iPad 3

Apple told USA Today that "customer response to the new iPad has been "off the charts," and the rapidly changing shipping dates proves it.

The original March 16th pre-orders sold out within two days of the new iPad announcement on March 7th. This weekend ship dates slipped to an estimated "two to three weeks" in the United States, and most European Stores have been sold out of original pre-orders for a few days now. Apple said "customers can continue to order online and receive an estimated delivery date" for their iPad 3.

If you waited to pre-order your iPad 3 you will have to wait a few extra days for it to ship. All iPads ordered after March 9th will be shipped on the 19th, not the 16th. Even if you don't mind the longer wait you should still order the new iPad quickly. Apple had problems keeping up with the demand for the iPad 2 last year and took several months to catch up with orders. It's safe to assume that the new iPad's shipping date will get delayed even longer after this weekend.

Apple announced the "new iPad" on March 7. It only took two days for initial pre-orders to sell out. The 16 GB Wi-Fi only model costs $499, the 32 GB model runs $599 and the 64 GB model is $699. Adding 4G LTE capability adds $130 to the price of each model.

You can now watch all 67 March Madness games on your iPad, iPhone or iPod touch. The NCAA March Madness Live app is free to download, but the live streaming video will cost you $3.99. That's not a bad deal for full access to the Division I Men’s Basketball Tournament.

The app offers free radio play of all 67 games, Facebook and Twitter access, bracket tracking and live scores and stats. The $3.99 in-app purchase allows you to watch videos of all 67 games, practices and highlights. The NCAA March Madness Live app is compatible with the iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad. It requires iOS 4.3 or later. Some features like highlights are only available for the iPhone and iPod, so read carefully before downloading.

If you're on the fence about whether to upgrade to the newly announced iPad 3, knowing you can do it for up to $200 less may help you pull the trigger. By taking a few simple steps to sell the iPad you currently own, you can greatly cushion the blow of investing in the new retina-display iPad 3.

Totem, an online buyer of used smartphones, iPhones and iPads is currently offering up to $200 for various models of the iPad 2. If you're coming from the original iPad, you can still get over $100 for your trade in. All of the sudden, getting the shiny new iPad 3 for as low as $299 no longer seems so daunting.

One of the new features of the iPad 3 is the ability to utilize high-speed LTE networks and share the connection with up to 5 other devices. As of today it doesn't look like AT&T will be ready to support the iPad's hotspot feature before its March 16 launch. However, Verizon will offer free hotspot support for the 4G models.

When pre-ordering the new iPad you must choose what carrier you would like to use. The model you select is configured to work with either Verizon or AT&T, not both! So you'll have to decide which carrier's 4G LTE network you prefer. You do not need to activate your service right away, and you can choose a monthly data plan at a later date when you need it.

The iPad 3's battery life might not seem impressive at first, but it's a really significant improvement for Apple. Normally Apple fans look for increased performance from their next generation devices, however, the iPad 3 has the same battery life as the iPad 2 (around 10 hours). This may seem like a step backwards, but Apple managed to increase the iPad 3's battery to 11,666mAh, compared to the iPad 2’s 6994mAH.

The iPad 3 features four times as many pixels, 4G LTE and more power hungry features than the iPad 2. Yet the improved battery offers the same amount of usage as the older device without drastically increasing the new iPad's size. Not a bad achievement! The iPad 3 may not feature 3D feel displays or other gimmicky features like Siri, but its new battery capacity proves that Apple is working hard to improve their devices.

Pocket-lint slipped in one more iPad 3 rumor before Apple's big announcement today at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in San Francisco. The blog claims they have all but confirmed that the iPad 3 will contain a new haptic display technology created by Senseg.

The advanced technology called E-Sense will turn the iPad 3's rumored 2048-by-1536 Retina display into a "feel screen" by giving objects texture when touched. This would give playing games or reading books a hole new dimension that we've never experienced before.

The iPad mini sounds like a knock off product or cheap imitation of the iPad, however according to supply chain mag DigiTimes displays for the rumored device have already been ordered. Apple has placed the 7.85-inch LCD panel orders with AU Optronics and LG Display.

Forhouse, an affiliate of AU Optronics is said to be making matching backlight units for the smaller iPad screen. DigiTimes didn't stop there, with the report also explaining that the assembly contract for the iPad mini will go to Pegatron Technology, not Foxconn, the current producer of the iPad 2. The report follows several back and forth rumors over Apple's plans for a smaller tablet, or lack thereof.

The iPad 3 has a home button! This is according to Repair Labs, which has acquired an iPad 3 digitizer and bezel. The part is pictured below in both black and white. According to this leak, the home button is exactly the same as the previous two iPad models.

After the Apple press event invite was circulated, some speculated that the home button would become a thing of the past. The photo on the invite did not depict a home button, however no other evidence pointed to Apple scrapping the design feature.