Advertisement

Steve Jobs ‘just didn’t want to miss the day’ for iPad 2 unveiling, despite medical leave

Share

This article was originally on a blog post platform and may be missing photos, graphics or links. See About archive blog posts.

Steve Jobs couldn’t help himself, it seems.

Despite a medical leave announced by Apple in January that has kept him out of the spotlight and missing important company events, Jobs said Wednesday that he just couldn’t stay away from the unveiling of the iPad 2.

So, on Wednesday morning, Jobs took the stage, to a standing ovation, at the Yerba Buena Center for the Artsin San Francisco, reported Times writer David Sarno, who was at the event.

Advertisement

The move was seen as a bit of sign-off on the successorto the original iPad, which has sold more than 15 million units since its launch last April, said analysts who spoke with Sarno.

From Sarno’s Wednesday story for The Times:

‘We’ve been working on this product for a while and I just didn’t want to miss the day,’ Jobs said shortly after receiving a standing ovation Wednesday. Jobs, who took the highly publicized leave in mid-January, has battled pancreatic cancer. He received a liver transplant in 2009. After his appearance, Apple shares surged 2% in midday trading, before leveling off later. With a softer voice than in previous years and looking just as gaunt as he has for some time, Jobs took the stage in his trademark black turtleneck to show off the new iPad, a thinner, lighter and faster improvement on the original. The new version includes built-in cameras and comes in both black and white. Famous for his snappy presentations and ability to wow consumers with surprising new technology, Jobs may have intended his appearance to give the product a special aura, said James Post, professor of management and a corporate governance expert at Boston University.

To read the rest of what Post and Sarah Rotman-Epps, a technology analyst at Forrester Research, told Sarno, check out his article, ‘Steve Jobs emerges from medical leave to unveil iPad 2.’

RELATED:

No Apple iPad 2 pre-orders; online sales begin March 11, when the tablet computer hits stores

Advertisement

Live blog: Steve Jobs appears at Apple’s iPad 2 event from San Francisco

-- Nathan Olivarez-Giles

twitter.com/nateog

Advertisement