iPad 2 Availability Tomorrow: 1:00 AM Pacific Online, 5:00 PM Local In-Store

[drewc1138]

Same here. I plan on working till 5:00 (possibly come in early so I can leave early) and head to a best buy down the road and pick it up. And if that's not the case there's 2 or so other nearby best buy stores. And finally I can go to the apple store which is a little further away.

I'm hoping that Target will be a little less hectic than Best Buy...considering I'll be wrangling two 3 year olds at the time.

Yeah, I'll be that guy.

 

[darrensmith016]

Is anyone as anal about a new Apple product as I am when it comes to the battery? I like to fully charge it immediately after I open it up. I'm pretty sure this is is how it should be to get the best performance from your device.

Seems like the Personal Setup would be bad for batteries; they'll just take out your new iPad 2 and turn it on. Is it a myth that batteries need to be charged right away?

i was recently told by an apple genius that there is no need to fully charge the batterys anymore, I dont with my macbook pro, ipad or iphone and the batteries are working great

 

[BigDukeSix]

Nothing screams 'your life won't be the same without it!' like a line in front of the store, waiting for it to be available. Apple marketing is genius you have to admit.

 

[Porchland]

Has Best Buy put restrictions on their no-interest-for-18-months policy for particular products before? Anyone expect them to say it's not available for iPad 2?

 

[zorinlynx]

Anyone think there will be any leftover on Saturday morning for us people who would rather not brave rush hour traffic to hit an Apple Store after work tomorrow?

 

[BadMoon]

can't we just ask them politely not to set it up for us for I'm not that stupid to set it up myself? I want to be the first one to touch my iPad

I love overly anal people. The people that go into Best Buy every Tuesday that inspect all of the dvd's until they find that perfect one are also entertaining.

 

[babydinosaur]

Any word on whether we can preorder at 1 a.m. too?

 

[JRoDDz]

The first iPad I bought at an Apple store had a dead pixel. Didn't see it until I got home an unboxed it. Perhaps a personal setup at the store makes sense. You would be able to inspect the device and see that it's pristine.

 

[emwgradstudent]

White....

I have a bad feeling about the white iPad. Not that they will not be selling them day 1, but they will only be available at Apple Stores. I really want an AT&T 3G 32GB model in white, but my local AT&T store does not know if they will be getting any....

 

[emwgradstudent]

Anyone think there will be any leftover on Saturday morning for us people who would rather not brave rush hour traffic to hit an Apple Store after work tomorrow?

Actually, this is very possible. I was talking to some friends at my local Best Buy and in addition to the iPads they will receive for launch day, they are receiving a second shipment on Friday evening for Saturday and the weekend.

 

[Chupa Chupa]

I doubt most people will take that option. Most will just want to get out of the zoo as soon as possible.

If the Best Buy thing is true (100-150 units, with an emphasis on lesser units), then I'm guessing 20-ish for the top of the line 3G units (10 each ATT and VZW). That's not a good sign for trying to take the load off the Apple stores. Twenty could go in a few minutes.

But it's 2-3x what BB store received during the first iPad WiFi and iPad WiFI+3G launches. When you add in the additional WM, Target, and ATT stores it looks like there will be more than enough stock to go around. It's bound to shorten up the Apple lines.

The reality is though that Apple is so skilled in launches and these other retailers are deer-in-the-headlights with long lines. So a line of 300 @ Apple is bound to move quicker than a line of 75 at any of the above based on my own experience.

 

[mrat93]

Any word on payment methods? I remember last year they initially didn't take cash.

 

[emwgradstudent]

I'm hoping that Target will be a little less hectic than Best Buy...considering I'll be wrangling two 3 year olds at the time.

Yeah, I'll be that guy.

My local Walmart is not getting any and my local Target seems to think they are going to hand them out at 10 AM, I have a feeling they will not be getting any either, otherwise they would have received the memo stating they could not release them until 5 PM.

 

[Tapiwa]

Shouldn't it be 18 models though. Both white and black

You're right. There are 18 different models..now is it a mistake in the article or does that mean that Best Buy won't offer all models at launch?

 

[Chupa Chupa]

Any word on payment methods? I remember last year they initially didn't take cash.

Yes, but after bad press they quickly amended that rule.

My local Walmart is not getting any and my local Target seems to think they are going to hand them out at 10 AM, I have a feeling they will not be getting any either, otherwise they would have received the memo stating they could not release them until 5 PM.

Employees at these types of stores do not read memos. WM offered to "buy back" any HD-DVD player bought from them regardless of when purchased so I took mine back and they just stared at me like I was crazy. But the memo was posted on Fat Wallet & I had it in-hand so they were forced to look it up and they did finally verify and refund.

 

[fxtech]

Buying online

I'm buying online in the morning. I have better things to do than driving in rush-hour traffic and standing in line.

I'll use my first iPad, that still works perfectly fine, until the other arrives early next week at my house.

 

[GeekLawyer]

This is probably a dumb question, but what the hell.

Will AT&T stores sell only the 3G model? Or will they stock wifi-only units as well?

 

[Eye4Desyn]

Setting my alarm.

I'll be ordering from the on-line store. In my neck of the woods, there are four Stores within a 30-mile radius and no matter the day or time it's always a madhouse at either of them. No sense in risking the chance that stock may sell-out at brick and mortar locations (Apple or otherwise) due to long lines. Besides, it's for the Mrs. anyway and she's not too concerned if she doesn't have one on day one. She already has iPad 1 to hold her over until new one arrives

 

[jealousguy86]

i was contemplating going to walmart at midnight tonight, but now i see that they have the official launch of 5 p.m. tomorrow as well, before they hadn't said anything.

i'll still call around tonight after work and see what targets and walmarts say. but i'll most likely get mine from target tomorrow.

 

[ComicJ27]

Has Best Buy put restrictions on their no-interest-for-18-months policy for particular products before? Anyone expect them to say it's not available for iPad 2?

They didn't have this restriction when I bought my iMac. I plan on financing it too from Best Buy.

 

[applesith]

How are there only 9 models at Best Buy? Wouldn't there be 18 with black and white?

black Wifi: 16, 32, 64
black VZM: 16, 32, 64
black ATT: 16, 32, 64

white Wifi: 16, 32, 64
white VZM: 16, 32, 64
white ATT: 16, 32, 64

18 SKUs must be a nightmare for stores to order....knowing which might be popular.

 

[JimmyC1219]

will there be a limit to how many you can buy? I am looking to buy 2...one for me and one for the lady for her b-day.

 

[vassillios]

I work across the street from Tysons (where the first ever retail store was opened) and get off work at 3. I heard they will be closed for an hour or two before launch, so I plan on walking over and staking the joint out to see the line situation.

Getting the 64 gb AT&T 3g black model (I hope).

 

[joecatz]

My plan

I'm leaving work at 6 like usual and stopping at the Apple store on the way home. There's a target and a best buy in the same shopping center as well.

If the line is ridiculous at the apple store, I'll go to Best Buy. If the line is crazy there, or they are out of stock, I'll go to Target, and if all else fails, I'll go home and try again saturday morning. If fore some reason everyone is sold out of 64G, I'll order online and wiat begrudgingly for an extra day.

 

[vtstarck]

Any reason why I wouldn't be able to get up and pre-order at 4am EST and then try to snag one later in the day at the Apple Store. And if I can pick one up - cancelling my online order?