The iPad3 will be released in February with a high-resolution screen, a new selling point for the entertainment and productivity device that will drive Apple shares up 27 percent to USD500 in 12 months, according to an analyst with Citi Investment Research.

iPad2’s current display is 132 pixels per inch. A doubling of that resolution would put it well ahead of the current displays for Amazon.com's Kindle Fire and Barnes & Noble's Nook, which sport tech specs of 169 pixels per inch each. (Note: Their screens are 7 inches, compared to 9.7 inches for the iPad2.)