iPad Put On Hold for International Customers (AAPL)

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) said Wednesday that it is delaying the debut of the iPad overseas for a second time, after the demand of U.S. buyers has been overwhelming for the tablet computer.

Apple had said the device would be made available worldwide in late March, but production delays caused the company to push the U.S. launch back to April 3 and Apple said the international launch would occur in late April.

Now the company is saying that it will begin taking international orders for the iPad on May 10.

"We know that many international customers waiting to buy an iPad will be disappointed by this news, but we hope they will be pleased to learn the reason -- the iPad is a runaway success in the U.S. thus far," Apple said in a statement.

So far, the company has delivered more than 500,000 units of the tablet device in the U.S. and has taken a significant number of orders for the pending 3G models that will enable users to access the iPad's Internet function from a cellular broadband signal.

The upcoming 3G model will cost $629, $729 or $829, depending on the specific storage capacity. The currently available, Wi-Fi only models are priced at $499, $599 or $699.

Investors are taking the delay of an international launch of the iPad as good news, as the demand for the new device is seemingly very strong.

Shares of Apple are up 1.36 percent in early market movement t0 $245.70.

You May Also Be Interested In

• Active options: AAPL MU TSLA SPCX NFLX AMD MSFT NBIS ORCL WBD
• Hillman closes $1.11B credit facility refinancing
• Masimo keeps $634M patent win over Apple Watch feature - Bloomberg Law