The rumors in the air are all pointing towards an announcement date for the iPad 2. According to a report from MacOkatara, which has had a somewhat accurate intel from the Asian supply chain, Apple will hold “a small event” to announce the next-generation tablet at the end of February. The report suggests that the iPad 2 will be available in the US some time in March. A separate report states that more than half of the first run will be 3G devices. It was noted by MacOkatara that during the Chinese New Year (from February 3rd to February 17th), everybody goes home from the cities where China’s electronics manufacturers are located. As a result, the production has halted on the iPad 2 and isn’t expected to resume until after the holidays. According to supplier checks, five million second-generation iPads will be shipping in the first run of manufacturing, with most of them being 3G models. The popular analyst, Ming Chi Kuo told AppleInsider that 38% of the first production run will be Wi-Fi iPads, with 46% UMTS (compatible with AT&T) Wi-Fi + 3G units and the remaining 16% will be Verizon compatible CDMA 3G radios. The source for MacOkatara’s late-February announcement is currently unknown but it is in line with other reports that indicate that production has already begun and increasing numbers of accessories and replacement parts making their way to third parties. The second generation iPad is expected some time around the one-year anniversary of the original model on April 3. It makes sense that Apple would move the released date up a bit to steal some of the thunder from tablets which are currently being released by competitors. [Source: AppleInsider, MacOkatara] Authors:

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