Hasta La Gadget!

Not even a week has passed since the iPad was announced and already we’re flush with more rumors. First, take a look at that image above. It’s a screengrab taken at the 9 minute and 9 second mark into last week’s iPad media event. Looks like an embedded iSight camera, right? Problem is, the iPad spec sheet doesn’t list a webcam to the dismay of many. Don’t buy it? Well, what if we told you that Mission Repair has received spare parts (image posted after the break) that appear to show a space for a camera module in exactly the same spot. In fact, the module pulled from a unibody MacBook is a perfect fit inside the iPad bezel. Still not sold Mr. Doubtypants? Ok, then what about the code that enables video call support in OS 3.2 or that protected engineering prototype we saw just one day before launch showing a cutout at precisely the same spot so as to not obscure whatever was underneath? True, the glint we see above could just be the ambient light sensor… but what fun is that when mongering conspiracy theories?

Now, what if we told you that we’re already hearing about the next version of the iPad? Wait, before you go excluding all the Apple news you might like to know that TechCrunch is privy to talk of a larger iPad that functions “more like a Mac than an iPhone.” A touchscreen tablet that could be as big as 15.4 inches and runs a touch-enabled version of OS X more similar to that found on today’s Mac laptops, desktops, and servers. It’s possible, we guess, though such a tablet would be counter to the arguments made at the iPad launch where Jobs and Co praised the device for being purpose-built to excel at specific tasks — TechCrunch‘s device sounds like a general purpose machine. Still, it does jibe with talk of a 22-inch iMac with touchscreen so let’s wait and see what bubbles up to the surface.