A little disappointed with the GPU

[MythicFrost]

Don't get me wrong, I'm thoroughly pleased with the iPad, in fact I think it's amazing.
I think no matter what, the iPad will perform flawlessly, smoothly and be fantastic.

But I've thought, why would they put the same GPU that's in the iPhone 3GS in the iPad?
By my thinking, using a better GPU would allow for games to be built with even greater graphics quality, which is really what I look for in 3D games.

Is Apple thinking of better battery life? Has it made changes to the GPU that haven't been discovered yet?
It also leads me to my second question, how come we can see much better quality graphics in apps now if the GPU is the same (X-Plane, N.O.V.A HD etc...)

I'm not really worried about the 256MB of RAM, since the iPad will run just fine. That surprised me though, I expected 512MB.

Any thoughts?

 

[MICHAELSD]

The 1GHz ARM is probably solely where the extra power for gaming is coming from. I'm disappointed, too. Not because regular usage is really affected, but developers can develop less impressive games than I was hoping for (I wanted the iPad to be like a minor jump between a console generation for games). Battery life and cost were undoubtedly the main reasons for using the same graphics card. "If the PowerVR SGX in the iPhone 3GS can run the iPhone OS silky smooth on the iPad, why waste extra battery life and make less profit just for games?" That seems to be probably something like Apple's thought for the decision.

 

[richpjr]

Perhaps the GPU in the iPhone is not being pushed very hard and it will handle the iPad's more powerful CPU just fine?

 

[drjsway]

I agree. Although not a big deal, graphically intense games (like Sam and Max) lags almost to the point of being unplayable. The 3D seems on par with PC games of 8 years ago.

 

[jav6454]

V1 of any iProduct (except the 1st Gen iPhone) is the testing bench.... which is why I don't recommend buying a 1st Gen of a major product revision or launch.

 

[drjsway]

V1 of any iProduct (except the 1st Gen iPhone) is the testing bench.... which is why I don't recommend buying a 1st Gen of a major product revision or launch.

In the case of iPhone OS products, all apps and games must play on all versions. This means developers are unlikely to take advantage of a future iPad's GPU power.

I wasn't expecting a $499 mobile device to run Crysis anyway so no big deal.

 

[Inksworth]

I wouldn't be too upset with the graphics yet. From a technical standpoint (feel free to call me on this if I'm wrong) I'm not sure we've pushed the chipset to its full potential with many games yet.

The chipset supports Shader Model 4.1, which can be used for some really crazy effects (or so Wikipedia tells me.) Remember last summer when we were all excited about the 3GS's new graphics? The market, I'm pretty sure, held back the graphics prowess to ensure full support for the original iPhone and 3G.

Give it some time, I'm pretty sure we'll see some extremely impressive graphics demonstrations.

 

[MythicFrost]

I wasn't expecting a $499 mobile device to run Crysis anyway so no big deal.

You weren't?! Oh well it might run Crysis 2... (sarcasm, they downgraded C2 to accommodate consoles :/)
I held out some hope

Give it some time, I'm pretty sure we'll see some extremely impressive graphics demonstrations.

I really hope so, I'm impressed by N.O.V.A HD, X-Plane, AirCoaster for iPad, Real Racing HD and Need For Speed Shift.

Not overly impressed by Modern Combat: Sandstorm, Dungeon Hunter HD etc... I wish they had better graphics.

It's very exciting, I'll have my (mums) iPad in about 3-4 days

 

[jav6454]

In the case of iPhone OS products, all apps and games must play on all versions. This means developers are unlikely to take advantage of a future iPad's GPU power.

I wasn't expecting a $499 mobile device to run Crysis anyway so no big deal.

Well, no developer has optimized their apps as of yet to even take advantage of the 3GS's new hardware. Take into consideration the majority of apps out there are built thinking of the 3G and 1st Gen iPhones. All subsequent re-releases are to make them officially OS 3 compatible (even tho they were), but nothing about making them device conscious.

As it is, the apps for the iPhone won't take advantage of the iPad yet. When they do, you'll find having an iPad or 3GS will make a difference. I give that a year tops. Now, when the next iPad comes around, I expect to see a newer GPU. I most likely see we will see that new GPU being guinea pig tested on the next iPhone rev before it lands on the iPad. Right now the apps take advantage of the bigger screen and faster CPU, nothing really GPU intensive. Let's see how Devs deliver.

Also Crysis? A bit over used meme at this point. And no, I don't expect the iPad to be a min-high / high range PC class gaming system.

 

[OriginalMasta]

There aren't many power sgx apps for the 3GS that fully maximizes the gpu. It takes a lot of effort to fully utilize the power sgx potential. I don't even think the power mbx was ever maxxed out.

 

[phillyred79]

I'm actually perfectly content with the iPad's processing power and graphics.. As far as gaming is concerned look at the Wii or DS- compared to the xbox or ps3 they aren't anywhere near as graphically intense, but are fun and innovative just like the iPad gaming will prove to be.