Apple announced the iPad 2 this week, with a spec upgrade, two cameras, and a thinner and lighter form factor.  And it comes in white.

But along with the announcement came news that Apple was releasing a version of Garageband for iPad.  On the surface, this looks great: a portable recording studio, with touch editing, touch instrument playing, and (hopefully) everything you need to produce music and podcasts.

My only issue is the lack of available inputs.  Right now, you can plug a camera kit into the iPad, and use a USB microphone to record a single input.  And there are a few guitar inputs out there (the iRig, for example, or Apogee’s new JAM).  But any more than that, and you’re out of luck.  And until you can plug in more than one input, it doesn’t seem like much more than a toy.  Someone, at some point, will come out with an audio in/out box that connects to the iPad.

The other thing is there is already multitrack software in the App Store for iPhone and iPad.  How much use have those gotten?  Have you ever used one? I have one of these on my iPhone (MultiTrack), but it hasn’t done anything other than be a novelty.  The big difference is that this is an Apple release, and Apple doesn’t do a poor job with their software releases.  Their programs work.

Mind you, the iPad was misunderstood at the beginning, and all the naysayers were eventually proven wrong.  Until it comes out, and I can put my hands on it, I’m going to reserve my judgement.  I’m sure that at some point, I will be proven wrong about all of this.  I look forward to that, so we can see some real use for what could be another game changer for the independent producer.  I would love to see better tools that are more intuitive (and Garageband for Mac isn’t know for it’s intuitive use).

For now, I’m sticking with my regular studio: a laptop.

Podcasting News has the specs for what Garageband for iPad has to offer.  No mention of podcasting features, like the podcast track in Garageband for Mac.

Features:

• Musical instruments designed for Multi-Touch.
• 70 synth presets
• Arpeggiator
• “Smart instrument” features
• 8-track recording
• Guitar amp simulator
• Stomp box effects
• Track sharing via email or iTunes
• Tracks can be opened in GarageBand on the Mac