AP Photo/Paul Sakuma
Apple CEO Steve Jobs unveiled the company's new tablet, the iPad, on Jan. 27, 2010. See more gadget pictures.
The idea of a tablet computer has been around for years. Back in 1964, The Rand Corporation produced the Grafacon, also known as the Rand Tablet. This $18,000 computing device had two main components: a screen and a drawing surface. The user would hold an electronic stylus and draw on the surface. The results showed up on the screen.
Despite Rand's creative approach, tablet-based devices didn't take the world by storm. Instead, the keyboard -- and later, the keyboard and mouse combo -- became the standard user interface for computers. That didn't stop companies from trying to launch a new tablet-based system, though. Several examples hit the market over the years but none really took off in the consumer market. At least, not until Jan. 27, 2010.
That was the day the company announced the release of its much-anticipated iPad. As is common with Apple products, the iPad's development was kept behind a curtain of secrecy. That didn't stop journalists, bloggers, reporters and analysts from talking about the device. In fact, people had been talking about an Apple tablet for years -- people even guessed the name of the device correctly in advance.
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At first glance, the iPad looks like an iPhone or iPod touch on steroids. It's much larger than those two related devices, yet smaller than a notebook computer. Its sleek finish and unique engineering scream Apple design. But many are wondering: What exactly is the iPad? The quick answer is, it's a digital media tablet. If you're even more confused now, don't worry. This article aims to shed some light on the device that has sparked so much buzz.
On the next page, we'll start by taking a look at its design in the next section before getting into some of its features later on.
