The 3rd generation iPad, has now graced us with its presence. Boasting the best pixel density ever with a 2,048 x 1,536 pixel Retina display crammed into a 9.7 inch tablet, the new iPad seeks to make the Internet as you know it look more amazing and less than stellar all at once. With an improved 5-megapixel rear camera and quad-core processor, the new iPad seeks the continuation of tablet domination.

The display is exquisite. It is bright and detailed and everything you never knew a gadget could look like, but only on optimized graphics. The regular Internet looks almost plain when viewed on it; pictures lose their crispness as they are forced to stretch to a density they have never been stretched to before, creating some distorted viewing. But be glad to know that this will undoubtedly usher in a new demand for extremely high-quality graphics on the web.

One drawback to this tablet is that it still does not have Siri, the iPhone 4S’s speech recognition software that has a warm place in many an Apple lovers’ hearts. The front-facing camera also is not upgraded, so if you need some good quality video from that camera you are out of luck, although the rear camera should be more than adequate. Otherwise, the price has not changed much from the other iPads, so if they have thrown you off before maybe you can grab the iPad2 reduced.

So like the iPad2 and the iPhone 4S, we must ask again why we would need to upgrade our almost brand-new devices to the newest and shiniest. If you want to upgrade from an original iPad, I would suggest going for it. The improvements to the rear camera, processor and pixel density are worth the $500-$700 range this tablet comes in. The iWork applications are improved and iPhoto is beefed up to work with the new display. The tablet itself is a bit heavier than its previous incarnations, but trading a bit of weight for extra processing power is more than adequate. The processing power does not show too much, however, when taking in the added juice the display will take up. With this power drain it still runs about as fast as the iPad2, so you really are not adding or subtracting any performance.

Going from an iPad2 to a new iPad however is a bit pointless. Hopefully if you have one you will have realized this, unless you are a die-hard Apple fanatic that has to have every one. You will pay $1,000-$2,000 in a little over one year for two tablets that do mostly the same things; one just happens to look a little nicer, which is the way of many upgrades. The display is lovely, but not lovely enough to warrant that cost, and it is pretty much the only reason to upgrade.

If you are an Android fan, the display might just be able to tempt you. There are some cheaper or similar options out there for you, though, with many variations from Acer, ASUS and Samsung you could easily bring home. The ASUS Eee Pad Transformer Prime is still a favorite in the world of Android tablets, but if you are thinking about trading Google Play for the App Market, go with the new iPad and not a reduced iPad2. You might as well hold onto the new one instead of being outstripped in another year’s time.

The new iPad 3rd generation packs a visual punch but is altogether not quite worth the upgrade from a barely year-old iPad2. The rear camera is where the quality should be, not more for your money, and the processor is beefed up to take the brunt of the power-sucking display. Still, if graphics are important and you do not mind some things being fuzzy for a while, the new iPad is not unworthy at all of a chance.