There's been a lot written about the new iPad, a lot. So as soon as we got our hands on one of the Wi-Fi-only 16GB models on launch day, we were eager to see how it would perform, particularly the apparently world-changing retina display.

And it seems fair to say that, like every other publication, V3 was highly impressed by the improvement Apple has brought to the device, with images, web pages and text all displayed with a crispness that is noticeably better than what was possible with the iPad 2.

The 5-megapixel camera that Apple has included is another notable improvement on the iPad 2.

The two pictures below, featuring several different colours, show just how much better the camera in the new iPad is - and while it's hard to replicate on a web page, the Retina display shows the improvements off to its full effect.

Below: the camera in the new iPad gives images a crisper, clearer display.

Below: the same photo taken by the iPad 2 lacks the sharpness of the new device.

Another major improvement that Apple has touted with the new device is its quad-core graphics processor, offering faster speeds and better displays for games, and certainly in the short play we had on the device there was a clear speed improvement when using the device.

Loading Google Maps, for example, is rapid, with Street View also loading smoothly.

However, in many ways there is little about the new iPad to separate it from the iPad 2, with the device looking identical and boasting almost identical features.

For some this won't matter at all, as the iPad is still a thing of beauty and unquestionably the best tablet on the market by some distance, and the improved features Apple has added are a significant upgrade.

However, if the idea of a super-sharp display and a better camera don't really appeal to you that much, you may find yourself happily ticking along with your iPad 2 for a while yet before you feel the need to upgrade.

Check back next week when we'll have a full review of the new iPad.

Lenovo will be the first manufacturer to ship a smartphone with Intel's Medfield processor, a surprise considering the firm's lack of experience in the handheld market.

The K800 is a large high-end device that sports an angular frame, much like Lenovo's ThinkPad range. One of the best features is the 4.5in display with a resolution of 1280x720. We found the video playback was very vibrant and the screen was a good size.

With a thickness of 10mm, the device appears quite chunky compared to other handsets on the market such as the Samsung Galaxy S II and the forthcoming Huawei Ascend PS 1.

The K800 was running Android 2.3 Gingerbread, with a unique overlay. On first glance it didn't even look like the device was running Android. However, we found this to be quite user friendly. Lenovo expects to upgrade the device to Ice Cream Sandwich.

On the home screen there are shortcuts that allow you to access calls, messages, IMs and mails. In the middle is an icon to view contacts. It's not too fancy, and there are options to customise this so we like it. However, questions will remain over how the overlay will impact battery performance. From experience we have seen overlays such as HTC Sense drain a lot of juice.

Performance of the device was very snappy with the Intel Atom Medfield chip running at 1.6GHz and providing more than enough grunt to power applications.
Lenovo provides 16GB of internal memory, but it looks like there wil not be any micro SD support.

It remains to be seen whether the K800 will make it to western markets. We can't help but feel that Intel's reference smartphone is more likely to make an appearance in the UK than this device.

Earlier this week, I wrote a story about Intel touting the security benefits of its new Sandy Bridge client systems, especially laptops based on the new Core processors.

Most people are by now familiar with the Anti-Theft technology that allows a lost or stolen laptop to be remotely locked, but the Intel Identity Protection Technology (Intel IPT) is perhaps less well known.

Intel IPT effectively embeds the capabilities of a security token, such as those issued by RSA (shown in the picture), into the laptop itself, doing away with the need for companies to issue tokens to all employees.

But if the technology becomes widespread, it will offer online services, especially banks, a way of securely authenticating customers without having to dream up elaborate security systems or issue costly chip-and-PIN terminals to customers, as has been suggested in the past.

Once a user has registered with an online service, their laptop can use Intel IPT to generate a one-time password (OTP) every time they need to access their account. The user typically does not even need to type this in, as you would with a security token.

Because the system uses a OTP to authenticate the user each time, a fraudster cannot break into their account just by tricking them into revealing their credentials, or getting hold of their user name by infecting PCs with malware.

Sadly, this scenario doesn't seem likely to happen because, while Intel IPT is built into every Core vPro system aimed at businesses, it isn't standard across the entire Core platform, which covers the processors and chipsets that find their way into consumer systems.

If Intel really wants to see Intel IPT adopted as a standard for authenticating users online, the company needs to make it standard across all its new systems.