New 9.7-inch iPad With Apple Pencil Support

Featuring Even Greater Performance and
Designed for Powerful AR Apps, Starting at $329

Apple today (3-27-18) updated its most popular iPad with support for Apple Pencil plus even greater performance, starting at $329. The new 9.7-inch iPad and Apple Pencil give users the ability to be even more creative and productive, from sketching ideas and jotting down handwritten notes to marking up screenshots.

The new iPad is more versatile and capable than ever, features a large Retina display, the A10 Fusion chip and advanced sensors that help deliver immersive augmented reality, and provides unmatched portability, ease of use and all-day battery life.

The new iPad features the Apple-designed A10 Fusion chip with 64‑bit desktop-class architecture, delivering 40 percent faster CPU and 50 percent faster graphics performance for seamless multitasking and graphics-intensive apps.

The front- and rear-facing cameras offer exceptional low-light performance and HD video recording for document scanning, moviemaking and FaceTime calls.

Read the entire news release  > HERE.

Apple Only Streams 4K Movies, No Downloads

People wanting to upgrade their desktop iTunes movie purchases to 4K are out of luck. Apple is only streaming video in that resolution, not offering downloads, according to an official support document.

"You can download a local copy of an HD movie, and you might be able to download HDR and Dolby Vision versions, but you can't download a 4K version," Apple says (HERE). The same webpage recommends at least 25 megabits per second of bandwidth for 4K streaming, and notes that falling below this may automatically switch users to 1080p or lower.

It's possible to stream locally-imported 4K video from one Mac to another via iTunes, AppleInsider can confirm if properly encoded with a tool like Handbrake. So, the Apple TV and iTunes itself is capable of performing the feat.

The situation is likely because of deals negotiated with most major Hollywood studios, which mean that people buying iTunes titles get 4K on the Apple TV at no extra cost. Limiting the extra resolution to streaming could be a way of deterring piracy, and/or keeping Blu-ray disc sales alive.

Additionally, the Apple TV won't stream YouTube videos in 4K, and is currently missing support for Dolby Atmos surround sound, though that is said to be arriving at some point later in a software update.

credit: appleinsider.com