A new handheld tablet computing device from Apple Inc. that first launched in January 2010. The iPad is designed for consumers who want a mobile device that is bigger than a smartphone but smaller than a laptop for entertainment multimedia.
The iPad device is roughly the size of a sheet of paper and weighs 1.5 pounds. The screen is a 9.7-inch LED backlit glossy multi-touch screen, capable of displaying up to 1024×768 pixel resolution (2048×1536 resolution in the Retina Display of the iPad 3 and iPad4).
Other features include 802.11n Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 2.1, Enhanced Data Rate (EDR), and options for 3G cellular connectivity (4G LTE in the newer iPads). At launch, the price for an iPad ranged from $499 (16GB) to $699 (64GB).
iPads run the the Apple iOS, a mobile operating system that is also used for the company’s iPhone, iPod touch, Apple TV and similar mobile devices. The iPad is currently in its fourth generation, with the iPad 4 having debuted in late October 2012. A smaller (7.85-inch) version of the iPad called the iPad Mini is also available.
