iPad 2 Coming in February with Dual Cameras and Higher Resoution Display?
By 
Earlier this week, AppleInsider reported about the fact that Apple issued an early February blackout period during which retail stores employees should refrain from taking vacation or days off, in order to keep Apple’s retail locations heavily staffed for a “major product launch.”
While most expected the blackout period to be dedicated to the launch of the Verizon iPhone, we just learned that the phone will actually be introduced as early as next week, three weeks before the beginning of the blackout period. In other words, the blackout period cannot possibly be related to the launch of the Verizon iPhone.
So, what’s left? Besides an unlikely Mac product line refresh, the only possibility we can think about is the introduction of the next generation iPad. And we’re not the only ones to think that, as Digg founder Kevin Rose also believes the iPad 2 will be announced in 3-4 weeks.
According to Rose, the device will feature front and back cameras, as well as a new, higher resolution display:
I have it on good authority that Apple will be announcing the iPad 2 in the next “3-4 weeks”, possibly Tuesday February 1st. The iPad 2 will feature a retina display and front/back cameras. If you’re thinking of buying an iPad, hold off for now. [...] UPDATE: Spoke w/another source, the display has a “higher dpi”, but not technically a retina display. This seems odd to me, we’ll have to wait and see..
Given all the mockups and rumors we’ve seen/heard so far, the presence of dual cameras on the next-gen iPad is almost a certainty, especially given how Apple is pushing its FaceTime video chat service.
As for the display, while we don’t think Apple will double the resolution of the first generation iPad, the iPad 2 will likely feature a higher – though unspecified – resolution display. The current iPad features a 1024×768 pixels resolution, and we wouldn’t be surprised if the iPad 2 would come with a 1280×960, 1600×1200 or even higher resolution display.
While Rose’s predictions have often been hit or miss, and should be taken with a grain of salt, we tend to be in line with his views, as the iPad 2 has already entered production, and Apple is likely eager to move fast to fend off the slew of Android Honeycomb tablets recently announced at CES.
