It was impossible for Apple to have created the magical device people were conjuring up in rumors. (No, despite the copious use of the word ‘magical' in Apple's marketing campaign for the device, it's not magical.) Perhaps the iteration they launched here was a bit of a conservative effort.

The iPad isn't due in Canada until "late April" as per Apple's website but this hasn't stopped tech-smitten Canadians from crossing borders, scouring eBay and chancing the

The most important part of any tablet, whatever the quad-core brigade may say, is the screen. Unlike any internal component, the screen is what you'll still be noticing a week after your purchase, the part upon which all of your attention is focused.

CNET.com 's Donald Bell has written a fantastic and comprehensive review of the Apple iPad that we first published shortly after the tablet's US release, and after using the iPad we absolutely agree with his analysis.

In an act of aggressive tech convergence; Apple has consolidated your Netbook; e-reader; gaming device; photo frame; and iPod into an elegant; affordable supergadget; Bluetooth; 802.11n Wi-Fi; Movie rentals; 10 hours of battery life; Optional 3G wireless; Most-celebrated App Store on the planet

The iPad's large size is as much a hindrance as it is an advantage; The iPad can't entirely mimic many of the specialised products it seeks to replace; Limited multitasking capabilities; Lack of integrated video camera; Flash support; and HD video output

, you wouldn't be far wrong. It shares the same minimalist design and runs the same iPhone apps, now numbering over 200,000, plus more than 5000 new ones designed specifically to take advantage of the iPad's larger (9.7 Inch) screen.

The Apple iPad has been termed "revolutionary" by the venerable Steve Jobs, but how it does it actually perform? Will it render netbooks obsolete? Will the lack of flash and multitasking be a deal-breaker? We spend time with the device to find out.

Breakfast in New York. Sitting in a booth at Cafe Habana, people are staring as I type emails on the iPad. For now, it grabs too much attention, for better or worse, with its big swoopy animations and skittles glow-erific screen. It's not as strange as if I were hammering away on a laptop.

You can import photos from a Mac, PC or digital camera, see them organised as albums, and enjoy and share them using iPad's elegant slideshows. Watch movies, TV shows and YouTube or flip through pages of an e-book you downloaded from Apple's new iBookstore while listening to your music collection.

It's been a few months since Apple's shiny plinth was thrust from the waters, gleaming deity-like on the black sand shores. I had just returned from a month-long trip checking out the top technology at IFA in Berlin and the World Expo in Shanghai when I heard that I had become editor of Tone.

Tune in Partners The iPad, which has been the subject of intense interest and speculation over the past year, was launched today by Apple CEO and co-founder Steve Jobs at a special event in San Francisco.