According to a new report by analyst Brian Marshall, we should all expect the iPad 2 in April.
No duh. Apple’s stuck to a rigidly defined yearly update cycle for all of their iOS devices, so you don’t need to go to Analysis U. to figure out exactly when to expect the next iPad.
But the April date for the iPad 2 isn’t really the meat of this story. More interesting is what Marshall says we should expect spec-wise from the iPad 2, which is… nothing special at all.
According to Marshall’s report, the iPad 2 will be essentially identical to its predecessor except for the obvious inclusion of a FaceTime-capable, forward-facing web cam… a no-brainer given the fact that every other iOS device except the iPad now supports the FaceTime video chat network. Marshall also pegs a back facing cam as likely, which we also think is pretty obvious.
What’s most interesting to us is what Marshall thinks won’t be in the iPad 2. He doesn’t think we’ll get a smart bezel, or a Retina Display, or bigger storage options, or a faster CPU, or a carbon fiber casing…. and I think he’s right.
If you look at the history of the iPhone and the iPod Touch, Apple’s tended to be pretty conservative with second gen updates, saving the really huge leaps in technology for the third generation, while the second gen is about ironing out all the wrinkles. I wouldn’t be surprised at all if the iPad 2 follow that trend.
