Your Pocket Gamer guide to the Apple iPad 2

What do you give to the tablet computer that has everything? Simple - you give it some extra grunt, a thinner profile, two cameras, and stick a '2' on it.

iPad 2 is getting its international launch tomorrow, on the same day the 3DS hits the shelves. While Apple's effort isn't nearly as revolutionary as Nintendo's – 2010 was the year for that – it's refined enough to ensure that Apple will remain the tablet of choice for some months to come.

Chances are you've already made your mind up about whether to buy one. But if you're on the fence, or simply contemplating a life in thrall to Steve Jobs and his many seductive products, here's a guide to show you what you might be in for.

The device

iPad 2 is packing a dual-core A5 processor, 512MB RAM, and a PowerVR SGX 543MP2 graphics chip.

In lay terms, that means it's a hell of a lot more powerful than the original iPad. According to Apple it can run games up to nine times faster, and benchmark tests carried out by AnandTech show that it's also considerably nippier than Motorola's recent Xoom tablet.

Other improvements over the original model include two cameras, allowing you to conduct FaceTime conversations and record videos; a gyroscope; HDMI-out; a bigger speaker; and an 8mm thick form factor, making it 33 per cent thinner than its predecessor.

The games

As soon as iPad 2 became available EA and Firemint issued updates for Dead Space and Real Racing 2 respectively, improving the graphics to take advantage of iPad 2's extra grunt.

We'll no doubt see more developers follow suit over the coming weeks and months, but it's not necessary for a game to receive an update in order for it to run better.
Telltale's Back to the Future, for example, no longer stutters on iPad 2, and nor do several other games that made the original iPad sweat, like Tales of Monkey Island and Infinity Blade. It's not all about sheer grunt, of course. Natural Motion's Jenga has received a gyroscope update for iPad 2, giving you extra control over your wooden blocks.

Where to buy it

Lots of places. From tomorrow you'll be able to buy an iPad 2 from Currys, Carphone Warehouse, Vodafone, T-Mobile, Orange, or Apple itself either at an Apple Store or online.

It's not possible to make an order over the web yet - that option will apparently go live a 1am, though it's worth checking before then. Even then you'll be looking at a wait of a couple of weeks or more for Apple to ship your iPad 2, so it might be best to start queuing now if you want to get your hands on one tomorrow.

What it costs

As with the original iPad, there are six options:

£399 for the 16GB wi-fi-only model
£479 for the 32GB wi-fi-only model
£559 for the 64GB wi-fi-only model
£499 for the 16GB 3G and wi-fi model
£579 for the 32GB 3G and wi-fi model
£659 for the 64GB 3G and wi-fi model

You can also get it subsidised from one of the operators. Only Orange and Vodafone have announced data tariffs so far.

Orange will let you have a 16GB iPad 2 for £199 on a 24-month contract for £25 a month if you're an existing customer and £27 if you're not. Go here for full details.

Vodafone will let you have the same iPad 2 for £199 and £24.50 a month if you're an existing customer, £229 and £27 a month if you're not. Go here for full details.

Apple has kindly supplied the SIM-only prices on its website.

Finally, you'll probably want to buy a magnetic Smart Cover, which starts at £35.