Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) has unveiled the next generation iPad, which features a higher-resolution display, a new processor, and support for high-speed 4G LTE data networks.

Starting at $499, the new iPad features:

* Breakthrough Retina Display. The breakthrough Retina display, making everything look crisper and more lifelike.

* 5MP iSight Camera. The new iPad features a 5-megapixel rear camera with advanced optics, a backside illumination sensor, auto white balance, and face detection for incredible still images. You can record 1080p HD video.

* iLife and iWork . The new iPhoto app joins GarageBand and iMovie to complete the iLIfe family for iPad. You canfind them and the iWOrk apps -- Pages, Keynote and Numbers -- in the App store.

* Ultrafast 4G LTE. Designed with next-generation wireless technology, the new iPad with Wi-Fi + 4G connects to fat data networks around the world - up to 4G LTE. So you can download content, stream video, and browse the web hath amazing speeds.

Other Features

The third generation iPad retained 9.7-inch screen real estate of the iPad 2 and comes in Wi-Fi and Wi-Fi + 4G. Both models have a lithium-ion polymer battery that lasts up to 10 hours, a new dual-core Apple A5X processor, quad-core graphics, a VGA front-facing camera designed for FaceTime video calling. The device boasts a QXGA (2048×1536) display, four times the resolution of the iPad 2.

Pricing

* iPad with Wi-Fi, which uses only Wi-Fi networking to connect to the Internet., comes at $499 for 16GB model, $599 for 32GB model; and $599 for 64GB model

* iPad with Wi-Fi + 4G, which keeps you connected to the Internet using a fast cellular data connection when Wi-Fi isn't available, comes at $629 for 16GB model; $729 for 32GB model; $829 for 64GB model

As expected the iPad 2 will take a $100 steep price-cut. The entry level iPad 2 is now available for $399.

Availability

The device will be available March 16 in the United States, Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, Puerto Rico, Singapore, Switzerland, United Kingdom and the US Virgin Islands. Other markets are expected to follow.

The new iPad is now available for pre-orders at the Apple

Web site.

iPad 3 vs. iPad 2

Should you throw away your current iPad in favor of the iPad 3?

The new iPad has an A5X chip that offers twice the graphics punch of the iPad2's A5 chip. The new iPad boasts a higher-resolution 2,048-by-1,536-pixel display, which is four times the number of pixels as the 1024-by-768 resolution of the iPad and iPad 2. The new device has a 5-MP camera, capable of 1080p HD video recording (compared with only 720p for the previous model), and utilizes the optics system found in the iPhone 4S.

The iPad is slightly heavier -- just about two ounces -- and slightly thicker than the iPad 2. The Wi-Fi only new iPad weighs 652 grams, compared to the 601-gram iPad 2. Height and width have steadied at 241.2 mm and 7.31 mm, respectively, but the new iPad now has a depth of 9.4 mm, compared with 8.8 mm for the previous model.

Quad core processor?

Apple SVP of marketing Phil Schiller says that the new iPad's A5X processor runs four times NVIDIA's Tegra 3 processor. While the new iPad is already impressive for gaming, it doesn't have the quad-core processor that's already available in rival devices like the ASUS Transformer PRIME. The new iPad comes with an dual-core processor with a quad-core graphics processing unit.

No Siri

Contrary to hopes and expectations, the new iPad doesn't have Siri, the virtual assistant still exclusive to the iPHone 4S. The new iPad though has Voice Dictation, which recognizes English, French, German and Japanese.