Online purchasers of iPad3 face delay

Consumers ordering Apple’s new iPad to avoid the release-day crowds at the company’s retail stores will have to wait longer to get their hands on the devices.

The latest version of the company’s newly unveiled iPad3 tablet is set to hit shelves next Friday.

But tablets pre-ordered online will not ship tobuyers until Monday ofnext week, Mar 19, according to the company’s website.

Apple had promised the new tablet would arrive at customers’ homes on the launch date.

Trudy Miller, an Apple spokeswoman, said the change was made because customer response to the new iPad had been “off the charts”, quickly exhausting the supply set aside for pre-order and delivery by Mar 16.

Apple’s new product releases are some of the hottest events on the tech calendar, scrutinised by investors, the media and industry insiders alike.

To the company’s devoted fans, who vie to be the first to own the latest device, a three-day delay would be an eternity and could add to the crowds at the company’s retail stores.

In January, enraged Chinese shoppers pelted Apple’s flagship Beijing store with eggs and shoving matches broke out with police after customers were told the store would not begin sales of the iPhone 4S as scheduled.

The new iPad sports a crisper display and an array of technology advances and tweaks.

Apple said it will continue to sell the iPad 2, but dropped its price by $100 (€75).

The older tablet now starts at $399 (€300) while the new third-generation wifi-only iPad starts at $499 (€380).

The high-end model of Apple’s latest iPad starts at $629 (€480) and will be capable of operating on a high-speed 4G or long-term evolution network.

At speeds roughly 10 times faster than current 3G technology, that may help banish the sometimes shaky video quality of older devices.