Apple iPad 2 Goes On SaleApple iPad 2 Goes On Sale

Apple iPad 2 3G Teardown

Apple began accepting online orders placed through its Web site at 4 a.m. Eastern on Friday. When I checked at 6:30 a.m., the Web site said that iPad orders would ship within three to five days. By 8 a.m., Apple's Web site said new orders wouldn't ship for two to three weeks.

Apparently a few people are interested in buying the iPad 2 on the first day it is on sale. One analyst predicted that Apple will move as many as 600,000 of them in the first few days of availability. That would put it on pace to out-sell the original iPad, which totaled 1 million sales in 28 days last year.

Reports indicate that people have lined up at the Apple Stores spread across Manhattan in anticipation of the 5 p.m. launch of sales in retail stores. Some admitted to arriving in the wee hours of the morning.

The iPad 2 offers two cameras -- one on the front, one on the back -- for FaceTime video chats. It has the same 9.7-inch display, but is significantly thinner and somewhat lighter than the original. It includes a dual-core 1-GHz processor, and 512 MB of memory and a gyroscope for improved gaming.

Many believe the update to be too incremental, but early reviews of the iPad 2 say it is still the tablet to beat.

The iPad 2 will be available at Apple Stores, as well as select Best Buy, Target, and Wal-Mart locations. AT&T and Verizon Wireless stores will also be selling the iPad, though they will only offer the versions that are compatible with their respective 3G networks.

iPad 2 with Wi-Fi will be available in the U.S. for $499 for the 16-GB model, $599 for the 32-GB model, and $699 for the 64-GB model. iPad 2 with Wi-Fi + 3G (GSM for AT&T) will be available for $629 for the 16-GB model, $729 for the 32-GB model, and $829 for the 64GB model.

iPad 2 with Wi-Fi + 3G compatible with the Verizon network (CDMA) will be available in the U.S. only for $629 for the 16-GB model, $729 for the 32-GB model, and $829 for the 64-GB model.

The iPad 2 will become available in Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and the U.K. on March 25; and in many more countries around the world in the coming months.

Apple said that further international availability and pricing will be announced at a later date.