Photo Credit/Apple

The newest innovation from the Apple engineers weighs in at 1.5 lbs and is only 0.5 inches thick (read: it fits in my purse or carry-on, and still leaves room for everything else). Apple’s iPad is Steve Jobs’ answer to the netbooks of today, and it’s already creating chaos among Apple aficionado’s. Sure, it’s sleek, it’s compact, it’s fast and if it’s made as well as past Apple products, it’s durable. But, can Apple’s iPad reshape the way you travel?

As a frequent traveler, I’m a big fan of technology that helps simplify my life. If it fits into a carry-on bag and doesn’t offend the TSA, I’ll use it! But there’s something to be said for extended battery-life, Internet access in remote places and an all-in-one device that allows me to write stories, upload photos, listen to music and connect to the world. Apparently, this is why Apple created the iPad.

Here’s what we know:

The iPad’s Multi-Touch screen spans 9.7 inches, weighs a little more than 1 pound and is less than one-inch think. It has the look and feel of the iTouch and allows you to work in portrait or landscape mode. Like your iTouch or iPhone, you can scroll through Web pages, documents and photos with the flick of a finger.

iPad comes with email and calendars, and works with all programs including MobileMe, Yahoo! Mail, Gmail, Hotmail, and AOL. (A+ for adaptability, Apple!)

Of course, it has all the things you would expect from an Apple product – iTunes, the App Store, movie capability, and more, so you can put work aside for a few hours and enjoy some down time.

Can you get all this with other netbooks? Some, yes. But here’s the kicker: the battery life. The Apple iPad is boasting a 10-hour battery life, thanks to a lithium polymer battery technology (the same battery type used in Apple’s notebook computers).

Let’s put this into travel terms: 10-hours of battery life is a round-trip flight from Boston to San Francisco; more than half the flight time to Sydney from Los Angeles; you can hop a flight from New York to Italy and land in Rome before the battery wears out.  Bravo, Apple!

Additionally, there will be two models: the WiFi and the 3G, both available this Spring. Both models will allow the iPad to connect to web browsers worldwide, which means traveling internationally isn’t a problem.

Now that we have the basics, can Apple’s iPad reshape the way we travel?

My prediction is yes, it can, but it comes at a cost. For a starting price of $499, this piece of technology is a mini-entertainment system that weighs no more than a bottle of water (and you can bring it through security). For an additional $130, you can get 3G adapter through AT&T and for an additional $30/month, you’ll get unlimited data with AT&T, which may or may not work internationally, depending on where you’re traveling.

While I can’t give a full review without having directly used the product, I can say this: I’ve traveled with old computers, new computers, a wide range of cell phones, portable DVD players, MP3 players, netbooks and cameras of all shapes and sizes, and nothing is more frustrating than realizing you’ve run out of juice just as you hit 35,000-feet and you’re ready to work. I like the 3G adaptability that Apple is offering and as an AT&T customer the $30 monthly unlimited service is helpful. Anything that gives me 10 hours of battery life and allows me international Internet access is already a winner in my book. But, it’s worth a price-comparison check against your current WiFi carrier and other notebooks before you buy.

Of course, there are always two sides to a story. While I wait with baited breath for the iPad to make its way to my purse, my co-worker across the pond isn’t quite ready to buy into the hype. Read what he has to say.