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Steve Jobs made a surprise appearance at the Apple event on Wednesday, revealing the successor to the hugely successful iPad, the iPad 2. The CEO of Apple went on a medical leave earlier in the year, but looked quite healthy when he appeared on stage.

The new iPad brings in a total redesign, managing to loose a third of its weight and bringing its thickness down to 8.8 mm and weight to just 1.3 pounds. The new tablet is also faster, thanks to the new dual-core Apple A5 processor, which offers up to 2 times faster CPU performance and up to 9 times faster graphics performance, while still retaining the same low power of the A4. Other features include rear and front facing cameras, built-in gyroscope, 10 hours of battery life, black and white color options, the same 9.7-inch LED-backlit  LCD screen, and models that support both the Verizon or AT&T network.

Along with new hardware, the iPad 2 will also be running an updated version of iOS, version 4.3. The update brings faster Safari performance, AirPlay improvements, preference for iPad switch (mute or rotation lock), PhotoBooth, FaceTime, personal hotspot (iPhone 4 only), and iTunes home sharing, which lets you access your music, movies, and TV shows on your computer directly from your device.

Other applications that will be available for download include iMovie, which adds a precision editor, multitrack audio recording, new themes, and AirPlay support and GarageBand, which offers touch instruments (piano, organ, guitars, drums, and bass), guitar amps/effects, 8 track recording and mixing, over 250 loops, and compatibility with the Mac version. Both apps will cost $4.99 each.

Apple was also excited to announce a few new accessories for the iPad. The first is a cable that brings HDMI video out to the device. It offers HDMI mirrored video output at 1080p HD, rotation support, and compatibility with all apps. That will be available for $39. Another upcoming accessory is the Smart Cover. Used in replacement of current wrap-around cases, the new covers magnetically attach to your iPad and can be bended to act as a stand or used to just protect the screen. It also wakes up your tablet on open and puts it to sleep on close. The cases will run you from $39 to $69, depending on if you choose polyurethane or leather.

With the same $499 starting price as the original iPad and a launch date of March 11th, 2011 might really be the year for the iPad 2. [via Apple]