“The world does need an Apple tablet — and perhaps others — contrary to what I asserted in late January,” Joe Wilcox writes for BetaNews. “Gloaters will circle my admission like vultures pecking a carcass, but that’s the penalty for being wrong. Yes, I was wrong. I admit it. Flail me in Betanews comments or other blogs. Surely Macheads will peck away even my bones. Go ahead. I won’t often give you such opportunity.”
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Jay Yarrow reports for The Business Insider, “There’s only 2 million iPads in the market, but the iPad’s share of the global browser market is already bigger than Android, BlackBerry, and the iPod touch, according to this chart cited in a recent Morgan Stanley research report.”

Apple today announced that iPad sales have topped two million in less than 60 days since its launch on April 3. Apple began shipping iPad in Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Spain, Switzerland and the UK this past weekend. iPad will be available in nine more countries in July and additional countries later this year.

“Customers around the world are experiencing the magic of iPad, and seem to be loving it as much as we do,” said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO, in the press release. “We appreciate their patience, and are working hard to build enough iPads for everyone.”

iPad allows users to connect with their apps, content and the Internet in a more intimate, intuitive and fun way than ever before. Users can browse the web, read and send email, enjoy and share photos, watch HD videos, listen to music, play games, read ebooks and much more, all using iPad’s revolutionary Multi-Touch™ user interface. iPad is 0.5 inches thin and weighs just 1.5 pounds—thinner and lighter than any laptop or netbook—and delivers up to 10 hours of battery life.

Developers have created over 5,000 exciting new apps for iPad that take advantage of its Multi-Touch user interface, large screen and high-quality graphics. iPad will run almost all of the more than 200,000 apps on the App Store, including apps already purchased for your iPhone or iPod touch.

Source: Apple Inc.

“Delays of two weeks or more are expected before new orders of the Apple iPad are delivered to customers because of strong demand for the tablet computer,” Kylie Davis reports for The Sydney Morning Herald.

“Freight company TNT is reported to be struggling to deliver the 20,000 orders across the country, with buyers being told their purchases should arrive before June 7, while those placing new orders are being advised of two-week delays,” Davis reports.

“One million iPads were sold in just 28 days in the US, and that huge demand delayed the worldwide launch,” Davis reports. “In Australia 30,000 were sold on the first day, with 20,000 more expected to be sold over the weekend.”

Full article, with video report, here.

Source: MacDailyNews

“First came ‘iPod shock,’ which knocked Japan’s favorite gadget — the Walkman from Sony, and its line of successors — off its long-held perch at the top of the tech-savvy wish list. Then came ‘iPhone shock,’ which sent Japan’s cellphone companies — long used to scoffing at the clunky offerings from their overseas peers — scrambling to develop similar smartphones,” Hiroko Tabuchi reports for The New York Times. “On Friday, ‘iPad shock’ hit Japan, threatening to bring upheaval to an ever-widening slew of industries in a nation once proud of being on the cutting edge of technology.”

“The iPad tablet computer from Apple went on sale in Japan and eight other countries — Australia, Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Spain and Switzerland — after selling more than one million units in the United States,” Tabuchi reports. “A flood of orders in Japan for the iPad caused Softbank, the exclusive phone carrier of the iPad in Japan, to stop accepting them after three days. About 1,200 people lined up for the release of the iPad at an Apple Store in central Tokyo on Friday… Similar lines were seen at Apple stores in Europe.”
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Philip Elmer-DeWitt reports for Fortune,” Gene Munster’s team at Piper Jaffray called 50 Apple stores this week and found a ‘very limited’ supply of iPads”

Specifically:
• 37 (74%) of stores were completely sold out of all models
• All 50 (100%) were sold out of the 3G models
• 13 (26%) had only Wi-Fi models left to sell

Elmer-Dewitt reports, “With the international roll-out of the iPad scheduled to begin May 28 — a week from today — Munster believes that supply won’t catch up to demand until mid to late summer.”

Full article here.

Source: MacDailyNews

“Google dealt a snub to Adobe on Friday with a tribute to the 30th anniversary of Pac-Man,” Electronista reports.

“Despite sharing stage time with Adobe just this week, a playable version of Pac-Man on the page works with both the iPad and iPhone – revealing that it’s not using Flash,” Electronista reports. “Apple’s phones and other touchscreen devices instead use swipe gestures to steer the classic arcade game.”

Electronista reports, “Although it goes without a plugin, it still includes most features of the Namco original.”

Full article here.