Apple announced the details of the iPad 2 in an event today held in San Francisco that we covered live here. The details of the iPad 2 are now available and we’ve got a full list of them here with our commentary. This is a summary of everything you need to know about the iPad 2.

It will be available for order March 11th

In a slightly irregular move for Apple, you can’t pre-order the iPad 2 at all. It will be available to order online on the same day that it’s released in retail stores. This means that if you want an iPad the day of launch you’ll need to make your way to an Apple Store. The iPad 2 will be available at the somewhat odd 5PM on March 11th.

The iPad 2 has a faster, Dual-Core Processor

The new Apple a5 Chip to be precise, a 1GHz Dual-Core chip with integrated graphics that propels the iPad 2 to 4x the processing performance of the iPad and 9x the graphics performance. The CPU speed was never the major issue on the original iPad, that was more in the RAM department, but a faster processor is welcome as games and apps start to really leverage the iPad’s capabilities.

It comes in Black and White

The back of the iPad 2 is still metal but the front bezel now comes in White and Black, both of which will be available at launch. Apparently Apple has fixed whatever issue has plagued the white iPhone 4’s construction. They’re the same price.

It’s Thinner and Lighter

The iPad 2 is significantly thinner than the iPad, 33% thinner actually. That brings the iPad 2 to 8.8mm thick, which is thinner than the iPhone 4’s 9.4mm. This is pretty ludicrous considering that the iPhone 4 was, until a short time ago, the thinnest smartphone on the market. The iPad weighs 1.3 lbs, that’s .2lbs lighter than the original iPad’s 1.5 lbs. I have a feeling that this seems like a slight difference that may not really hit home until you heft it in your hand.

It’s got the same battery life

Even though the iPad 2 is significantly thinner and has a more powerful processor than it’s predecessor, it retains the ‘10 hour’ battery life of the original iPad. I found the 10 hour estimation to be conservative, regularly getting 12 or more hours of use out of it. This is huge and signifies a gigantic leap forward in battery technology as the previous iPad’s volume was largely made up of the battery.

It’s the same price

Yes, it’s not any cheaper, but it’s also not more expensive and still cheaper than 98% of all of the Android tablets on the market. Models start at $499 for the 16GB WiFi model and range up to $829 for the 64GB 3G+WiFi model. As a side note, the original iPads are now on sale starting at $399.

There are now 18 models of iPad

Including Black and White versions of the WiFi model, the Verizon Model and the AT&T Model, you’re looking at 18 separate models of iPad 2. That’s a threefold increase from the previous iPad, which had 6 different models available.

It’s got two cameras

Specifically a front camera at VGA resolution for Facetime video chat and a rear facing camera that’s at least 1280×720 resolution to record stills and HD video. Both cameras are 30fps and have the same tap-to-focus and digital zoom you’ll find in the iPhone. The iPad was never meant to be a camera so the lower resolution camera doesn’t necessarily bother me, although it would have been nice to get a full res front camera.

It can Facetime

The cameras enable video and audio capture but their primary reason for inclusion was to include the iPad 2 in the family of Apple devices capable of using Facetime video chat. The iPad 2 can Facetime other iPad 2’s, iPhone 4’s, iPod touch 4g’s and Macs at launch. There was still no mention of group Facetime chat.

It’s got two new sensors

The iPad 2 has added a Gyroscope for more precise positioning in space just like the iPhone 4 and now contains a digital compass, something the original was also lacking.

We don’t yet know how much RAM it has

One of my major complaints about the first iPad was it’s rather paltry 256mb of RAM. An increase in RAM is almost completely necessary for the iPad 2 to be able to perform to the levels that it’s processor is capable of but at the moment we don’t know how much RAM is tucked inside there. Apple doesn’t normally publish those specs so we may have to wait until we get it Jailbroken or a teardown reveals the innards before we know for sure that the RAM has been increased.

It’s still got a metal back

Yes, there were some odd rumors about Carbon Fiber or other materials being used in the back of the iPad 2 but it’s still aluminum.

The speaker grille is bigger

But we still don’t know if this means that the speaker itself is larger or more powerful.

If there’s anything you’re wondering about the iPad 2 that I didn’t mention here, please don’t hesitate to let me know! Mention it in the comments below and I’ll attempt to address it.