Apple has sold more than 55 million iPads since its January 2010 introduction. Here's a look back at that event.
James Martin
James Martin was the Managing Editor of Photography at CNET.
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If Steve Jobs' January 27, 2010, introduction of the original iPad is any indication, we're sure that the March 8 unveiling of the next-generation iPad in San Francisco will bring lots of excitement.
At that 2010 unveiling, Jobs proclaimed that "what this device does is extraordinary." The images that follow illustrate how Apple's co-founder and then-CEO launched an era of extraordinary interest in the iPad, resulting in more than 55 million devices sold worldwide (and counting).
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With the iPad, Jobs said, you can "[hold] the Internet in your hands. It's an incredible experience."
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Jobs demoed map viewing on the iPad with Google's satellite view of the Eiffel Tower.
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The iPad became a popular photo-viewing device. Users can flick through photos by viewing them right in the frame.
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Jobs mused about whether there was room for a device between a smartphone and a laptop. Enter the iPad, he said, which provides a better way to view e-mail, photos, video, and Web sites.
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The iPad's default e-mail interface, Jobs said, provided a nearly full-size virtual keyboard that is "a dream to type on."
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A view of a subway map displayed within the e-mail app.
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Jobs held up the iPad.
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iTunes on the iPad shows full album covers in a grid layout.
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A view of the iTunes Store in iPad.
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Beautiful high-def video shown on the iPad.
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The original iPad was just a half inch thick, weighing 1.5 pounds.
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The iPad disrupted the publishing industry, allowing traditional newspaper to be read in a more comfortable digital format than was previously available.
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The original iPad had the A4 chip, the iPad 2 had the A5 chip, and it is expected that the next-generation iPad will have a chip called A6 that is designed to improve graphical capabilities and energy efficiency.
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The screen resolution is expected to increase from the iPad 2's 1,024x768 to 2,048x1,536. That's from 786,432 pixels to 3.14 million pixels.
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Facebook on the iPad. (The iPad now has a native Facebook app.)
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While the iPad 3 is expected to have a higher-resolution display that would be more taxing on the battery, Apple's (presumed) A6 processor may be more energy-efficient.
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An artist's sketch on the iPad.
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Art- and photo-editing tools on iPad.
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The iPad also enabled large-screen portable gaming.
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You can follow Major League Baseball games on the iPad with dynamic pitch-by-pitch updates.
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iBooks brought Apple into the world of e-book publishing.
