Live Blogging Apple Unveils The iPad

3:13 PM: It is operating on an iPhone OS. New version. Not final software.

3:07: OK. I just touched it. I especially like the way it lets me use a pinching motion to navigate and open into different pages and close out.

It does not have Flash and it does not allow you to run more than one app at at time. It does have a built-in mic, but no phone. At least not yet.

2:57 PM: Notable is the lack of information about publishing deals.

2:56 PM: I'm waiting in line now to see IT. I have never seen this much hype at an apple event. Even for the iPhone. There are media trucks everywhere.

2:37 PM: I'm about to go out and try one. I will send missives from there. The event is over.

2:31 PM: Thus far there has been no talk of the much-rumored video chat on this and it seems as if the event is coming to a close.

2:29 PM: It is OLED back lit and that is something the Kindle doesn't have. You can turn pages by using your fingers.

2:28 PM: I'm trying to get a handle on book pricing. It appears that the books are priced between $12.99 and $17.99, but there hasn't been any official announcement.

2:26 PM: The virtual keyboard is close in size to a real one. It will be interesting to see how it feels.

Apple CEO Steve Jobs sits with the new iPad in his lap at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts on Jan
The scale of the iPad is evident as Apple's Steve Jobs cradles the device in his lap at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in San Francisco.

Justin Sullivan/Getty Images
2:23 PM: Jobs is running a video. It will be online shortly.

2:22 PM: It comes with a dock so it can be a picture frame. It comes with a keyboard dock. This is big.

2:21 PM: iPad will start shipping in 60 days. And, then later, they will have 3G models.

2:20 PM: 16 gig goes for $499; 32 gig for $599; and 64 gig for $699.

2:19 PM: He says they had an aggressive price goal and they have met it. Pad starts at $499.

2:18 PM: Thousands of books are available on the iPad says Jobs. Now for the price.

2:17 PM: You can activate on the iPad and there is no contract. You can cancel when you want. This is in in the U.S. They say international use is not in place. They use GSM SIMs, so they should work because they are unlocked.

2:15 PM: Every iPad has WiFi and it will have 3G. AT&T (Sob ... ) is offering two plans: 250 MB of data for $14.99, and an unlimited plan for $29.99.

Apple CEO Steve Jobs demonstrates the new iPad at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts on January 27,
The iPad has a virtual keyboard.

Justin Sullivan/Getty Images
2:13 PM: Jobs is back on the stage. He is talking about iTunes. The iPad syncs with iTunes via USB.

2:08 PM: Schiller is showing off a nice feature that lets text wrap itself around a photo in a very graphically pretty way.

2:07 PM: To address those wondering if the iPad has Flash: They haven't mentioned Flash at all.

2:06 PM: Keynote lets you move through a slide show by tapping with your finger. Or sliding with your finger. It looks Impressive.

2:01 PM: Phil Schiller is on stage. He's talking about iWork. It will let you make presentations. They have a beautiful spreadsheet.

Steve Jobs introduces Apple's new iPad tablet computer. Photo: Jose Sanchez, AP.
Steve Jobs holds up the new iPad.

Jose Sanchez/AP
1:59 PM: They use the epub format. In the background I see prices like 17 bucks.

1:58 PM: You use your finger to turn the pages. You can navigate to the table of contents and touch chapter you want. The author can add videos and pics. Still no talk of price.

1:56 PM: Jobs shows a vitual book shelf. It slides open to a book store. The covers appear on the bookshelves.

1:55 PM: There will be a book store. Five of the largest publishers are on board.

1:54 PM: Steve Jobs returns to the stage. They are done with apps. Here come eBooks. Jobs praises Amazon and says they will stand on their shoulders and go further with iBooks.

1:52 PM: They are showing off watching a live baseball game. It let's you see stats updated live while you watch.

1:49 PM: They are introducing Travis Boatman from Electronic Arts. He's showing off a game. They expect to bring all EA games from iPhone to the iPad but the pad will bring new things. You can use the pad like a steering wheel. You can use fingers to shift gears in a virtual car.

1:46 PM: They are showing off brushes, which let you paint pictures on the iPad. It let you paint with your finger!

1:44 PM: It will break out into sections. They have only been working on the app for three weeks; it's clear they didn't have much time.

1:43 PM: Jennifer Brook of the Times shows it off. Tap to change the number of columns and watch slide shows.

1:42 PM: Martin Nisenholtz from The New York Times is talking about how the will set up a NYT's app.

1:40 PM: Mark Mickey from Game Loft is here to show how they will use pad as gaming device. Next up The New York Times.

1:38 PM: They plan to put new apps for the iPad front and center. So they won't highlight iPhone apps right now

1:37 PM: If a developer wants, they can re-work an app specifically for the OTTERBOX IPAD 4 CASE .

1:34 PM: He's launching a game called SnoCross. The graphics look fabulous.

1:32 PM: You will be able to run all apps on the App Store on it. Forstall launches Facebook. It looks nice.

1:32 PM: Scott Forstall of apple software is on stage now.

1:31 PM He says it has 10 hours of battery life. He can go from SF to Tokyo and watch movies the whole way. It's made of aluminum and glass.

1:29 PM: That gives you a little bit of an overview of what the IPAD 3 CASE can do, he says. It is a-half-inch thin, has a 9.7-inch display and weighs one-and-a-half pounds. 1 GHz processor and up to 64 gigabytes of RAM.

1:27 PM: He's watching the latest Star Trek movie. And now he's watching Up.

1:26 PM: Now he's showing off a nice video — in landscape mode — from YouTube of a dog surfing on waves.

1:25 PM: Jobs uses Google Maps to find sushi places in downtown San Francisco.

1:23 PM: It does look like an iPod touch on steroids, though. It has the same button on the bottom that brings you home. He's playing music: The Grateful Dead's Friend of the Devil. Jobs is such a baby boomer.

1:21 PM: There is a nice bar at the bottom that lets you glide through the pictures. Much like iPhoto, it has a map that will tell you where you took each photos. So, say, if you tap on the map ,pictures you took in Paris will pop up.

1:20 PM: Now he is showing off photos. You can flick through. It will grab data from a PC or Mac.

1:19 PM: Jobs is showing off e-mail. He appears to be using Outlook. The on-screen keyboard pops up to write mail.

1:17 PM: You can watch media in landscape mode or upright.

1:15 PM: The IPAD 3 CASE has a glass screen and black trim. It's about the size of a hardback novel.

1:13 PM:: It has an almost life-size virtual keyboard. It has a calendar, address book, Google Maps, music and it has the iTunes store built right in.

1:12 PM: Jobs is displaying The New York Times and Facebook in his demo.

1:11 PM: The rumors were right. It's about a 10-inch screen. You can browse the Web.

1:10 PM: It's called the iPad.

1:08 PM: Jobs just descibed Apple as a mobile-devices company. That's the first time I have heard him descibe Apple that way. Now he's showing a Wall Street Journal pic of Moses coming down from a mountain with tablets. He laughs. But that is just about where we are.

1:06 PM: Jobs says they now have 140-thousand apps in the app store.

1:04 PM: Jobs looks thin, as he has for some time.

1:02 PM ET: The lights are dimming and press and VIPs are packed into a theatre in downtown San Francisco. Steve Jobs has just stepped on stage. He got a standing ovatation. He says that they will intorduce a truly revolutionary device today and that they just sold their 250 millionth iPod.

Apple is expected to announce a tablet device at an event scheduled for 1 p.m. ET. Laura Sydell is at the Yerba Buena Center in San Francisco awaiting the start. Check this entry for live updates.

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Workers apply the Apple logo to the exterior of the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts.