With the iPad Air now having launched in over 40 countries today, supplies of the device are starting to weaken in some of Apple's online and retail stores. The most significant signs of tightening supplies are appearing in higher-capacity models in some countries, specifically 128 GB and 64 GB cellular models and 128 Wi-Fi models. In a number of countries these models are now listed as shipping in 5-10 business days.
Apple's U.S. online store continues to list delivery dates of November 4 for new orders of all models, while those looking to use Personal Pickup to order their devices online and pick them up today at a nearby U.S. Apple retail store will find that supplies are beginning to dry up with increasing combinations of models and stores now listed as "Ships to store" rather than "Available today".
In countries other than the U.S., Apple's online stores list shipping estimates rather than delivery estimates, and the following combinations of models and countries have seen estimates slipping to 5-10 business days:
- Australia: Cellular 128 GB in space gray
- Austria: Wi-Fi and Cellular 128 GB in both space gray and silver
- Belgium: Wi-Fi 128 GB in space gray
- China: Wi-Fi 16 and 128 GB in space gray, all Wi-Fi models in silver (Cellular models not available yet)
- Czech Republic: Cellular 64 GB and 128 GB models in both space gray and silver, Cellular 32 GB and Wi-Fi 128 GB in silver
- Denmark: Cellular 128 GB in space gray
- Finland: Cellular 128 GB in both space gray and silver
- France: Cellular 128 GB in space gray
- Germany: Wi-Fi and Cellular 128 GB in both space gray and silver
- Hong Kong: All models quickly became unavailable for shipping
- Hungary: Cellular 64 GB and 128 GB models in both space gray and silver, Cellular 32 GB in silver
- Ireland: Cellular 128 GB in both space gray and silver
- Netherlands: Cellular 128 GB in space gray
- Norway: Cellular 128 GB in space gray
- Poland: Wi-Fi and Cellular 128 GB in both space gray and silver
- Portugal: Cellular 128 GB in both space gray and silver, Wi-Fi 128 GB in space gray
- Singapore: Cellular 128 GB in space gray
- Sweden: Cellular 128 GB in both space gray and silver
- Switzerland: Cellular 128 GB in both space gray and silver, Wi-Fi 128 GB in space gray
- UK: Cellular 128 GB in both space gray and silver
Update: U.S. users interested in checking availability of Personal Pickup for various models may want to take advantage of Apple-Tracker.com for a much more efficient method than going through Apple's online store manually for each model.
Update 2: The Space Gray 128GB iPad Air w/cellular on T-Mobile is the first model to see its shipping time slip on the U.S. store. It is now available to ship in 5-10 business days.
Top Rated Comments
Yeah... but I already have a MBA.
Do you work for Apple? This sounds like a PR sound bite.
OK, I'll bite...
1) People fill up their iPads with whatever they need to make it a useful & enjoyable device for them. Congrats, all you need is 16GB. Some people like to load up videos (esp for the kids), or keep photos on it as a digital photo book, music, magazines, books, apps (100-200mb apps are not uncommon these days).
2) What does the position that iPads are meant to be upgraded every 2 years have to do with what storage size one buys today? I don't see the connection there especially since Apple has kept the storage size and price points the same since the original iPad.
3) Your suggestion that Apple's gimps old hardware makes zero sense. The iPad 2 that you could buy today is the exact same one available two years ago. Apple didn't lessen RAM or change out the processor. Now, Apple does build new OSes to compliment the newest hardware, yes, but that is how you make technological progress rather than designing for the least common denominator.