It's just like the current iPad. But new. Er. And with a 2048x1536 display—a million more pixels than an HDTV.
(Getty Images / Kevork Djansezian)
Things that are better than old iPad:
• Newer
• 2048x1536 screen, four times the number of pixels in the old iPad. Which is a "retina" display if you hold it 15 inches from your face while touching your nose with your other hand.
• More faster, with an A5X chip (the old iPad had an A5 chip, so X=extreme)
• The camera sucks less! It's more like the iPhone's, since it shoots 5-megapixel photos and 1080p HD video, using a redesigned optical system. It's like a realer camera now.
• It listens to you talking. It isn't your friend, like Siri on the iPhone, but you talk and it types, like a Mad Men secretary.
• The mobile internet is faster, if you live in a city fortunate enough to be covered with Verizon or AT&T's LTE network and you want to pay for it.
• All that newness and it is the same price! Starts at $500 for the base 16GB Wi-Fi model, $630 for the 4G model
• Apple's just calling it the new iPad, not something ridiculous like iPad HD
• Did I mention it is newer?
Things that are not better than the old iPad:
• It's just as thick (9.4mm)
• It's slightly heavier (1.4 pounds vs. 1.33 pounds) which is unfortunate because one of the best parts of the iPad 2 was that it was lighter. 0.17 pounds doesn't sound like much, but it felt like a whole world.