14 DAY TRIAL // Apple’s revolutionary and magical tablet computer, the iPad, is one year old today, January 27th, 2011.
The high-ups in Cupertino, including Apple CEO Steve Jobs himself, should be extremely proud of their decision to wait no longer and introduce the first fully functional tablet to the world in January 2010.
As the device sold like water in the desert, competitors started to grow anxious to grab a piece of the pie before the iPad ate it all.
Sadly, for them, Apple’s iPad now accounts for roughly 90 per cent of the world’s entire “population” of tablets, and it’s only warming up, with Apple expected to introduce an improved version (iPad 2) in the near future.
To give you an idea of just how the iPad caught everyone off guard, an infographic created by OnSwipe, and re-published by Mashable, reveals that analysts predicted no more than 3.3 million units sold in its first year.
The tablet, however, has amassed sales that surpassed even Apple’s wildest dreams - almost 15 million devices shipped to date.
In celebration of the iPad’s first year in the wild, we give you Apple’s original announcement from January 27, 2010, complete with Steve Jobs’ official statement.
Apple Launches iPad
Magical & Revolutionary Device at an Unbelievable Price
SAN FRANCISCO—January 27, 2010—Apple® today introduced iPad, a revolutionary device for browsing the web, reading and sending email, enjoying photos, watching videos, listening to music, playing games, reading e-books and much more. iPad’s responsive high-resolution Multi-Touch™ display lets users physically interact with applications and content. iPad is just 0.5 inches thick and weighs just 1.5 pounds— thinner and lighter than any laptop or netbook. iPad includes 12 new innovative apps designed especially for the iPad, and will run almost all of the over 140,000 apps in the App Store. iPad will be available in late March starting at the breakthrough price of just $499.
“iPad is our most advanced technology in a magical and revolutionary device at an unbelievable price,” said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO. “iPad creates and defines an entirely new category of devices that will connect users with their apps and content in a much more intimate, intuitive and fun way than ever before.”