Apple Blocks iPad Shipping Records from Public Access

Why must they keep things so secretive.... Too excited to wait for mine any longer...

Another eye-rolling Apple moment. Think paranoid.

It's shipping records...let them be as secretive as they want about it. They gave us an approximate date for the launch of the iPad. It will come. As the time approaches, Apple will make a big deal about the date.

Apple should have done everything in-house so that everything stays with them.

Outsourcing to someone else to do it will ended up how Foxconn are doing things in China.

In house as in America? Do you really believe the iPad would start at $499 if it was produced in America? People complain about Apple's prices now, and production is in Asia.

Apple, well known for their operational secrecy, continues to show leadership in the technology industry by protecting the iPad and future product shipment records.

"Showing its true fascistic face" would be more like it.

Apple should have done everything in-house so that everything stays with them.

Outsourcing to someone else to do it will ended up how Foxconn are doing things in China.

I don't think Apple would want to pay extra money to have workers in the US assemble their products when over in Asia they can build more units for less amount of money.

Apple sucks lately. I loved Apple for what Apple stood for in the past, new fresh, supporting open source and transparent in most cases. Apple I am not getting an iPad and your iPad sucks for not supporting Flash. Go Android powered iPad killers. I am getting an HP for my KID WHO WANTS TO PLAY FLASH GAMES ON LINE, WAKE UP APPLE.

this is a little over the top to me. I mean, they did say when it was being shipped (roughly). So what possible benefit do they gain by doing this?

Being secretive can be exciting when the products are announced, this just indicates a level of paranoia

To those of you asking "why", it's pretty simple -- every aspect of a roll-out like this is carefully choreographed to present the ideal market conditions for the item in question.

You have strategic leaks to the New York Times claiming the price is going to be $1000, then Apple blows everybody away with $499. Intentional? You bet.

You've got HP intro'ing their Slate product, but waiting on price until they hear about the iPad. You've got every other tech company basing their product response on what this single product does. Everything -- and I mean everything -- that Apple does in connection with the iPad is being monitored and studied for competitive advantage. That's not paranoia, that's just self-awareness.

Everything from the amount of units shipped to import dates has the possibility of tipping off the competition to retail strategy and/or affecting the AAPL stock price. Apple's secrecy is just good business.