Well besides the screen, the other limitation is RAM. They want to keep the costs down so they will try to get away with the minimal RAM possible.

With more RAM, they could have multiple tabs open and you can cut and paste between the browser and an email message back and forth without quitting-relaunching several times.

Of course if you're drafting anything that involved, you'd want to do it on a computer, where you can have multiple windows open.

For the iPad, I think they should try to get to something closer to the computer but as they add RAM in future models, there will be other OS services which try to claim the new RAM.

These are new classes of devices so the user experience expectations are still forming. People who want miniaturized computers want the full computer multitasking model shrunk down. Apple is trying to balance good experience with battery life, which is dependent on how thin they want to make their devices.

RAM disk
 

See, one can of course have multiple tabs open already on the safari browser (and the other browsers on the iphone/ipad), but they DO limit it. with the OS40 MT implementation I don't think there will be a need for the "quitting-and relaunching several time" one will just be able to leave things open. If apple does it right, they will write to the STORAGE RAM as some form of optimized RAM DISK (which would have TONS of memory for use) and then write BACK to operating RAM for the use of the open application. Certainly we have seen with more RAM things run faster and smoother, the 3Gs brings that to light for sure.

Having been an apple user for nearly 33 years now, I wouldn't consider myself a "fan boy" but would say that the company continues to surprise us with creative and elegant ways of bringing solutions to areas where others have not succeeded with a brute force attempt.

Between 3 of us in the office there are 4 handsets. I think I will be eligible to upgrade 2 immediately but may have to wait on the other 2.
I'd get one today even if I couldn't use it for a month.
Cheers,

Scho

As for multi-tasking, I would love to have Skype running in the background most all of the time, and beeping when I get an incoming call or text.

I have been running the MSNBC real-time application which for some reason seems to be able to work in multi-task mode today. I do not have app running, yet it pops up a window every once in a while with late breaking market news. ^

Haven't seen anything new on the next iPhone for a couple weeks. Maybe I missed it during my travels. Anyone see some news?

Supposedly we will hear from the Lord Steve on June 7th.

yeah, all the detes will be revealed on Monday with it available most likely end of the month. Not sure if 4.0 is going to be outed on Monday or not. Apparently, AT&T employees are not allowed to have vacations during the month of June.

Another plus - AT&T just reduced its data plan price points. So the iphone monthly plan just got a lot cheaper for those of us who don't stream videos and music. And hopefully the download hogs will jump ship to Sprint for the EVO with unlimited data.

Yeah I'm wondering what the exact date will be. Wedding Annie is the 21st, thinking to get the wifey one.

Everyone thinking we'll see $199 and $299 prices with a 2-year contract?

Mac Rumors is doing a live feed of today's keynote expected to present the new iPhone.

http://www.macrumorslive.com/

The presentation begins at 10AM PST

I'm willing to pay more if I can have a 1 - yr contract instead of a 2 - yr contract.

Is that possible?

historically, I have found the gdgt.com and engadget site to be the best for images, speed of info, etc. macrumorslive is great, but often slow and doesn't have the images that the others do.

Does the lack of responses here mean people are not impressed?

My 3G contract is up next month and I was waffling whether to stay with it (and no new contract) or buy the new iPhone.


Impressed isn't really the most accurate description of my take from the announcement today, but The longer battery life and new features mean I'll be buying the new phone...

I've got plenty of Macs and iPods in my life, I've always been eyeing one. Nothing here makes changes me from "eyeing" to "buying." Still with AT&T (a non-starter for me). Nothing so "improved" about this latest model. Yes, some new features, but nothing that changes my mind.