A recent report from the Wall Street Journal, which cites “people familiar with the matter,” claims that Apple’s second-generation iPad 2 will not only be thinner, lighter, and faster, but it will also boast a faster processor, more memory, a better graphics processor, and a front-facing camera.

On the downside, there will be no Retina display – the iPad 2’s screen will provide the same 1024 x 728 resolution as its predecessor. From the WSJ story:

The new device will be thinner, lighter and will come with a faster processor, more memory and a more powerful graphics processor, said the people familiar with the matter. It will have a front-facing camera for the first time for features like video-conferencing, but the resolution of the new iPad’s display will be similar to the first iPad, they said.

It’s unclear at this point what kind of resolution we can expect from the next iPad’s front and rear cameras, however, previous reports have suggested that they will be similar to those in the current iPod touch. That’s a VGA front-facing camera and a 1MP camera at the back capable of shooting 720p video.

The upcoming device’s thinner form factor is made possible thanks to new displays supplied by LG and Samsung, which are 30-35% thinner that those in the current iPad. With regards to RAM, it has been suggested that it will double to 512MB to match that of the iPhone 4.

We can also expect a dual-mode chip similar to that found in the recently released Verizon iPhone 4, and both AT&T and Verizon Wireless will offer the device, but it won’t be available from Sprint or T-Mobile, says WSJ.

The second-generation iPad is expected to be announced during the first quarter of this year.

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