First Batch Of iPads Appear Sold Out

Apple is no longer promising that new orders of its iPad will be shipped on the official launch date. It appears the first batch of 700,000 units has already sold out.

The iPad is set to launch in stores by April 3rd, 2010, and until recently people placing pre-orders had been told their iPads would ship on the same day. However, Apple has now revised its website to say that pre-orders after Sunday won't ship until April 12th. (Source: 9to5mac.com)

Additionally, those users placing pre-orders from now on will not have the option of picking up the device in a store. Those who've already ordered and chosen that option will be able to collect between 9am and 3pm on Saturday, with stores then selling to the public from 3pm.

Critics Suggest iPad Sales Have Exceeded 500,000

The most likely explanation for the delayed delivery for new pre-orders is that the first batch of iPads is already sold out. The most commonly rumored figure is that Apple has already taken around half a million orders.

It's also been reported that there have been some hiccups in the supply chain, which means Apple might not have all the stock it wanted in time for launch.

The delay appears to affect the WiFi-only editions: the more expensive versions, which also offer 3G network access, won't be available until later in the month.

Developers Scramble to Beat iPad App Deadline

This past weekend marked the cut-off point for developers to submit new or revised applications and be sure they would appear in the iTunes app store in time for the device to go on sale.

While all existing iPhone and iPod Touch Apps will work on the iPad, many developers have been redesigning them either to look better on the large screen or take advantage of the way the screen gives more room for detailed input and touch-control by users.

There's also expected to be a lot of newly-designed apps specially targeted at the iPad, particularly those which are based around reading material such as e-books or online magazines. (Source: washingtonpost.com)