How Apple Created The Lightest iPad Yet

When Apple introduced the first iPad with Retina Display in March of last year, it didn't come without a cost. The third–gen iPad was the first Apple product to actually get fatter than its predecessor. Compared to the iPad 2, at 1.44 pounds, the iPad with Retina Display was about 50 grams heavier and oh–so–slightly thicker around the middle.

For a company that has always emphasized its ability to make each successive generation of its products lighter and thinner, the iPad with Retina Display was a real porker. The culprit? The Retina Display, and the 40% larger battery Apple needed to build into the iPad to power it.

First announced with the iPhone 4, Apple's Retina Displays are screens with pixels so small that they can not be individually seen by the human eye (when held at an average viewing distance). For the iPad, a Retina Display is made up of 2048 x 1536 ultra–tiny pixels, four times as many as a non–Retina iPad. Retina Displays are easier to read and more lifelike than regular displays. But those extra pixels really drain the battery.

Read Full Story