High demand for the iPad in the US has prompted Apple to delay the international release by a month.
“Demand is far higher than we predicted and will likely continue to exceed our supply over the next several weeks,” a statement from Apple said. “We have also taken a large number of pre-orders for iPad 3G models for delivery by the end of April.”
The iPad will now be launched at the end of May, with Apple expecting to announce UK pricing and begin taking pre-orders on 10 May.
The ambiguity surrounding iPad’s international launch is reminiscent of the 2007 iPhone launch, where the UK release date was also unconfirmed for several months. The phone finally launched in Europe five months after the US.
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Apple claims more than half a million iPads have already been shipped throughout the States.
Despite its success, the iPad has suffered from numerous complaints over its Wi-Fi connectivity, with users saying the connection often drops out and does not reconnect. Apple has also been attacked for banning Flash on the device, despite web browsing being one of the iPad’s key features.
The hotly anticipated tablet was announced in January, after months of speculation that Apple would attempt to revitalise the market. It runs on the same OS as Apple’s iPhone, and is expected to receive the OS 4 update later this year.
Apple’s launch has prompted a number of other firms to release their own tablets. HP, Dell, Google and Nokia are all either confirmed or rumoured to be launching their own slates.
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