Already a 4G (LTE) iPad in late 2011?
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Without a doubt, the last two weeks have been eventful for Apple and the gadget world in general. Last week, CES 2011 kicked off and overall was a fascinating event that gave us a view of great upcoming products and the transformation of many companies in general.
This week, Verizon and Apple solidified their partnership by announcing the Verizon iPhone version. In addition, Verizon Wireless confirmed they will launch an iPad version that will connect directly to its network. Some are now predicting a 4G-based (LTE) iPad in late 2011.
As I’ve mentioned before, Verizon has a history of pushing the envelope on a very large scale. The announcement of the CDMA iPhone is only the beginning. We’re already seeing how they plan to stream their FiOS TV content to your iPad so that you can take it wherever you go. And, they plan to do so by making FiOS TV independent of fiber for the iPad.
So, is there anything stopping Verizon and AT&T from launching a 4G (LTE) iPad version in 2011? Verizon is aggressively rolling out their 4G LTE network across the nation. AT&T made the announcement during CES that they will accelerate their LTE deployment in 2011, but we assume it will likely be ready for 2012. It’s only a matter of time before we see a 4G iPad running on a LTE network.
One market analyst is already forecasting Apple’s stock to rise above the $400 per share mark. Peter Misek of Jeffreries & Co. is basing his predictions on the belief that Apple is not done surprising consumers. He believes Apple will launch a 4G-based iPad in late 2011.
Misek is also predicting that Apple will unveil an iPhone for LTE networks by October and a GSM-based iPhone 5 in June. Only time will tell.
We expect 2011 to be a tremendous year for tablets, home-connected devices, 4G devices and cloud-based services. Again, Apple has a big chance to sell millions of first-generation and second-generation iPads, new iPhones and Apple TVs.
Google, TV manufacturers and application developers in general will continue to experience great opportunities to sell their products. Don’t forget the carriers, whom are transforming their networks and making big investments to cope with the traffic and new requirements all of us are driving.
Are you ready for more connected devices? Are you ready for a 4G iPad? It’s only a matter of time, probably sooner than we expect.
