Facing very high demand in the U.S. market, Apple is about to disappoint Canadian fans with a reported one-month delay of the tablet device's international launch.
In a news release from the company's Cupertino, California headquarters Apple claims to have sold more than 500,000 iPads, and taken "a large number of pre-orders for iPad 3G models for delivery by the end of April." It expects sales will “likely continue to exceed our supply over the next several weeks.”
Calling it a "difficult" decision, Apple will only begin taking online international pre-orders on May 10 (announcing at the same time the international price), with delivery delayed until the end of May.
This is the second delay for customers living outside the U.S. In January, Apple said the iPad would be sold worldwide in late March. It started selling them in the U.S. on April 3, but delayed the international launch until later this month.
"We know that many international customers waiting to buy an iPad will be disappointed by this news, but we hope they will be pleased to learn the reason—the iPad is a runaway success in the US thus far."
UPDATE: Rogers just announced it will carry the iPad when it comes to Canada. The telecom company did not disclose just how much consumers can expect to pay for Canadian versions of the device, but said it will have price plans for all models. For comparison purposes, American iPads range in price from $500 (U.S.) for the 16-gigabyte model with no 3G, to $830 for the 64-gigabyte model with 3G. Bell and Telus have yet to announce whether they too will have iPad price plans.
Read more Globe iPad coverage on our Personal Tech page.
With files from Globe Staff Associated Press and Reuters
