iPad 3 review

The new iPad 3 picks up the iOS story where the iPad 2 left off - with an incremental upgrade to iOS 5.1 the main talking point.

However, before we go through what's new, we'll take a quick tour across the operating system to show just how simple it is to operate a new iPad.

The home screen is laid out in a very similar way to the iPhone, except we're seeing some much larger icons for the apps you've downloaded.

TechRadar rating

4.5/5

For

• Superb screen
• Fast processor
• Slick gaming
• Simple interface

Against

• Can overheat
• Apps take up too much space
• No expandable storage
• Thicker than iPad 2

New iPad 3 review: Interface

Sharper screen, faster innards - but is it worth the update?

 

The new iPad 3 picks up the iOS story where the iPad 2 left off - with an incremental upgrade to iOS 5.1 the main talking point.

However, before we go through what's new, we'll take a quick tour across the operating system to show just how simple it is to operate a new iPad.

The home screen is laid out in a very similar way to the iPhone, except we're seeing some much larger icons for the apps you've downloaded.

You can fill as many home screens as you like with apps as you download more from the App Store, and swiping from screen to screen on the iPad 3 is silky smooth even with loads of programs downloaded.

There's also the dock at the bottom of the display which can hold up to six regularly-used apps that are present on all home screens, which is more than the four on offer with the iPhone thanks to the extra screen real estate.

Neat freaks need not despair either: it's easy to create folders of the apps you want to lump together simply by dragging an icon and plopping it on top of another – the iPad will create a name for the group based on the content, but it's easy to rename these.

iOS 5.1 doesn't offer too much in the way of new features for the users interface, but a trick that Apple has learned from Google's Android is the notifications bar, which can be accessed simply by swiping down from the top of the screen.

This contains information on everything from unread mail messages to notifications of new moves in games you're playing with friends. It's a simple system and one that's prevalent throughout the system, even in most apps, meaning you can easily jump in and out of applications where necessary.

Speaking of which, it's worth taking a look at the multi-tasking gestures on offer, as they're pretty sensational. Using a full set of fingers on the screen allows three functions: pinching in will take you to the home screen, flicking up will enable the multi-tasking window and swiping left will let you bounce between open apps

Messaging

The iPad 3 is a device that's really about consuming media than creating it (at least when it comes to prose) and as such, you wouldn't label it a message-centric device.
However, that doesn't mean it's not one of the best out there, as when it comes to the likes of emailing it's simply brilliant if you can get past the slightly odd keyboard.

We'll start with Apple's keyboard on the iPad, as it's consistent throughout the OS. It's a great option in our eyes if you're one of those that's invested in a SmartCover to help bring some elevation to the screen, as you can use it as a desktop keyboard pretty easily - although you'll need to get over the lack of feedback under the finger and the dull 'thunk' as your digits bash the screen.

However, it's not as good for holding the new iPad 3 and trying to get a missive out to the world; cradling it in landscape mode means you can't hit the middle keys as easily, and when in portrait you've got the issue of the device being quite top-heavy so it's again an uncomfortable experience.
You can open up a split keyboard to make it a little easier to type in the hands, but be warned this is at the expense of accuracy.
So in summary: accuracy of keys good, holding iPad to type bad.

Email

The email client on the iPad 3 is pretty goshdarn good in our opinion - the iOS email app is second only to Windows Phone in our opinion, and that's not got a tablet category, so Apple's way out in front here.
From the range of mail portals you can use (many) to the ease of getting notified of an email (unobtrusive - a little pop down from the top and it will sit in your notifications bar), it's a simple way of using the iPad as a decent background emailing device.

The email interface itself is also good - a unified inbox allows you to combine both work and personal life, but in truth many will prefer to bounce between to two. A list pane can be called up whenever you like, meaning it's easy to read an email and then jump back into the inbox with a flick of the finger.
It's elements like this that make the iPad 3 a different beast to the iPhone, and Apple has recognised this. Text is also much more legible on the Retina Display - we're not saying it was terrible before, but we definitely felt it was a more comfortable reading experience.
The other key feature the iPad 3 has is the ability to wander through mail folders - many people are dealing with email overload these days by sticking them in separate folders for later, and it's key to be able to get access to these without having to mess about with thousands of taps.

Searching for email is similarly easy - you pull down from the top of the screen to get access to the search bar, and from there you can easily ask for any word in an email that might have been put somewhere - be it the sender's name, subject or general message text - plus the server searches are very speedy as well.
If you've got an iPhone or iPad already, the above will be of no surprise to you - the new iPad 3 doesn't really take this story on any further, except to make text more legible - but it's worth mentioning as it will be a key feature to many prospective buyers.

Dictation

Dictation is also included in the place of Siri on the new iPad, and while there are some editors out there that think this is going to be the end of the Dictaphone when it comes to transcription: think again.
We've no idea why Siri isn't included on the new iPad, but the dictation service is only 90% accurate in our tests, which just isn't enough to consider switching from the normal keypad when writing an email.
In truth, the accuracy is better on a Samsung Galaxy S2 when it comes to voice recognition – not by much, but for this service to work it really needs to be bullet proof. And after the song and dance Apple has made over Siri, why is it not included in this more powerful machine?

Twitter

It's not really messaging as such, but it's worth mentioning Apple's deep integration with Twitter. Well, deep as in you can Tweet a photo directly from the Gallery app, as there's no on board client or anything to mess around with, nor can you assign Twitter names to contacts.

However, when you take a picture there's an option to post it straight to Twitter providing you've linked up the account in Settings – plus you get a pleasant little chirping sound when it sends. Nice.

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The third-generation iPad

.The iPad has been a remarkable success story. Apple sold 15 million of the original model in the first nine months of the product’s existence, a number that blew away even the most optimistic prognostications. With last year’s introduction of the iPad 2, things kept accelerating. In a little less than two years, Apple has sold roughly 60 million iPads, dominating the market it created.

Maintaining Apple’s lead in tablet devices is the job of the third-generation iPad, a product that doesn’t mess with success. Like the iPad 2 before it, this new iPad is not a re-thinking of the original concept. Instead, Apple has chosen to focus on a few areas of improvement while keeping the overall package the same. Though it’s an approach that can frustrate people who are disappointed by anything that’s not a quantum leap, Apple executes it to perfection and reaps the rewards.

In my review of the iPad 2, I suggested a rule of Apple product evolution I called “Jobs’s Law”—that the latest version of any Apple product is likely to be thinner and lighter than its predecessor. The third-generation iPad breaks that law. It’s actually slightly thicker and slightly heavier than the iPad 2, and in many cases users won’t perceive it to be faster.

But the changes Apple has wrought with this iPad aren’t about making it thinner or lighter or faster, but about making it better. And on nearly every front, the third-generation iPad is markedly better than its predecessor.