New Tablet iPad 3 Reviews and Performance

New Tablet iPad 3 Reviews and Performance - Performance of the iPad 3 is solid and, happily the advent of iOS 7 hasn't caused the dreaded slowdown on the iPad 3, it still runs well. 

New Tablet iPad 3 Reviews and Performance

One of the primary problems with the iPad 3 is its size and weight. Android tablets have been getting better and better and now compete with the iPad. Apple has rectified this with the iPad Air, which will match the iPad mini 2 in design. 

The iPad 3 was Apple's first Retina screen iPad. The quality of the screen is mesmerizing and still stands the test of time by looking great two years after launch. It's also well-designed and robust, with users happy with the way it looks. 

If there's a couple of areas the iPad 3 suffers it's battery life and value for money. Battery life is reasonable solid but not outstanding. You'll get a full day's use out of it but if you're using 3g that will reduce significantly. It also takes a fair bit of time to recharge meaning you won't be able to blast it for half an hour before you leave the house. New Tablet iPad 3 Reviews and Performance

A couple of other things to consider if you're looking to buy and iPad 3 second hand is that it uses the old style 21 pin Apple connector as opposed to the new Lightning one. That means that if you have an iPhone 5S, 5C or 5 you'll have to use different chargers.

iPad 3 - Introduction

Apple's iPad line is the best-selling tablet range of all time and when it came out the iPad 2 set some pretty high expectations for the market, so to say that most people were excited about the potential of the iPad 3 – officially called the “new iPad”, which is ridiculously confusing - is a bit of an understatement. 

Looking for the best iPad 3 alternatives? Have a read of our Best Tablets

New Tablet iPad 3 Reviews and Performance

But does it live up to the hype? In most ways, the answer is a resounding yes. The iPad 3 sports the highest-resolution screen ever seen in a tablet; internals with more graphics power than most handheld consoles barring the PS Vita; seriously improved cameras; and it’s all still stuck into a relatively light and slim aluminium shell. Yet despite this the iPad 3 maintains the same 10-hour battery life and will cost you no more than its predecessor did. 

However, if you weren’t a fan before, there might not be enough to this latest model to change your mind. There are even one or two minor downsides compared to the iPad 2, and it’s fair to say that in many ways the Android competition has caught up.

iPad 3 - Design and Weight

From a design standpoint, Apple hasn’t fixed what wasn’t broken. If you didn’t have them side by side, the iPad 3 could easily be mistaken for its predecessor’s twin. It’s virtually identical in every regard, save that at 9.4mm it’s nearly a whole millimetre thicker and also weighs a little more at 652g for the Wi-Fi version or 662 with 4G. 

That’s quite considerable, and it’s a bit of a shame that the iPad 3 has gotten heavier where tablets with slightly larger screens and better connectivity, like the 568g Asus EeePad Transformer Prime or 558g Toshiba AT200 (review coming soon), have managed to keep their weight below that of the iPad 2.  

Of course there’s good reason for this extra weight. The new Retina Display requires beefier specs to push pixels onto it, which in turn meant that Apple had to up the battery capacity to maintain the new iPad’s nine-hour plus figure. However, the difference in the hand is telling, and while the AT200 feels like you could hold it in a single hand without strain for extended periods, the iPad 3 is definitely a tablet that’s more comfortably held with both. 

New iPad 3 12

So dimensions are very similar, and the iPad 3’s look hasn’t changed much either. It’s still an attractive slab of immaculately finished aluminium with a glass front, and it’s still available with black or white bezels. As is usually the case with Apple products, build is superb, with no signs of flex, creak, or poorly fitted seams. The smooth aluminium back still feels great, though it is perhaps a little less grippy than we might like. Of course, the same complaint can be leveled at many competing tablets. New Tablet iPad 3 Reviews and Performance