You can stop holding your breath now--oh, you weren't?! Well, the new iPad is here, regardless. It's got a drop-dead-gorgeous screen, is faster, and has a much better camera and a few new apps (not Siri, though). The size, battery life, and price are nearly identical to the iPad 2 when it launched.  Apple also updated Apple TV, $99, and both should be in stores March 16th.

Worth buying?
The short answer is: if you have the original iPad, or don't own one, and think you will use it a lot: this model is a big upgrade.  If your iPad use is all about photos, maps, games, movies, or other visual activities, the difference will be huge (and fun).  But if you already have an iPad 2, consider saving your money for the next round.  (Full disclosure:  I remain a Windows girl but I own a little Apple stock and I do love my iPad. Diane and Jennifer are Apple mavens).
Speaking of money, the price of the iPad 2 has dropped by $100. Depending on your budget, consider buying an iPad 2 instead, or buy a refurbished one and save even more. Careful, though, about buying an older or used iPad without a new battery; replacing a dying iPad battery will set you back $100.

Which model?
There are really only two decisions to make: capacity, and cellular access. The higher resolution screen means much bigger files, so be careful to buy enough capacity (same three choices: 16, 32, or 64 GB).  Most people only need WiFi access, and adding the ABILITY to use a cellular network (3G or 4G) adds about $130 to cost of the iPad before you even start paying for the data plan, fair warning.  

Security note
Seems like a big uptick recently in hacked email accounts, especially on AOL.  If your friends complain that "you" are sending them pleas for money, or links to strange Russian websites, or your gmail account has a big red bar at the top saying

Your account has been accessed from [a foreign country],

don't delay--change your email password IMMEDIATELY (see previous discussion of passwords here).
 
Are you clinging to an old email address?? 
If you still use a an email account through your ISP (RoadRunner, Verizon, Earthlink) because you think you'd have to tell everyone the new address---you wouldn't. Modern email hosts (like gmail) can pick up your old account, so you won't miss anything. It's easy to set up and you're missing a world of great features if you don't.

We've all received those weird emails: a friend writes that she's stranded in a foreign hotel and urgently requires you to send money. Or that she can solve all your problems if you just click on this link.  Or maybe a message like that has been sent "from" you to everyone in YOUR address book. Mildly embarrassing, yes. But it could be so much worse!  When the bad guys get your passwords, you can be at real risk. 

One of the most common and dangerous mistakes we see is people using the same passwords over and over again. In a perfect world, you'd have a different password for every website you access--a nice, long, complicated one. But we only have so many brain cells, and they're full of more important things, like what time is dinner. So what to do? 

Three Levels of Passwords

There is no such thing as perfect security; there is only a balance between safety and convenience. If your passwords become too complicated, then you'll end up writing them down (not very secure) or forgetting them (very inconvenient). Here are our three simple rules for managing passwords in a way you can live with. 

1. Use a unique password for your email account The single most important password in your life is your email account password because it is the "master key" to almost everything else. (If you have ever reset a password for another account, how did it work? Usually by sending you an email. So if someone can get into your email account, they can control everything). Make sure the email account password one is: -  different from every other password you use;  -  long (at least 8 characters, 9 is better), and  -  includes both upper and lower case letters and numbers, and ideally other characters too.  That doesn't have to be as hard as it sounds;  a variation of, for example, your childhood address might work just fine (23Elm$treet).  

2. Use a different set of secure passwords for sites with financial or sensitive information If you bank online, access credit cards or medical records, use another set of unique passwords for those sites that are NOT the same as the password as your email address, but same rules. Length is important. 

3. Use VARIATIONS of a simple password for all the everyday stuff Making reservations on Opentable? Ordering prints on Shutterfly? Watching movies on Netflix? Those are lower-risk activities, but they all still require passwords. Come up with a password that is easy for you to remember (not your birthday, your dog's name, etc.) and then tack on something different for each website, for example: 
Opentable: 12bananas!O
Shutterfly: 12bananas!S
Netflix: 12bananas!N 

It's simple, easy to remember, and fairly secure. That way if one website's user login list is hacked, and your password is stolen, it won't be so easy for the thieves to get into all your other accounts. (There's a lot more we can show you about easy ways to manage your passwords, but this post is long enough!) 

Now, what are you waiting for? PLEASE, protect yourself online. Set aside a few minutes now to make sure that, at the very least, you are using a unique password for your email account. (And remember that you will need to update the password on any device that picks up your email, like a smartphone or an iPad). 

Stay Safe!