Sweet! This is a major technology upgrade without a price upgrade: new display, new camera, new processor and new networking.

The new iPad starts at $499 and has retina display, 5-megapixel camera (with the same optics sensor from the iPhone 4S) and 1080p video recording. It will be available March 16 in black and white, powered by A5X chip (with quad-core graphics) and support 4G LTE networks. It’s 9.4 millimeters thick and weighs in at 1.4 pounds.

Wi-Fi only iPads will cost $499 for 16 GB, $599 32 GB and $699 for 64 GB, while 4G versions will cost $629 for 16 GB, $729 32 GB and $829 for 64 GB. Pre-orders start today, and the devices will be in stores March 16 in these 10 countries: U.S., UK, Japan, Canada, Switzerland, Germany, France, Hong Kong, Singapore and Austria.

Apple is working on two LTE versions of the iPad with AT&T, Verizon in the U.S., as well as Rogers, Telus and Bell in Canada. Both LTE U.S. models will be 3G ready, too.

The new Apple TV supports full 1080p HD and will remain $99.

(via Live From the Apple iPad Event [LIVE BLOG])

AppleInsider | Anticipated Apple TV update seen as stepping stone for connected HDTV

A key component for the Apple television set, Munster believes, will be Apple’s soon-to-launch data center in North Carolina. He believes the massive location could serve as a hub for a cloud-based iTunes service that would allow users to stream their catalog of movies and TV shows.

Munster believes the upcoming Apple TV update will add an App Store, allowing users to download applications to run on the device. He also sees the product having a lower price and less internal storage, as more content is streamed without a need to save it on the device.

The new Apple TV would be an attempt by Apple to fight the set top box model that currently exists in America. In June, Apple Chief Executive Steve Jobs explained that the Apple TV remains a hobby because it’s hard to break in to a market where consumers are used to receiving a cable box for free or for $10 per month.

“The only way that’s ever going to change,” Jobs said, “is if you can really go back to square one, tear up the set top box, redesign it from scratch with a consistent UI across all these different functions, and get it to consumers in a way that they’re willing to pay for it. And right now there’s no way to do that.”

But a new cloud-centric Apple TV is rumored to cost just $99, potentially making the device a much more attractive option for consumers.

When Apple can overcome the “primary” hurdles of set top boxes and live TV, Munster believes that is when the company will strike with an Internet-based iTunes TV pass for $50 to $90 per month. An App Store could also offer games, and services like Netflix and Hulu Plus, built right into the set.