The third-generation iPad tablet debuts at the UF bookstore today, but students won’t get a discount on the product.
Today is the gadget’s official release for Apple suppliers around the world. It is priced starting at $499.
Jon Pitts, a trade manager at the UF bookstore, said the bookstore did not offer a preorder option for the iPad, and Apple did not give an exact number of iPads that would be shipped to the store.
IPads have been popular at the bookstore in the past, Pitts said, and he expects the new one to sell out quickly.
The new iPad features more vivid graphics, faster performance, a five-megapixel camera and the ability to connect to 4G networks.
It is offered in black or white and features the same 10-hour battery life as its predecessor, the iPad 2.
Pitts said the new iPad is essentially a “beefed-up iPad 2.”
“The screen resolution is incredible,” he said. “It’s higher than most people’s high-definition TVs.”
According to Macworld Magazine’s website, iPads preordered through the Apple store are sold out, and high demand has led to shipping delays of two to three weeks for new orders.
Corresponding with the third generation iPad’s release, the iPad 2 prices dropped on March 7, according to Apple’s website. A 16-gigabyte iPad 2 now starts at $399.
Pitts said the price drop is likely to lead many students to choose the iPad 2 rather than the newer model.
Twenty-year-old accounting junior Kelly Collar said she doesn’t think the iPad will be a necessary purchase for her because she already has an iPhone. She said the upgraded iPad doesn’t seem worth the extra cost.
“If I was going to buy one, I would buy an older one because I feel like it would be a much better value,” Collar said.
Sonya Sarkar, a 21-year-old economics junior, said the brand alone makes the cost worth it to her.
“I would buy it because I just love Apple,” she said. “And I’d buy the newer one because it would have more features.”
