1979 Apple Graphics Tablet vs. 2010 Apple iPad

http://www.cio.com/article/603427/Face_off_1979_Apple_Graphics_Tablet_vs._2010_Apple_iPad
30-year-old technology struts its stuff beside today's state-of-the-art tablet computer.

Meet the tablets
The Apple Graphics Tablet (left) was released in 1979 and cost $650. It connects to any Apple II and can be used to draw images at a resolution of 280 by 192 pixels. The tablet draws power directly from the Apple II and cannot be used when disconnected.
The Apple II was originally designed to be used with televisions rather than computer monitors, but the Apple Graphics Tablet produced interference that could disrupt reception of television signals. A later model was identical to its predecessor except for one notable new feature: FCC compliance.


The Apple iPad (right) was released in 2010 in six models ranging from $499 to $829. Equipped with a 1-GHz A4 system-on-a-chip and a 16GB, 32GB or 64GB flash drive, it syncs with any Macintosh or Windows machine capable of running iTunes and can run thousands of iOS applications. Its resolution is 1024 by 768 pixels on a 9.7-in. LED-backlit glossy widescreen display.

Controlling the tablets

KansasFest attendee Loren Damewooddemonstrates each device's touch interface. The graphics tablet uses a stylus tethered to the interface card. A plastic overlay segments the tablet, much like graph paper does, to assist in drawing and to label specific functions. (There are more details about the interface card and overlay on subsequent pages.)
The iPad's capacitive touch screen neither requires nor supports peripherals, but it responds to multiple points of contact through the use of multifinger gestures.

Menus and icons
The overlay for the Apple Graphics Tablet provides a top row of function buttons that you can press with the stylus to issue software commands while drawing. Switching from straight lines to empty frames to solid boxes, changing colors and saving your work can be done with a simple tap.

On the iPad's home screen, a user-configurable row of application icons stays in the Dock at the bottom of the screen, offering a similar consistency for commands. Once a specific app is launched, these icons disappear, reappearing only when the hardware Home key is pressed.

Connecting the devices
The Apple Graphics Tablet requires the included expansion card to be installed in the Apple II. The tablet and the stylus then each connect to the card.
The iPad uses a standard USB cable to connect to a Mac or Windows machine and then syncs with iTunes 9.1 or later. For Internet access, some iPad models can use AT&T's 3G cellular service; all models are equipped with Wi-Fi and Bluetooth.