iPad 2 killer feature: The 2X factor

After using the iPad 2 for a few weeks, I can now say the upgrade was worth it. Even waiting in line with the huddled Los Angeles masses, yearning for the iPad 2, was worth it.

Allow me to insert a brief parenthetical by saying I wouldnt be completely honest if I didnt mention theres always a psychological need to justify the purchase of a pricey gadget. Not unlike seeking absolution for a sin. That said, Im pretty sure this review passes the objective, dispassionate analysis test.

Lets move on. At the time of purchase, there was very little to choose from (Apple stores then were still handing out claim tickets). So, I was bamboozled (Ill play the victim) into buying the $829 Verizon 3G model with 64GB of memory (white). I upgraded from the original iPad with AT&T 3G.

Double the memory: This was apparent almost immediately when I first picked up the iPad. Going from a meager 256MB in the original iPad to 512MB in the iPad 2 makes a difference. Think about the terabytes (petabytes?) of advice over the years from tech experts that implore people to upgrade their PCs memory to get better performance. Well, its true. More memory provides more space for more apps to reside in, which can then be accessed by high-speed system RAM.

Ill give one easy, everyday example. Web browsing is more fluid. I know this has something to do with the upgraded processor (which Ill get to below) but more memory is also playing a big role here. More specifically, Safaris version of tabbed browsing on the iPad 2 works better (no, its not literally tabbed browsing but its similar). When you jump between Web pages, a page that you havent visited in a while often doesnt have to reload. Thats a boon when Im doing productivity-related stuff--and otherwise makes browsing more enjoyable.

Double the cores: the iPad 2s A5 processor is a dual-core processor, compared with the single-core A4. This, by far, is the most significant aspect of the iPad 2 and often overlooked or downplayed because its considered too techie. (Whats a core?) I remember when I bought my first dual-core PC (an HP nc6400 business laptop). For me, it was the single biggest step up in PC performance I had ever experienced. The iPad isnt quite that breathtaking but its close.

Its not difficult to understand why. Two processing units are usually (though not always) better at handling demanding task loads than one. Would you rather have a four-cylinder Ford Ranger or an eight-cylinder F-350 hauling a big load? Not a perfect analogy but you get the idea. (Want proof? Check out these benchmarks, particularly the multithreaded tests).

And this applies to just about everything you do on the iPad. Launching, multitasking, Web surfing, multimedia (photos, movies). You name it.

One more feature Ill mention. So far, Verizon 3G has been more consistent for me than the AT&T 3G I had on the iPad 1. While I had no major complaints about the AT&T 3G, its apparent that the Verizon 3G on the iPad 2 delivers in places that I know for a fact were dead spots for AT&T. So, Im glad (so far) that I went with Verizon