It looks like Apple will give iPad owners the next major software upgrade that comes out after you purchase. So those of us that are buying right away will not have to pay to upgrade to 4.0 but we may have to pay for 5.0.

Source

By the time 5.0 comes out, Im sure all the early adopters will be ready to buy the next iPad with new hardware features. Shouldn't be an issue.

I still have a gen1 IPOD. What do you mean, not an issue LOL

They will have to do what ever updates are necessary to keep the IPAD current with ITUNES store changes. That is why my Apple TVs have been getting free OS upgrades since day 1. And all my various IPODS same thing. They need to be able to buy from the Istore.

There is a difference between iTunes support and something like allowing 3rd party audio streaming (raido) apps to run in the background. Or allowing the iPad to act as a monitor for say the MacMini. Those are the kind of big changes you wouldn't see to older devices as legecy support.

Gen1 iPod Touch with iPhoneOS 2.3 or something like that? Well not that it likely matters to you but 3.0 had chinease writen character support added.

Yea I still have my gen1 touch and it works great. Typing on it right now. Hoping they don't make it obsolete too quickly. I'm just focused on "late April"!

Wait, we are going to have to pay for firmware? What kind of bs is that? Who charges for firmware?

It's only for what they consider "major" fw upgrade. On my gen1 touch I think it was $10 for the last major fw update. Smaller ones are free. No big deal.

iPad update

not so long time ago , when have update you have to change the device .... just buy a mobile Nokia no update because after 6 month he become obsolete ... or go to Android where they have update but can't be upgrade ...

So what will version 4.0 have? What do you all think? Multi-tasking? or will they push that to iPad 5.0 and force us to pay for the upgrade...with or without multi-tasking the iPad and the iPhone will continue to sell...a lot of folks complain about it, but I still see a lot of folks buying them regardless...it's almost an none issue if you ask me - other than being able to listen to Pandora in the background

I look at it this way. My computer is running on Vista. If I want Windows 7, I have to pay for it. There's a difference between a new operating system and firmware that might fix any bugs.

people complain but beside background audio apps like pandora what else do you need to run simultaneously that a state save wouldn't be the same as?

Well said. That's why they don't charge for x.4... Those are bug fixes. 4.0 is a new OS.