphones

Finally, the oddity. Display Component of the year is the sweet category where real odd and awesome innovation is really high-fived the most. It’s here that Apple and Samsung don’t even show up, much less get first and second. E Ink Triton Color ePaper and some flexible substrate for displays from ITRI are the big Gold and Silver. Flexibility in ePaper – a combination that cannot be beat save for by the real thing. No more dead trees!

Display Component of the Year
Gold Award: E Ink Triton™ Color ePaper Display
Silver Award: ITRI Flexible Substrate for Displays

Do you think these are the best choices for each of the gold belt titles? Which display did you like best in 2010? How about thus far in 2011? Let us know, let’s talk!

Check out the full press release for all the extra details:

SOCIETY FOR INFORMATION DISPLAY NAMES PRODUCTS CHOSEN FOR 2011 DISPLAY OF THE YEAR AWARDS

Apple, E Ink, ITRI and Samsung Top Field in Remarkable Year for Display Innovation

CAMPBELL, Calif., May 17, 2011— (Virtual Press Office) – The Society for Information Display (SID), the leading global organization dedicated to the advancement of electronic display technology, today announced its selections for the 2011 Display of the Year Awards (DYAs). The prestigious annual awards honor the products judged by the international DYA committee to exhibit the greatest degree of technical innovation, commercial significance and likely social impact, among other factors. This year’s winners comprise myriad breakthrough developments, and given the preponderance of mobile/handheld technologies, DYA 2011 could easily be subtitled the “Up Close and Personal” awards.

Bob Melcher, chairman of the SID Display of the Year Awards committee, noted, “This list of 2011 DYA award winners honors innovations that are continuing to make interactions with handheld communication and computing devices more exciting, intuitive and useful than ever before. They demonstrate the remarkable contributions made by the display industry to broaden and enhance the lives of people.”

The six products chosen—two each for Display, Display Component and Display Application of the Year—will be honored during Display Week 2011, being held this week at the Los Angeles Convention Center. The Gold Award-winning company in each category will screen a short video on its winning product during the awards ceremony at the annual SID luncheon on Wednesday, May 18.

A brief description of each of the winning products is provided below. In-depth descriptions of the award winners can be found in the Display Week 2011 Show Issue of Information Display magazine.

Display of the Year

Gold Award: Apple iPhone 4 Retina Display
This year, Apple extended its track record of revolutionizing personal communications technology with the introduction of the industry-leading iPhone 4 Retina display. Packing four times the number of pixels into the same 3.5-in. dia. screen found on earlier iPhone models, the 640×960-pixel Retina display set a new benchmark for mobile display resolution, low power consumption and image quality. Utilizing Mobile IPS (in-plane switching) technology, the iPhone 4 Retina display achieves a viewing angle superior to conventional mobile LCDs, providing an enhanced viewing experience for the end user in virtually any application. The display features a host of technical advancements: customized LTPS TFT backplane with organic passivation and optimized pixel design; user-customizable, auto-adjustable brightness using ambient light sensing; advanced IPS compensation polarizer technology for high contrast (800:1) and color consistency regardless of viewing direction; 8-bit color depth; an ultra-thin, tiny-footprint driver IC; and patent-pending mechanical integration.

Silver Award: Samsung Mobile Display On-cell Touch AMOLED
Samsung Mobile Display developed its OCTA – on-cell touch active-matrix light-emitting diode (AMOLED) – display to meet the ever-increasing performance and industrial design demands of today’s modern mobile devices. Unlike prior-generation touch-capable mobile displays, the OCTA display integrates the touch sensor onto the display itself, rather than fabricating the sensor on a separate glass substrate and then laminating it onto the display. This innovation, embodied in the OCTA’s projected capacitive touch detection technology, greatly reduces product weight and thickness, while increasing touch performance and response via the multi-sensor input capability that enables gesture recognition for the most advanced mobile devices. Moreover, because AMOLEDs are self-emissive, no backlight is required, allowing the Samsung OCTA display to deliver very high performance and exceptional display quality, with highly accurate and sensitivity-optimized touch input, in a module that is less than 2 mm thick and provides nearly 100-percent light transmission and exceptional outdoor visibility.

Display Application of the Year

Gold Award: Apple iPad
The iPad marks a new era of tablet computing, transforming the way people communicate, consume and create content, play games and learn. The iPad LCD’s Mobile IPS technology combines with its innovative Multi-Touch user interface and unique system design to enable the iPad’s versatility in numerous applications. The iPad display provides a superior viewing experience with a minimized gamma shift over viewing angles, enabling designers to create innovative apps that further enhance the viewing experience. The iPad’s fully customized design leverages the existing amorphous silicon thin-film transistor (a-Si TFT) infrastructure in an innovative, ultra-thin product with the unique LCD and an innovative power-management system that achieves maximum power efficiency – 10 hours of battery life for WiFi web surfing and 9 hours for 3G web surfing.

Silver Award: Samsung Galaxy S Mobile Smartphones
In June 2010, Samsung Mobile launched its first-ever premium portfolio of smartphones – the first-ever premium smartphone suite to be simultaneously unveiled by all four major U.S. mobile carriers. The Galaxy S lineup provides a premium viewing experience with a brilliant 4-inch display powered by Samsung’s Super AMOLED touch-screen technology, which yields thinner displays to enable some of the industry’s thinnest, most responsive, full-featured smartphones. Created to be an ideal medium for viewing premium entertainment content, the Samsung Galaxy S phones tap into Samsung’s own content service, Samsung Media Hub, optimized for the best viewing and audio experience based on device screen size, screen type, video resolution, memory type, processor and sound profile. The next-generation Super AMOLED Plus adds RealStripe screen technology and a greatly increased sub-pixel count – 50 percent more sub-pixels than the original Super AMOLED – complementing the mechanics of the human eye to ensure images look clearer and more detailed than ever before.

Display Component of the Year

Gold Award: E Ink Triton™ Color ePaper Display
E Ink Triton™ is a color electronic paper display, which delivers the same great paper-like reading experience adopted by eReader devices around the world, but now with the added capability of color. Triton delivers the same high-contrast, sunlight-readable, low-power performance as the black and white E Ink Pearl™ product. The addition of color enhances the reading experience to better address the needs of ePublishing markets, including eBooks, eNewspapers, eMagazines and eTextbooks, as well as electronic signage. Triton adds a color filter array (CFA) over a black and white electrophoretic display (EPD) film. Each pixel in the CFA consists of four sub-pixels; red, green, blue and white. This arrangement creates a low-power EPD display with thousands of colors that is highly readable in direct sunlight yet does not sacrifice the black and white reading experience. In addition to color, E Ink Triton delivers 20 percent faster page update times compared to previous technologies.

Silver Award: ITRI Flexible Substrate for Displays
ITRI has developed an innovative flexible substrate for displays of all sizes. Compatible with existing TFT infrastructures and processes, the ITRI flexible substrate is a novel inorganic dominated silica/polyimide (PI) hybrid film whose silica content can be increased to as high as 60 percent of the total weight, making it highly suitable for the fabrication of flexible displays. The ITRI flexible substrate can be manufactured with either batch-type or roll-to-roll (R2R) processes. For batch-type processes, the substrate is prepared by coating the PI solution on glass carriers, and then fabricating TFT devices on the substrates. The PI/silica film exhibits excellent adhesion with silicon dioxide, silicon nitride and indium-tin-oxide without requiring any other primer or surface treatment process. For R2R processes, the ITRI substrate can be made with a variety of attractive properties, such as a low coefficient of thermal energy (CTE) of 20 ppm/ºC, high transmittance (around 90 percent, within the wavelength range of 400 to 700 nm) and excellent flexibility. To date, a flexible color filter, an active-matrix electrophoretic display (AM-EPD) and a flexible touch film have been made on the ITRI flexible substrate.

Apple had assured users that it was not tracking their movements, and that the location cache was just a “crowd-sourced Wi-Fi hotspot and cell tower database” that was used to speed up positioning fixes by the iPhone. Apple’s full Q&A response is located here. But as this now well known graphic shows, by looking at the data, one can easily get an idea of where the iPhone (or other Apple device) user has been.

Apple had not said when the update would be available, so the fact that it is already here shows that they are taking into consideration the concerns of their users. Keep in mind, to make sure the cache is not stored on your iPhone or iPad, and that you are truly travelling incognito, you will need to turn Location Services off.

Have you installed the update? Any issues?

Let me next go down a big fat list of reviews we’ve done over the past few days because the collection is impressive:
Sony Ericsson XPERIA Arc
Samsung Galaxy S II
Droid Incredible 2
HTC Wildfire S
Samsung UN55D8000 55-inch 1080p 240Hz 3D LED Smart TV Wildcard!
ACER Iconia Tab A500 Android Honeycomb tablet
DROID Charge
Wowie!

Then lets move on to some announcements: Samsung Galaxy S Wifi version 4.0 and 5.0 were made official, HTC EVO 3D went on super secret Pre-sale at Best Buy, the Acer Iconia Tab A500 is declared routable and we show you how it’s done, and a fan of Android Community tries his best to bend the rules with a song he calls House of the Rising XOOM

Have a look at the first Android 3.0 Honeycomb optimized Twitter app TweetComb, take notice of the DROID Charge’s ability to take screenshots, and get yourself a taste of Gingerbread with CyanogenMod 7 for the T-Mobile G2x. Oh and the Samsung Galaxy S II is already rooted.

In gaming news we’ve got Sony Online Entertainment getting hacked, Mortal Kombat 2011 (aka Mortal Kombat 9) : a review roundup, and Rovio announces its first update to Angry Birds: RIO.

Then on to the features:
SlashGear 101: Spaceflight
SG Comics Presents: PlayStation Network Outage
Blackberry Bold 9900 and 9930 hands-on [Video]
I Cant Wait to See the Wii 2 by Don Reisinger

And heck, while we’re here, how about a couple more wild cards?
Osama bin Laden dead: Raid was confidential but Twitter wasn’t [Video]
Rice University graduate student extends WiFi for a mile using empty TV stations

What a sweetly odd day!

According to comScore Senior Vice President of Mobile, Mark Donovan, “[The] data clearly illustrate the Apple ecosystem extends far beyond the iPhone. Though it’s frequently assumed that the Apple user base is composed of dedicated Apple ‘fanboys,’ there’s not a tremendous amount of overlapping mobile device access among these users. This of course has significant implications for the developer community as they consider the market potential in developing applications for different mobile platforms.”

This data may change as more Android tablets hit the market, giving Android a higher percentage on “mobile devices” and not just phones. Needless to say, Apple had a significant head start with the iPad, one which tablet makers are struggling to overcome.

[via comScore]

The iCade is designed to sit on top of your table and has an arcade style joystick with six numbered buttons and two “enter” blue buttons. You simply slide your iPad into the front of the iCade and connect them via Bluetooth to start playing your favorite classic arcade games.

Well, you do have to go and download the games, which are thankfully free, from Apple’s App Store. The Atari Greatest Hits app is configured to work with the iCade and you can download additional games via the app.

However, the iCade relies on 2 AA batteries, which can get gobbled up rather quickly as you play hours on end of Space Invaders. It would be nice if there was a plug-in or rechargeable option. But nonetheless, a fun little accessory to show off in your geek lair if you have an extra $100 sitting around.

[via Wireless Goodness]

The Bing app lets you do searches quickly, then jump back and forth between search results and destinations pages. The results pages stack, and and you slide your finger across the screen to jump to a different page. The information is saved from session to session, so that you can go through past searches by swiping backwards. There is also a dedicated history section that lists all past searches.

The app also functions as a content aggregator, so you can view weather, movie listings, and news. These are placed as tiles at the bottom of the home screen, and some, like weather and finance, can be customized so that you can see the stock symbols or weather location from the thumbnail. There is also a dedicated news reader showing the top stories by category, which also can be customized to your interests.

The drawbacks are that you can’t bookmark links or send them to a printer (though you can email and copy them), things you can do in Safari. Overall, it seems to be a useful app, and worth giving a try. If you have tried it, let us know what you think. The Bing app will be available on the App Store today.

[via CNet]

Adobe offered up a live demo of the new app. One of the key features for the new app is the ability to use layer animation to give a look at what is going on behind the scenes in the app with your photos.

When the full app will land isn’t known, but photography types should like the idea of more interaction with photos for editing while on the go using the light iPad. Check out the video demo at the source below.

[via Photography Bay]

For some people, especially older people, all they want to do is get email, see pictures of family, and maybe do a little shopping. Why do they need to install the Office Suite, or worry about defragmenting?

My mother-in-law, for example, hates going near a computer. She doesn’t know how to use a mouse, and she actually still uses a camera with film. When I tell her that someone emailed me about a family event, she still says things like “Oh, yes, that’s what they do these days, isn’t it? They just email, they don’t need to call.” And she shakes her head, as if it is just so surprising. She was so happy and shocked that we could watch clips from American Idol on YouTube the day after the show aired. “It’s amazing what they can do these days on these computers.” We’ve tried on several occasions to get her hooked up, and signed up for email addresses that are now languishing.

There have been many attempts to make getting email easier for older people especially. And there are special email devices like the Peek, and email printers like Presto, that try and help older people connect with their younger counterparts, who don’t know what a stamp is and don’t print pictures anymore.

But these solutions only address email. What if someone wants to go online and research a product, play a game, watch video, find out more about a health issue, or even go on Facebook? Even using email is too old fashioned for many “kids these days“. If a grandparent really wants to keep up with the grandkids and see the latest photos, he or she is going to need to be on Facebook. So tablets may be the perfect solution for older types that don’t want to bother with a PC, but want more than just email. My mother in law (who is 64), has not tried a tablet, but I could see her taking to it. The touch screen interface is so much easier to deal with than a keyboard, it seems. When there is something you want to see, you just tap it. There is only the screen to deal with, not the screen, the mouse and the keyboard.

David Worthington, on PC World, interviewed his mom about her experience using an iPad, which is her first computer. Her reactions were very interesting. She had never had an email address, and found it really exciting that she could now join the online world:

David: Has your experience made you more eager to delve into it and learn more?

Mom: Yeah. I’m doing more and more of that lately. I’m learning from my mistakes, and beginning to use Google.

David: What do you like about it?

Mom: That I have an e-mail address – you know. ‘Cause that’s the first thing [people] ask you: ‘What’s your e-mail address?’ So now, that makes me feel that I’m part of something-and then I feel that I can see and do more things now than I did before, because I didn’t have it a computer.

She was even able to update apps without really knowing she was doing it. And checking email was easy: “go just push the e-mail, and then it goes to it real fast.” No web addresses to remember, nothing to type.

Tablets may not be the death of PCs as some people have predicted, but they may just bring in some who have been left behind by PCs, and make the online world more accessible. And that’s a great thing.

Do you have anyone who is “computer-phobic” in your family that has tried a tablet? What was their experience?

While the company is still only selling simple Kindle e-readers, Amazon has quietly built all the tools it needs to compete against Apple and the other tablet makers with its own Android-based tablets.

It’s more than just a few fans and bloggers getting out the rumor. It’s analysts like Dan Frommer of the Business Insider. It’s a conclusion that’s echoed by Sarah Rofman of Forrester who believes that with Amazon’s Android Store, it’s one-click check out, and vast distribution network, that Amazon is primed to not only released an Android tablet, but do so at a very low price since they have no middle man. So what’s keeping Amazon from diving into the deep end of the pool?

Well, it could be that Amazon is reticent to kill the Kindle. The eBook reader is very popular because of it’s lifetime wireless access to book and low energy screen that has amazing battery life. But let’s face it, the Kindle needs to evolve. And it may be that’s what Amazon is waiting on … a low energy color screen which Qualcomm has spent billions to develop and manufacture for what they call “a major client.” Is that Amazon? It’s speculation at best, but it could very well be. And with Amazon putting an Apple-esque App store in place, bolstering their Kindle division with Android developers, and major analysts connecting the dots, this rumor is looking more and more credible every day. Very iPad like, no? And we all know how that’s played out.

[via Android Community]

Of course, we’ve been talking a lot about Apple’s new Pad around here. We’re very excited to have this new toy to play with. In fact, we’re so excited that we’re doing some contests. We’re going to give away some neat stuff to stick on your iPad. This weekend, it’s all about protecting your device. We’ve gotten together with Wrapsol and Stealtharmor to offer a couple contests this holiday weekend.

Now here’s the details on what we’re giving away. These companies offer various protective solutions for smart-phones and tablets. We’re giving away 11 of the Wrapsol thin polyurethane screen protectors. Here is the link to the details . We’re also giving away a StealthArmor case for the iPad 2. Here is the link for that one. We’ll be collecting entries until 11am on Monday and we’ll do the drawing on Tuesday.

[via loopinsight]

The new interface takes advantage of the larger screen size of the iPad, featuring a visually enhanced channel selection area. You can easily swipe through album art and access artist biographies. With devices running iOS 4.3 you can now easily push audio via AirPlay to an Apple TV or another external audio source. Other improvements include:

* Listen to over 120 channels of SiriusXM Internet Radio and multi-task on the go, even while surfing the web or checking email.
* “Lookaround” to see what is playing on other channels while enjoying the song currently playing. On the iPad, the app features a full-screen display showing currently playing album art and program information for your favorite channels.
* Easily and quickly purchase music available from iTunes heard on SiriusXM, or add favorite songs to the shopping cart integrated into the App, by tagging them for later purchase.
* Save favorite SiriusXM Internet Radio channels for easy access through a “Favorites Channels” function.

The app is free to download from Apple iTunes, but requires a paid subscription for Sirius XM radio. The internet-only plan is $13 per month, while the conventional satellite radio plan is $16 per month.

[via Electronista]

Joven has hacked the NES controller using Arduino to control the micro servos he’s attached with suction cups to the screen of the iPad. The micro servos have custom arms on them that simulate the swipes and touches your fingers would normally perform while playing a game. Joven demonstrated the calibration and use of the new system on his favorite iPad game, Reckless Racing.

After some initial adjustments, you can see that the micro servos respond very quickly with the NES controller and the control is very nice. The micro servos are small enough to perform many actions and can attach anywhere on the screen with their suction cups. It’s a fun concept Joven has cooked up with a little hard work and ingenuity.

The Beam Touch system is the one that appears to go well with the holographic projector Holocube offers. This thing provides a link between projectors and the iPad. It allows the user to take the photos that are on their tablet and shoot them over other projector so they can be viewed by multiple folks. The app will hit the App Store soon and will let the user move between images and animations. It’s not clear if it will work with any projector or only the Holocube system.

The other product is an interesting g offering for companies that are at trade shows and other events. It looks like an ATM and is called Photo Booth. The Photo Booth allows the user to print out their photo at no cost and then the photos can be hung to share. HC also notes that it can be used to organize online contests as well.

This news is obviously just for those hoping to move from their unlimited data plan on AT&T to a brand new AT&T unlimited data plan, both on your iPad, original version to iPad 2. You’re golden. This pumps us up immensely since we’d been hearing rumors that everyone would be out of luck, having to pay more once you’d gone over a limited plan – which is a big bummer for those of us who use their tablets every single day – data runs deep!

We had the opportunity to get our hands on the iPad 2 this week at the special Apple event out at their normal Apply haunt – good times had by all. Take a peek at our big giant [iPad 2] portal, or go straight to our iPad 2 Hands-on [with video], an article by Ben Bajarin entitled iPad 2: Another Step Forward for Tablets, or the brand new column by Avi Greengart that addresses Why It’s So Hard to Compete with the iPad. Hardcore battle!

Simply bring your receipt to the Apple store as proof you purchased your iPad within the last two weeks–after February 16th–to receive a $100 refund. The process should be pretty painless, as Apple has done this before with their Mac revamps. Although the window of two weeks seems short, it is better than none.

If this becomes a trend, then budget hunters should keep their ears perked on major Apple announcement events. However, Apple did only give a weeks notice for Wednesday’s announcement. And with stocks low on reseller shelves, you’ll have to act quickly.

[via Cult of Mac]

The team at Volkswagen really took the iPad integration seriously. This isn’t just a simple docking system. The design comes included with a semicircular multifunction display just under the speedometer. This display can communicate with the iPad to display and control the navigation system, media playback, the integrated trip computer, and the bluetooth enabled communications package.

Volkswagen kept the Bulli true to the spirit of the Microbus. It’s definitely of the same line, just brought up into the present day. For a nod to the car-camping culture that spawned the popularity of VW’s Microbus throughout the past sixty four years, the seats fold down into a bed for use as an impromptu camper.

Check out the concept renderings Volkswagon released in Geneva.

[via Autoblog]

There are currently no placeholders for the iPad 2 at Best Buy, but that may change by tomorrow. We will keep you informed.

[via Apple Insider]

The exact percentages listed in this study we’re speaking about are 84, 8, and 7. The smallest, 7% of people polled, said they’d be less likely to buy Apple products in the future if Steve Jobs departed his post as CEO. Next, 8% of people polled in this study said that they were unsure what effect Steve Jobs leaving his CEO post would have on their possible Apple buying habits. The whopping remainder, 84% of people polled in this RBC Capital Markets and ChangeWave study said that Steve Jobs’ departure from his role as CEO would have “no effect at all on their future Apple-buying intentions.”

This poll was conducted on 3.091 people of unknown affiliation, professional or otherwise. A similar poll was conducted in June of 2008, on what we can only assume is the same amount of people. In this 2008 report, 68% of people said Jobs’ departure would have no effect on their possible Apple buying habits, while 14% said they’d be unsure what the future held for them, and 18% said they’d be unlikely to purchase further Apple product should Jobs depart the company.

The idea that Apple has become such a strong brand in and of itself, not just dependent on its founder’s name, is multiplied by the fact that back in 2009, the last time Steve Jobs noted he’d be taking a leave of medical absence, Apple’s stock didn’t fall, it grew. During that period of Jobs being out of the Apple house, according to Apple Insider , the company experience a revenue increase of 20% while its stock grew an absolutely whopping 144% (two rather important Apple mobile devices were essentially just gaining steam at this point, mind you.)

Is Steve Jobs a founder of one of the most popular companies on the planet? Yes. Has he created a company that cannot survive without him? Absolutely not. Apple is now a brand that can withstand essentially anything. Steve Jobs, your legacy is safe no matter what happens. Get well soon.

[via CNN]

The Kindle commercial also accentuates the fact that their device can run up to a month on one battery charge and comes at you with a relatively affordable price point of $139. These advantages plus their overall feel-good message of “The Book Lives On” should appeal to the true book enthusiasts. And for those book lovers considering an iPad instead, Amazon warns you again in this commercial of the imminent glare.

You can’t blame them though for really emphasizing glare as it may be the only thing it can still compete on. With all the new tablets coming on the market that can consume media and perform a whole slew of other tasks along with higher resolution displays for more comfortable viewing and reading, its less and less likely that consumers would choose to buy a separate device just for reading. It will be interesting to see what happens, should an anti-glare display ever be implemented on an iPad or other tablet device.

[via TechCrunch]

The company also states that the keyboard is available at Fry’s, but it is not listed on their website yet.

R3 Media Network

Editor’s Choice
7-year-old boy wins eBay auction for Harrier jet, dad not happy
Obama: “Connecting Every Corner of America to the Digital Age”
M16 golf ball launcher is Mr. Driving Range Ball Picker Upper’s worst nightmare
Stabucks mobile payment app easily scammed by simple screengrab
Verizon Gifts Green Bay’s Aaron Rodgers with a Replacement iPhone 4

SlashPhone
Palm Pre 2 Pre-order Available Via Verizon Wireless on Feb 10th
MetroPCS Launches Samsung Galaxy Indulge 4G Android Smartphone
Google Release Native Google Translate Software for iPhone

Android Community
Alltel Samsung Gem offers Android on a budget
Sonos Controller for Android to land in March
National Trust offers cool app that helps you find places to visit in the UK
App for strawberry lovers hits Android
HTC adding Facebook button to social networking phone?
Broadcom BCM21654 Android chip provides advanced graphics and a good price
Honeycomb Renderscript Detailed [The Balls]
Motorola Bee Concept Phone Runs Honeycomb, Trumps ATRIX
Waves of Impact and No Lines for Verizon’s iPhone [FEATURED]
Samsung Galaxy Tab Maintenance Update EA24
LG Optimus Pad aka G-Slate Destroyed by Transformers [VIDEO]
HTC ThunderBolt Release Date Confirmed by BGR
Angry Birds Hogs and Kisses [FULL SPOILER] [Including FB Levels] [FEATURED]
HTC Wildfire 2 Caught on HTC Innovation Ad
HALO Reach Bootscreen for you Master Chief Android Fans
Froyo for Motorola Milestone XT720 Today
Motorola XOOM WiFi clears FCC

SlashGear
Amazon App for Windows Phone 7 released
Sonos Controller for Android due March with voice control [Video]
Nokia CEO: “It’s not just differentiation but sustainable differentiation”
Scythe Gouriki 3 PSU breaks cover
7-year-old boy wins eBay auction for Harrier jet, dad not happy
M16 golf ball launcher is Mr. Driving Range Ball Picker Upper’s worst nightmare
Stabucks mobile payment app easily scammed by simple screengrab
dB Logic EP-100 earphones ship with SPL2 Healthy-Listening tech
Qualcomm’s HP Touchpad-powering Snapdragon APQ8060 detailed
Mophie juice pack air for Verizon iPhone 4 pre-ordering now
Verizon iPhone 4 in stores now
Nokia eyeing boutique developers for halo apps; in Adobe dev-tool talks?
Club3D unveils new Radeon HD 6950 video card
HTC Facebook phone with dedicated shortcut key at MWC tips source
Broadcom’s new BCM21654 baseband processor for Android debuts
iChair iPhone 4 cases work for AT&T and Verizon smartphones
Verbatim color-tunable OLED lighting debuts
Activision ends Guitar Hero and True Crime franchises
iPad 3 this fall tips latest batch of frantic Apple refresh rumors
Nokia close to Windows Phone 7 deal report insiders
Opera Mini Coming to the iPad
Apple Preparing iPhone Nano For $200 Sans Contract?
Immersion Announces MOTIV Haptics Development Platform
Opening iPad Numbers Crush iPod and iPhone
Onkyo Debuts Two Affordable Home Theater Systems
New 3D Network To Launch On DirecTV
Google Bulks Up Sign-In Security
LG VL600 LTE Modem for Verizon is now Mac-Compatible
Verizon Gifts Green Bay’s Aaron Rodgers with a Replacement iPhone 4
Verizon iPhone 4 Cheaper for Apple to Build
iPhone Password Broken In 6 Minutes
Google Closing In On Next New Networks
Google TV is Dying, and an Apple TV with Apps will Finish it Off [COLUMN]
Obama: “Connecting Every Corner of America to the Digital Age”
No kidding? Skull Implanted Camera Gives Professor a Headache
Yahoo Announces LiveStand Digital Newstand
Microsoft Internet Explorer 9 RC Released
Only Modest Lines for Verizon iPhone 4
Apple TV to Support Gaming?
Is the Market too Crowded for webOS to be Successful?
Symbian Still Number One Smartphone Platform According to Gartner
webOS 3.0 ENYO SDK Released to Developers
iPad Mini in the Works?
Nokia E7 [REVIEW]
IDAPT i1 Eco charges your gadgets while saving the world

To see more Daily Slash posts, click here: [The Daily Slash] or here: [SlashGear Morning Wrap-Up]

This rumor centers around the iPad 3 notion floating around this morning, though it’s unclear whether the iPad 3 would be the same thing as the iPad Mini or if they’d both be released closer to the end of 2011. But wait, that’d be crazy – that would mean that Apple would have to release the iPad 2 sometime very soon in order to have enough time to develop a third and maybe a fourth iteration by the end of the fourth quarter of this year!

One of the sources for both rumors is blogger John Gruber, who, apparently with “iron-clad” Apple inside sources, has pronounced iPad 3 as real and as being released before the end of this year. In the following statement written by Gruber yesterday, “If my theory is right, they’re not only going to be months behind the iPad 2, but if they slip until late summer, they might bump up against the release of the iPad 3,” the HP TouchPad is said to be releasing in between iPad 2 (which, if what he guesses is true, will be being released this spring,) and the iPad 3, which, again if he’s correct, will be inside 2011, maybe even inside this coming summer.

And what about the iPad Mini? TGDaily writer Raven Lovecraft is guessing that this will either be released near the iPad 3 or will actually BE the iPad 3, releasing near the end of 2011 and roughly the size of a Samsung Galaxy Tab. One handed iPadding? Sounds alright, yes?

We’ve got a feeling though that it just isn’t true. While the release of two versions of the iPad before the end of 2011 might be a possibility to combat the oncoming tide of Android Honeycomb tablets, a Mini doesn’t follow with what’s been said in the past about such a size of slate. On the other hand, a 7-inch iPad has been tipped before, so who knows?

R3 Media Network

Editor’s Choice
7-year-old boy wins eBay auction for Harrier jet, dad not happy
M16 golf ball launcher is Mr. Driving Range Ball Picker Upper’s worst nightmare
Stabucks mobile payment app easily scammed by simple screengrab

SlashPhone
Palm Pre 2 Pre-order Available Via Verizon Wireless on Feb 10th
MetroPCS Launches Samsung Galaxy Indulge 4G Android Smartphone
Google Release Native Google Translate Software for iPhone

Android Community
Alltel Samsung Gem offers Android on a budget
Sonos Controller for Android to land in March
National Trust offers cool app that helps you find places to visit in the UK
App for strawberry lovers hits Android
HTC adding Facebook button to social networking phone?
Broadcom BCM21654 Android chip provides advanced graphics and a good price
Honeycomb Renderscript Detailed [The Balls]
Motorola Bee Concept Phone Runs Honeycomb, Trumps ATRIX

SlashGear
Amazon App for Windows Phone 7 released
Sonos Controller for Android due March with voice control [Video]
Nokia CEO: “It’s not just differentiation but sustainable differentiation”
Scythe Gouriki 3 PSU breaks cover
7-year-old boy wins eBay auction for Harrier jet, dad not happy
M16 golf ball launcher is Mr. Driving Range Ball Picker Upper’s worst nightmare
Stabucks mobile payment app easily scammed by simple screengrab
dB Logic EP-100 earphones ship with SPL2 Healthy-Listening tech
Qualcomm’s HP Touchpad-powering Snapdragon APQ8060 detailed
Mophie juice pack air for Verizon iPhone 4 pre-ordering now
Verizon iPhone 4 in stores now
Nokia eyeing boutique developers for halo apps; in Adobe dev-tool talks?
Club3D unveils new Radeon HD 6950 video card
HTC Facebook phone with dedicated shortcut key at MWC tips source
Broadcom’s new BCM21654 baseband processor for Android debuts
iChair iPhone 4 cases work for AT&T and Verizon smartphones
Verbatim color-tunable OLED lighting debuts
Activision ends Guitar Hero and True Crime franchises
iPad 3 this fall tips latest batch of frantic Apple refresh rumors
Nokia close to Windows Phone 7 deal report insiders

To see more Daily Slash posts, click here: [The Daily Slash] or here: [SlashGear Morning Wrap-Up]

There are over 30 games on sale, including Scrabble, Tetris, Madden NFL 11, The Sims 3, Reckless Racing and Pictureka! And yes, even iPad games are 99¢.  You can view the full list of games on EA’s website.

EA had great success with its 99 cent sale over the holidays. This time there aren’t quite as many games available, but they are continuing to add more all the time, so keep checking back.  Unfortunately for those outside the US, this is a US only sale.

**Update** The sale prices are also available in the Canada App store.

[via TouchArcade]

The following video depicts several wild jungle cats playing a video game app on the Apple iPad. It’s a game specifically for iPad, it’s got a free preview up in iTunes (yet not in the App store?) and you can purchase the full version for $1.99. And now without further ado, the masterpiece ad spot entitled: “‪White Tiger Plays iPad – Game for Cats Gone Wild! Lions, servals, and more!‬”

If you head over to the official Game for Cats homepage, you’ll instantly notice the similarities between it, the video above, and the video below. The video you’re about to see below is from the show It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia. Enjoy.

[Via Game for Cats]

Corning expects the number of tablets using cover glass to quadruple over the next four years. Total tablet sales are estimated to leap from 20 million units (2010) to 180 million units in 2014. An 800% increase over the next four years. Tablet PCs are already the driving force for growth in the PC industry. 7.33 million iPads sold in Q4 of 2010, and the market doesn’t appear to be slowing down.

[Via All Things D]

Zynga plans to offer a premium (read ad-free) version of the game later on this year.  Hopefully we will see more of Zynga’s social games go mobile soon.

[via Android Community]

Obviously, nothing is for sure right now but the iPad 2 is purportedly going to be based on the Apple A5 processor, replacing the current Apple 4 processor. The rumored speaker grill on the back will be there and a MiniDisplay port in lieu of a micro USB port. The overall look of the iPad 2 will lean more to its sibling the iPod Touch 4G.

The event is for iOS 4.3 developers and the upcoming iteration of the iOS platform. The iPad 2 is undoubtedly the leader in the tablet market right now and many have expected Apple’s refresh of the device to be soon. After the original iPad was the “it” gift of the holiday season, Apple could be positioning itself to make the iPad 2 the hot item to have for the summer.

[Via MacNotes]