The next iPad may be released to the public on Friday, March 16, just 9 days after the products launch. It remains unclear whether pre-orders will be possible before then.
This information comes to us from 9to5mac, who cites a reliable source within Apple Stores who noted that significant preparations are being made for an event on that date. Additionally, two new Apple Stores are expected to open ahead of schedule on the same Friday, providing further evidence of a meaningful Apple event occurring that day.
iPad 3 is anticipated to have a high resolution retina display, much faster processors, improved graphics capabilities, and 4G LTE connectivity. Pricing should be the same as existing iPad models, starting at $499 and going up incrementally from there.
There is some question regarding the actual name of the device, with some rumors surfacing yesterday that the next generation iPad may in fact be called “iPad HD” rather than “iPad 3″, though the naming convention is largely irrelevant beyond marketing of the device and is not expected to have any impact on the feature set.
Stay tuned, we’ll know more tomorrow.