iPad Camera Connection Kit

So what is it?

2 dongles basically (why have 1 when 2 will do, eh?) 1 lets you import photos from your camera and the other lets you import content from an SD card. No word as to whether they can be bought seperately yet.

Will they work with the iPod or the iPhone? 1 ste that works across all Apple products would be handy. No word from Apple, lets just hope for a hack.

More Connection Kit links

Photos on iLounge http://www.ilounge.com/index.php/reviews/entry/apple-ipad-camera-connection-kit/

iPad Camera Connection Kit

1. Amazon has  acquired Touchco – they are a small startup with apparently very cheap touchscreen displays. Will be a while before anything released, but expect it to be a major play and tie up with everything else Amazon, especially books

2. Google has released mock ups of its Chrome powered tablet. Mock ups only at this stage, so take with a grain of salt, they are probably quite happy to try steal some Apple thunder. Google books would seem to be a good point of tablet integration.

Google Tablet running Chrome

3. Microsoft unveiled 3 slate pcs at CES powered by HP, Archos, and Pegatron. Microsoft slates will be running Windows 7. This could be an opportunity for Microsoft.

It seems to us that you would have to be nuts to buy a MS slate considering their history and the range of competition available. However if Microsoft came in at the top of the market with something special, they could just steal someone elses thunder. Big if though…

4. Sony apparently stands ready to make use of its market power and laptop delivery to broach the new tablet market. Considering how easy it would be for them to brand and market a vanilla, standard tablet, its pretty much a  no brainer that they will enter the market.

Sony could however also  step up and sync up a Sony Tablet to their other products if they wanted a great USP.

5. Asus tablet rumoured off the back of their success with the Eee pcs. Again seems a no brainer for them at the low end of the market.

6. Fusion Garage has a JooJoo Tablet (you may remember it as the acrimonious Techcrunch Cruchpad in another life) and is accepting pre orders. You can preorder the JooJoo tablet here. From the Fusion Garage site as of 06/02/10 “We are only accepting pre-orders in the U.S at the moment. Pre-orders will ship in 8 to 10 weeks.”

Joo Joo tablet is $499 and you can get a Joo Joo stand for $29.99 

7. Motorola apparently are also looking to get in on the act

8. Out of left field the iFreeTablet - The IPTVMunicipal Avanza project in Spain releases an Orvita2 project star device called the iFreeTablet.  Its an open source tablet and looks to sell at 300-400 Euros (around $300). You can reserve an iFreeTablet.

Related links

http://www.ifreetablet.com/

https://thejoojoo.com/

http://www.dailytech.com/Amazon+Google+Prepare+iPad+Competitors/article17608.htm

http://www.inquisitr.com/60554/sony-drops-hints-about-their-own-ipad-competitor/

http://www.geek.com/articles/mobile/ifreetablet-the-open-source-ipad-competitor-from-spain-2010023/

http://www.suntimes.com/technology/2017181,motorola-ceos-ipad-smartphones.article

The US is famous for just replacing the $ sign with a £ sign and trousering the difference. That wont work this time. Intercontinental shipping has caught up with the times.

Pound vs Euros iPad

Of special interest to us is not what the £ price will be, but what the Euro price of an Ipad will be. Will there be a significant difference that will see us nipping off to France for a Euro iPad?

iPad prices in Pounds

Macworld has a go at pricing based off the conversion factors of the iPhone:

iPad Wifi £388 for the 16GB iPad, £510 for the 32Gb iPad and £590 for the 64 GB iPad

iPad wifi + 3G £490 for teh 16GB iPAd, £612 for the 32GB iPAd and £693 for the 64Gb iPad

iPad Operators

Once we know the price then comes the sticky bit about who the network operators will be. Pray that its not an “exclusive” like the US AT&T iPhone deal which has left a slew of unhappy customers over long term tie in deals. Its unlikelyto be a single partner across the hwoel of Europe, but lets hope theres more choice than just O2 and Orange

Price of an Ipad in Pounds

Related links:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2010/jan/28/apple-ipad-uk-pricing

http://www.macworld.co.uk/mac/news/index.cfm?newsid=28478&pagtype=allchandate

Its pretty cool, not all that useful at the moment though but meant to fit the same space as the wheels for the wiimote. Its plastic and looks like you could whip one up yourself pretty much.

Negative Comments so far
Comments are pretty negative, but we think that many miss the potential in this concept design.

Sure, its a pretty low key iPad design, but if Michael could figure out how to attach a few buttons to the wheel that would make a big difference to its usability and the potential for use in iPad gaming.

Lucrative Market
Lots of people love racing games on the iPhone and many will love racing games on the iPad. Whoever makes the first set of racing accessories for the iPad is going to be first in line in a lucrative market.

We would suggest a Nascar racing game and then a branded Nascar iPad wheel accessory would be an obvious starting point. Similar tie ins are possible for F1 and others.

iDrift- iPad steering wheel accessory

More iPad on the iPad steering wheel accessory:

original site – http://www.yankodesign.com/2010/02/01/no-ipad-jokes-get-the-idrift/

comment from

http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2010/02/ipad-game-accessories-already-appearing/

http://www.geeky-gadgets.com/idrift-ipad-game-controller-02-02-2010/

http://gizmodo.com/5462210/idrift-gaming-peripheral-concept-for-the-ipad-will-be-a-reality-soon-im-sure

http://www.pocket-lint.com/news/31186/idrift-apple-ipad-steering-wheel-accessory

Although all of us here at buyanipad.co.uk will be getting US iPads shipped to the UK asap!

When is the iPad available in the UK? Soon (tm)

Official Apple US iPad Release Dates

April 2010 – some commentators saying it will be out in March. Apple does like to underpromise and over deliver so they may well have set a date further out than they need to, to spring a nice early iPad surprise.

Seems that the 3G version will take longer to come onto the market. We expect the first iPads released to sell out and there to be a wait for replenishment

•Price level: $499 USD, 399 EUR
•Release date:

The Ipad Keyboard Dock Accessory

The normal sardonic roundup from the boys at El Reg http://www.reghardware.co.uk/2010/01/28/ipad_accessories/

Apples own iPad accessories

iPad Keyboard Dock  – at $69 (£42) its got an iPad power feed andspeaker connection. The iPad Keyboard Dock is a docking cradle attached to a nice Apple Qwerty keyboard

iPad Camera Connection Kit – at $29 (£18) for the two connectors, tehCamera Connector lets USB cables attach to the  iPad and the SD Card Reader lets the iPad use external memory cards

Carry an Ipad in comfort

Etsy has a cloth case for the iPad $22 (£14), very retro and hippy but likely to help stop you getting your iPad stolen. Not sure who wants to buy an Apply Shiny and then hide it away!

Griffin Accessories have released Flexi Grip and Elan passports – a grip cover and filofax respectively

Apple has also released its official iPad case $40 (£30) which folds into some pretty funky postions to hold the iPad for watching video or at an angle to use the keyboard