In the third version, Apple is going to have to up the ante considerably, because its competitors are going to have plenty of time in 2011 getting their respective offerings honed and improved for the next product cycle.

Let’s go through last year’s predictions about various anticipated features in the iPad 2 to find out where the hit and misses were, and to see if there is room for improvement in any of these areas that could make their way into iPad 3.

The iPad 3 specifications will include more storage

The iPad 2 has the familiar 16/32/64GB storage options, but as flash storage comes down in price a 128GB option for the iPad 3 isn't impossible - although that might depend on the current horrible situation in Asia, where the tsunami has caused chaos in parts of the electronics industry.

The iPad 3 features could include a Thunderbolt port

Two generations of USB-free iPads suggest that Apple just isn't interested in adding one, but the new Thunderbolt port found in the 2011 MacBook Pro could be another story: it's a combined accessory/display connector with astonishingly fast performance.

There could be more than one iPad 3

TUAW says the iOS 5 code features new code files for USB devices in the iOS 5 firmware, Through this, TUAW found references to an iPad3,1 and an iPad3,2.

The iPad 3 may live in the cloud

This has been talked about and leaked about for so long that, on the same principle that even a stopped clock is right twice a day, it's bound to come true eventually: a cloud-based MobileMe for storing your stuff on Apple's servers. A new iPad with iOS 5 and a new MobileMe would be lots of fun.

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