Beta of iOS 5 reveals double resolution iPad images re-opening speculation on iPad 3 display

Images discovered in the Twitter framework of the iOS 5 beta show a resolution of 1536 x 2048, hinting that the screen on the Apple iPad 3 will have much higher resolution than the screen on the currently released Apple iPad 2. The Twitter framework, new to iOS, is the only framework to have these large resolutions. Apple has built a system-wide Twitter framework into the new build of iOS.

A separate report from a Taiwan newspaper says that the Apple iPad 3 will launch in Q4 of this year, with resolution 5 to 6 times higher than what is currently on the Apple iPad 2. The current resolution is 768 x 1024. Doubling that to the discovered 1536 x 2048 would quadruple the number of pixels, similar to the jump made by the Apple iPhone which went from resolution of 320 x 480 on the iPhone 3GS to the Retina Display of 640 x 960 with pixel density of 326 ppi.

Even though the original report said that the Apple iPad 3 would come with Retina Display, even quadrupling the pixel density would bring the count under the 300 ppi standard that Apple CEO Steve Jobs says is the line separating a Retina Display from a standard one. Based on the 10-12 inches from the eyes that the average iPhone user holds the phone, 300 ppi (pixels per inch) is the limit of the human retina. Apple could redefine the Retina Display standard for its tablet, using the excuse that those devices are held further away than smartphones are. If the new iPad has a screen with resolution of 1536x 2048, it would have a density of 264 ppi, below the current Retina Display standard, but above the current density of 132 ppi on the Apple iPad 2.

As we reported, speculation was rampant before the introduction of the second iPad that the resolution was going to be 1536 x 2048. However, rumors are that engineering problems made it impossible to produce. Concord Securities Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo says Apple will manufacture a double-resolution iPad 3 after fixing issues with production volume and costs with the displays.

source: AppleInsider