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iPad touchscreen tablet is here

Apple CEO Steve Jobs introduces the new iPad during an event in San Francisco, Wednesday, Jan. 27, 2010. (AP Photo/Paul Sakuma)

After months of rampant speculation, Apple Wednesday announced a touchscreen tablet computer, the “iPad” for consumers who want to take their movies, TV shows, music, games and reading with them, be it around the house or on the go. Pricing starts at $499, and it should be available in 60 to 90 days.

“We want to kick off 2010 with a truly revolutionary and magical product,” CEO Steve Jobs told a packed audience at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in San Francisco on Wednesday. The wireless device can be used with Wi-Fi, as well as run on AT&T’s 3G, or third-generation, wireless network. AT&T has been the exclusive carrier of the iPhone in the United States since its release in 2007, and some were hoping that Apple’s new tablet would also work with other carriers’ networks, including Verizon Wireless.

The iPad will cost $499 for a 16-gigabyte model, $599 for a 32 GB version and $699 for a 64-gigabyte model with Wi-Fi only, and will be available in 60 days. It will cost an additional $130 for units that also can use 3G, which should be out in 90 days, making the most expensive model $829. Jobs said AT&T will charge $29.99 a month for “unlimited use” and $14.99 a month for up to 250 megabytes. There will be no contract with AT&T required for the plans, he said.

“So far it really looks like an oversized iPod Touch,” said Avi Greengart, Current Analysis analyst, blogging from the event itself for Reuters news service.

The iPad weighs about 1.5 pounds, is 0.5 inch thin, has a 9.7-inch display and should have a battery life of 10 hours, Jobs said. It uses what he called Apple’s own 1GHz A4 chip, and flash memory, ranging from 16 to 64 gigabytes. The tablet has YouTube in high-definition built in to the iPad and Apple’s online iTunes Store, which will add an “iBooks” for purchase.

Discuss it here

FT-86 the new Toyota Celica

Toyota, together with Subaru, is set to launch a new affordable driver-oriented sports coupe (think Toyota Celica reincarnation) and if these photos the FT-86 protoype are a sign we’ve got lots to look forward to.
The FT-86, set to debut as a production model in 2011, is a collaboration between Toyota and Subaru and will utilize a common chassis and some sort of 2.0 liter engine, currently rumored to be a four cylinder boxer engine dubbed the “C-45 Boxer” that can produce anywhere from 200 and 250 HP. A hybrid model isn’t expected. Rear-wheel drive though is.

A coupe is smaller in length, width and height than the new Nissan 370Z but has a slightly longer wheelbase. It’s also the first car from Toyota Motor Company to incorporate design cues from the Lexus LF-A concept.