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iPad shortage suggests version 2 is on its way

by Sarah Griffiths on 23 February 2011, 09:41

Tags: Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL)

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Rollout ready?

A handful of big UK stores have either sold out or cut the price of Apple's iPad, which many people think might suggest that version 2 will shortly be on its way, a view that is bolstered by other rumours.

Suspiciously The Carphone Warehouse's online shop  has sold out of 64GB models and completely sold out of contract tablets across the networks. 

Meanwhile Orange and T-Mobile have cut the price of the tablet to just £99 on a 24 month contract for existing customers. The tablet previously cost £199 on the same deal.

Orange told V3 that the price cut is for a ‘limited time only' but Tony Cripps, principal analyst at Ovum reckons resellers are getting rid of stock of the original iPad as it is likely the iPad 2 will be released soon.

"It's no doubt the case that companies that currently hold significant inventory of first-generation iPads will be looking to sell them before the new version is released. "If the iPhone is anything to go by, Apple will already be scaling down production of first-generation iPads, if it hasn't ceased production already. The company manages its own inventory very tightly," he reportedly said.

Version 2 of the popular slate is believed to be thinner and lighter plus feature a camera for video calling but not a better resolution screen. Indeed there have been rumours that an iPad 3 is expected before the close of the year with a more dramatically different spec including a better screen.

While iPads disappearing from the shelves and price cuts might hint that a swift refresh is due, Reuters has reported that that new iPad will launch on 2 March.

There were rumours that the unveiling could be delayed until June although Reuters said a source has rubbished that and said Apple is sticking to the seasonal schedule set by the first iPad which hit the shops last April.

The news services' source said Apple will host an event on 2 March to unveil the revamped tablet, but of course this has not been confirmed by the company.

It's shares reportedly took a bit of a battering after a Taiwanese firm claimed there were production bottlenecks that would delay the launch. However, analysts were apparently quick to downplay the news because of Apple's reliable track record when it comes to refresh schedules.

Morgan Keegan analyst Tavis McCourt told Reuters investors were overreacting to the delay rumours and that even if the launch is a little later and affects Q2 sales, he still expects Apple to sell around 27 million iPads in a full year.



HEXUS Forums :: 4 Comments

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Looks like this is going to be a busy couple of weeks..

New macbook(s) announced tomorrow alongside Intel's “LightPeak” (aka “Thunderbolt” launch, and then a full media event the week after for the iPad2 announcement.

Wouldn't expect shipping of the new iPads until the end of march but will be fairly soon..Curious how much they included in this release, so far it's very much an “iPad S” rather than iPad2, but we'll find out next week. The killer feature of a high res (and possibly wide) screen will still be missing I think, i'm expecting more of a bump in ram, maybe dual core cpu, and a front camera..
Do not like the fact that the new Macbooks are announced when I have £3k in the bank doing nothing :(
Platinum
Do not like the fact that the new Macbooks are announced when I have £3k in the bank doing nothing :(

TBH,I would save the money or if you are feeling frivolous go on a holiday somewhere nice when you have time off.
Never mind the iPad shortages, the media event on 2nd March clearly points to the iPad 2.