Apple Retail Store Signage Confirms 8:00 AM Launch for New iPad on Friday
Yesterday, we noted that Apple's grand opening of its new Highland Village retail store scheduled for 8:00 AM on Friday hinted that the company was likely to planning to launch the new iPad at that time rather than in a late afternoon launch as was seen with the iPad 2.
We received word soon after that visual merchandising staff at Apple's retail stores were scheduled for an overnight shift on Thursday night into Friday morning in order to prepare the store for a morning launch, and now 9to5Mac posts a photo from a retail store source showing some of the new signage going up this week confirming an 8:00 AM launch for the device on Friday.
Apple's product launches have historically been scheduled by local time, so customers in any of the iPad launch countries with Apple retail stores should expect those stores to open at 8:00 AM in their local time zones. With Apple having sold out of its initial batch of online pre-orders for Friday delivery, those still looking to secure an iPad on launch day will need to wait in line at an Apple retail store or other launch retailer in hopes of obtaining one.
Popular Stories
Last year, Apple launched CarPlay Ultra, the long-awaited next-generation version of its CarPlay software system for vehicles. Nearly a year later, CarPlay Ultra is still limited to Aston Martin's latest luxury vehicles, but that should change fairly soon.
In May 2025, Apple said many other vehicle brands planned to offer CarPlay Ultra, including Hyundai, Kia, and Genesis.
CarPlay Ultra...
As we wait for WWDC to kick off next Monday, Apple today announced the winners of its annual Apple Design Awards, recognizing apps and games for their innovation, ingenuity, and technical achievement.
The 2025 Apple Design Award winners are listed below, with one app and one game selected per category:
Delight and Fun - CapWords (App) and Balatro (Game)
Innovation - Play (App) and PBJ -...
Apple's iPhone development roadmap runs several years into the future and the company is continually working with suppliers on several successive iPhone models at the same time, which is why we often get rumored features months ahead of launch. The iPhone 18 series is no different, and we already have a good idea of what to expect for the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max.
One thing worth...
Popular Stories
After hosting a surprise Alicia Keys concert at its Grand Central store in New York last week, Apple is turning to Asia for more 50th-anniversary celebrations. So far, it has been discovered that there will be events held in China and South Korea.
Apple's retail store at Taikoo Li in Chengdu, China is temporarily closed this Wednesday, March 18, according to the store's page. While nothing...
Apple kicked off its 50th anniversary celebrations with a surprise Alicia Keys performance at its Grand Central store in New York last week, and it has since hosted similar events in China and South Korea. Next up, we have discovered that Apple is planning to host additional celebrations in Canada, France, and Thailand.
On its Canadian website, Apple says it will be hosting a talk with...
Apple last week hiked the prices of external hard drives sold through its online store and retail locations, as noted by Bloomberg's Mark Gurman.
Writing in his latest Power On newsletter, Gurman said that Apple updated the pricing on several external drive offerings recently, and the increases are steep. For example, a SanDisk 4TB solid-state external drive that previously sold for around...
