Apple finally refreshed its popular iPad tablet line with the iPad 2. The second iteration of the iPad brings an extra white color to the party, a more powerful processor, plus both rear- and front-facing cameras.

There is considerable confusion on whether the ipad 2 will be "carrier locked". The information we have is that for US and Canada, there will be a GSM Version (AT&T) and CDMA Version (Verizon).

GSM Versions will accept all GSM Sim Cards. Verizon will not accept sim cards as it is not GSM. For Europe, models will be GSM Version, and will accept all SIM Cards.

Reviews of the device have appeared online and we've rounded them up so you know whether or not you should get your hands on one, or spend your cash on a 3DS instead.

First up is MacWorld, which awarded Apple's second generation tablet 5 stars as well as the Editor's choice award. It says although "the iPad 2 is an improvement on the original iPad in numerous ways, it's still an evolutionary product, not a revolutionary one".

However, it goes on to say "the iPad 2 raises the bar Apple set a year ago - and it's time for the rest of the industry to scramble again to catch up."

Although TechWorld didn't score the iPad 2, it did praise the device's graphics performance which it says "is subtly visible when you fire up the new Photo Booth" and more evident during its "brief tour through Epic's Infinity Blade RPG and Gameloft's N.O.V.A. 2".

CNET succinctly concluded its iPad 2 review by saying it is "a slimmer, faster tablet than its predecessor" that manages to introduce improvements "without losing any of the battery life we've learned to love". CNET lamented the lack of Flash support, limited multi-tasking capability and says "cameras are low-res compared to most mobile phones".

SlashGear's lengthy review calls the iPad 2 a "superbly capable, class-shaping tablet, which can now legitimately take on not only other slates but lighter ereaders such as Amazon's Kindle" and says the new tablet "benefits from Apple's cohesive hardware and software development together with the vast third-party developer support of the App Store, consistent and simple to use in equal measure."

"Should you buy one? Maybe - it depends on a few factors. Will you want to buy one? Yes. Use that information wisely," says TechCrunch.

Facetime gets particular praise from the site, which says the new iPad 2 feature "is particularly nice because the nearly 10-inch screen seems much better suited for the feature than the 3.5-inch screen found on the iPhone."

According to the review overall "the device has a much more fluid design" which makes it "feel even more solid, and even more like a natural object instead of a machine."

Engadget awarded the iPad 2 9/10 and says "the iPad 2 isn't just the best tablet on the market, it feels like the only tablet on the market". Although "the cameras are severely lacking, the screen -- while extremely high quality -- is touting last year's spec, and its operating system still has significant annoyances."

It's "amazingly thin", "extremely fast" and "in terms of usability, apps like GarageBand prove that we haven't even scratched the surface of what the iPad can do."