iPad 2 Live: Specs and Features Emerge For the iPad 2 Release

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Right now, Apple’s circled its metaphorical wagons out for a press event in which they’re spilling the beans about the new iPad 2. And specs-as well as features–have already started to emerge that give us a strong suggestion about the performance of the new model. But with a leak hanging over the launch’s head that say it’s the iPad 3 to watch for, will the iPad 2 stand on its own merits?

The big new item in the iPad 2 is the brand-new A5 processor, called a “completely new design” that’s set to offer up quite a bit more power than the previous version. The A5 is dual-core, which in turn offers up double the speed and up to nine times faster graphics, which is a pretty hefty step up in terms of performance on the graphics-heavy Apple tablet.

They’ve cut down the size on this one as well, down a full third from its original depth of 13.4 mm to a surprisingly svelte 8.8 mm, but it’s not just the chassis and the engine that got updated–there’s plenty more going on here. For instance, you’ll now be able to both charge and use the tablet at the same time, and if you find the screen too confining, you’ll have an HDMI out that you can use to put it up on a much larger screen, the same internal gyroscope that the iPod Touch and iPhone currently boast, onboard storage of up to 64 gigs, and more besides.

Interestingly, battery life is set to remain the same at ten hours, but being able to charge and use at the same time extends that out quite a bit.  Plus, they’ll even have versions for both Verizon and AT&T’s network.

If this is what’s being regarded as something that shouldn’t “get our hopes up too high” then the iPad 3 will be something to see.