14 DAY TRIAL // When you think of the word iPad, what does your mind tend to conjure up? Probably Apple’s iOS-based line of tablet computers, right?
If you’re a fan of this type of technology, you probably know that the first iPad was released on April 3, 2010, while the most recent iPad models, the iPad Air 2 and iPad mini 3, were rolled out on October 22, 2014.
But what if we told you that the original iPad wasn't released by Apple and that it surfaced 9 years before the Cupertino tech giant brought one such device to the market?
The original iPad inventor is LG
It’s a true story. Back in 2001, Korean device manufacturer LG was present at the CeBIT computer fair in Hanover, Germany, where it showcased an innovative device, for that period.
The gizmo called the Digital iPAD was a Linux-based Web pad running the latest version of the Linux kernel 2.4.
LG’s pad was really the precursor of today’s tablets and aimed to help users who wanted Internet and multimedia access without resorting to a PC computer.
The slate came incorporating an Integrated Web browser and Linux-based MP3 and MPEG4 players, and it was able to connect to the Internet over wireless 802.11b LAN.
Powering the iPad was a 206MHz Intel SA-1110 system-on-chip processor, coupled with an in-built 64 SDRAM module. It also allowed some expansion via a slot for Flash memory cards and PCMCIA cards.
LG's iPad has a stylus too
Unlike Apple’s iPads today, LG’s tablet from 14 years ago also benefited from the services of a stylus. The Pad was able to recognize writing in both Korean and English.
Sure, the pre-slate pales in comparison to the current lineup of Apple tablets, but it’s pretty interesting to see that LG got hold of the iPad moniker long before the Cupertino tech giant did. It’s also quite puzzling why LG hasn't sued Apple over the naming scheme, yet.
Maybe it has to do with the fact that despite LG’s own claim of striving to put the web pad out on the Korean market “within the next 12 months,” the device never really made it into retail. Or maybe Apple quietly licensed it from them. It’s quite a mystery.