Like all Apple devices near their launch dates, the new iPad continues to be in extremely short supply, especially when you’re trying to get one in certain places, or online.
The wait for the iPad when ordering from Apple’s online store still clocks in at between one and two weeks for most models. But according to a story from PC World, that might not be the case if you actually walk into one of Apple’s brick-and-mortar retail locations.
Computerworld randomly called about 5 percent of Apple’s 248 store locations across the U.S. to poll them about the availability of the new iPad, and found that none of them were completely free of the new tablet. That doesn’t mean that there are huge numbers to throw around (and not every model was available), but if you’re looking for a black 16GB iPad without 4G LTE, it seems as though you’re likely to find one.
Online, however, is a different story. Apple has been taking at least a week to fulfill iPad orders almost since pre-orders opened on the device, with shipping times going as long as three weeks during the height of launch. Since then, things have calmed down, although not completely. Last month, Apple said that iPad sales had set a new record (which seems to happen just about any time Apple launches a device anymore), and that it had moved more than 3 million of the devices in just the first four days they were available. We’ll know even more next month when Apple releases its numbers for this quarter, including iPad sales.
As for right now, PC World notes that it seems that the white iPad is harder to come by than the black versions and was more often sold out at the stores polled. The least-available model of the 12 variations that Apple offers (three hard drive sizes that are Wi-Fi-only and three that are 4G LTE and Wi-Fi-capable, in either black or white) was the 32GB Wi-Fi model in white.
Obviously, availability of all iPads is going to vary from area to area and city to city, but it seems that anxious Apple fans who are waiting for ship times to drop might have better luck by getting in the car instead of getting online. Just remember that iPads will be available in all models (and both colors) eventually, provided you’ve got the patience to wait.
