iPad 3 Release Time on March 16th ???

[MS2083]

Does anyone know what time the Apple Store's will be Releasing the iPad 3 on March 16th ??? will it be at 5pm maybe ?

 

[Bradllez]

My guess is that it will be released the moment the store opens.

My source? I do not have one. I am just making this hypothesis based on how they seem to have a much higher supply than the iPad 2 had during its launch.

/bradllez

 

[Dr Kevorkian94]

Last year it was 5pm, everyone is guessing and hopping it is not that late this time around. Maybe it will be like the 4S and be as soon as the store opens, personally i hope its early because id rather go at like 6 and have it be released at say 8, instead of going at like 10 or 11 and waiting till 5. Just wait it will be announced or at some point just call your local store like the day before.

 

[falcora]

Yeah the 4S went on sale at like 7:30 or 7:45 am at my local apple store. Hopefully the same with the new iPad. That would also make it convenient for people who are supposed to go to work on friday.

 

[Reser]

I would assume it would be at opening, especially with it being more of a worlwide launch this time.

My main reason is in the UK all of our launches have been from the time the store opened, 5pm launches has not happened here, so will be no different this time.

Since the iPad launches in UK and USA at same time it would mean people in the UK would have their iPad's 17 hours before the USA if they launched it at 5pm, and other countrys probably even earlier. I am pretty sure there would be a lot of angry US customers if that happened.

To be honest I do not really get why they did 5pm launches at all in the USA? Does not really seem to have much logic.

 

[Nychot]

i vote for 5pm. last year i got there at 3 at best buy and was out around 5:30. wtf wants to get up at six. not i.

 

[elmo151]

delivery is scheduled for "late on March 16th"

 

[Grease2310]

Wal-Mart Canada's internal Wire system says "street date is March 16th at 5pm for ALL RETAILERS" so take that with the grain of salt with which it was offered but it's the only thing I've seen / heard about from an official retail partner.

 

[raw911]

Well my tracking info from FedEx says before 3pm est on 3/16. So I'd take a guess and say soon as store opens.

 

[Clix Pix]

I have done both the early-morning waits and the late-afternoon waits, and believe me, I prefer the latter! The first iPhone in 2007: late afternoon. The first iPad in 2010: early morning. The 3G iPad at the end of that same month: late afternoon. Last year, the iPad 2? I honestly cannot remember. It's kind of fun, the waiting-in-line experience, especially if you get there early and then watch as the line grows and grows.... The excitement builds when the store employees remove the drapes from the store windows, and builds even more when the store staff comes out and does their little parade around the area, hooting and clapping all the way.... By the time people are allowed into the store, allowed to finally get their hands on the new device (whatever it is, iPhone, iPad), the excitement has really hit peak.

The first time we saw the iPhone, the very first one, and the first time we saw the iPad, the very first one -- terrific experiences, never to be forgotten.
Getting the thing delivered to one's home just isn't quite the same kind of exhilarating event.

 

[Zetaprime]

I'm glad I won't be going anywhere near an Apple store on the 16th or the rest of the week after. It'll be long lines and crowds for sure given how fast the pre-orders have sold.

 

[bjmach]

I asked the guy at my KC Apple Store and he said opening

 

[fullmanfullninj]

i vote for 5pm. last year i got there at 3 at best buy and was out around 5:30. wtf wants to get up at six. not i.

Lol uh. OP is asking us to speculate what time the store will open, not post what we prefer lol. Some people have work/school that prevents them from lining up at 2/3/4pm.

I feel it might be more opening time than 5PM. I'm speculating here, so don't criticize me too much

Last year there were 1) no preorders and 2) a massive shortage for a while (I worked at Best Buy at iPad 2 launch and we only got a few in per day). Looking at this year's preorders and that it took ~two to there days for preorders to go from "Deliver by March 16" to "Deliver by March 19", I assume Apple's inventory of iPad 3s are much higher.

Why does inventory matter? (this may be a stretch) People get off work at around 4-6PM so a good chunk of adult workers will not take a vacation day/a day off just for an iPad. Students might still be in class or have some sort of afterschool sport/activity. For a good majority of users on MR, I think, a 5PM launch time is fine. But if you think all of the States (or your respective country), 5PM is a slightly less than easy time to make, considering you'll want to line up at least one hour in advance.

A morning launch would just require you drink a 5 Hour Energy during the day to get through work, but it's possible to be in and out and still make it to work on time.

Just my two cents...

Edit: I have friends at BBY...once it shows up in employee news (launch time), I'll post

 

[Clix Pix]

I prefer the late-afternoon time myself, but definitely would still show up bright and early at the crack of dawn if need be, too. I've done it before! Yes, there are advantages to both situations. This year, having the preorders for the new iPad will make some difference, I should think, so that they won't be anticipating having quite as many people lining up at the stores to purchase one on Launch Day.

 

[Dstopsie]

Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; CPU iPhone OS 5_1 like Mac OS X) AppleWebKit/534.46 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/5.1 Mobile/9B179 Safari/7534.48.3)

Sine the deliveries are that day I think it will be early morning. Each iphone u could pre order has always had an early morning release. Not counting the first iphone. Eat morning my best guess.

 

[iSingandiDance]

Good thing it's getting warmer outside.

 

[vbed]

My main reason is in the UK all of our launches have been from the time the store opened, 5pm launches has not happened here, so will be no different this time...

To be honest I do not really get why they did 5pm launches at all in the USA? Does not really seem to have much logic.

The iPad2 launch in the UK was at 5pm. How do I know? I was in the queue!

Having said that, I think they'll release them at store opening. There seems to be a lot more capacity this year.

 

[Onimusha370]

I have done both the early-morning waits and the late-afternoon waits, and believe me, I prefer the latter! The first iPhone in 2007: late afternoon. The first iPad in 2010: early morning. The 3G iPad at the end of that same month: late afternoon. Last year, the iPad 2? I honestly cannot remember. It's kind of fun, the waiting-in-line experience, especially if you get there early and then watch as the line grows and grows.... The excitement builds when the store employees remove the drapes from the store windows, and builds even more when the store staff comes out and does their little parade around the area, hooting and clapping all the way.... By the time people are allowed into the store, allowed to finally get their hands on the new device (whatever it is, iPhone, iPad), the excitement has really hit peak.

The first time we saw the iPhone, the very first one, and the first time we saw the iPad, the very first one -- terrific experiences, never to be forgotten.
Getting the thing delivered to one's home just isn't quite the same kind of exhilarating event.

Completely agree with you, unforgettable experiances

 

[Rasta4i]

The iPad2 launch in the UK was at 5pm. How do I know? I was in the queue!

Having said that, I think they'll release them at store opening. There seems to be a lot more capacity this year.

yep it was definitely a 5pm launch

 

[KeithJenner]

Since the iPad launches in UK and USA at same time it would mean people in the UK would have their iPad's 17 hours before the USA if they launched it at 5pm, and other countrys probably even earlier. I am pretty sure there would be a lot of angry US customers if that happened.

It also releases in Australia on the same day, and they are nearly a day ahead on the West Coast, so it is just a fact that lots of people will get their iPads before US customers, whatever time they start selling it.

The only way to avoid that is not to release it in those countries on the same day.

 

[NutsNGum]

The iPad2 launch in the UK was at 5pm. How do I know? I was in the queue!

Having said that, I think they'll release them at store opening. There seems to be a lot more capacity this year.

Maybe not, judging by the 2-3 week wait for one on the online store!

 

[pilot25dmc]

Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; CPU iPhone OS 5_0_1 like Mac OS X) AppleWebKit/534.46 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/5.1 Mobile/9A406 Safari/7534.48.3)

I would assume it would be at opening, especially with it being more of a worlwide launch this time.

My main reason is in the UK all of our launches have been from the time the store opened, 5pm launches has not happened here, so will be no different this time.

Since the iPad launches in UK and USA at same time it would mean people in the UK would have their iPad's 17 hours before the USA if they launched it at 5pm, and other countrys probably even earlier. I am pretty sure there would be a lot of angry US customers if that happened.

To be honest I do not really get why they did 5pm launches at all in the USA? Does not really seem to have much logic.

The iPad 2 went on sale at 5pm in the UK.