iPad to come to Europe by end of April, US on April 3

Apple’s iPad may not have made the same splash as its previous gadgets, but its timing remains impeccable. The first advert for the tablet, which is now confirmed for US shipment on April 3, cropped up by surprise during the Oscars ceremony on Sunday night.

This offered a 30-second advert tour of the tablet’s functionality, to a soundtrack of The Blue Van’s ‘There Goes My Love’. On Friday, Apple had confirmed that the iPad would be available in the US on April 3. Despite recent rumors of manufacturing problems that could restrict the product to north America until later in the year, the company said it would start to ship to international markets in late April, and the UK is said to be first in line.

On April 3, the Wi-Fi only iPad will be the only one on sale, but the 3G/Wi-Fi versions should join that later in the month. The greatest interest is expected to be in the Wi-Fi device because of its lower upfront cost – plus no need to buy a data plan or casual 3G access from AT&T.

The launch date is slightly later than anticipated, but does not seem to point to serious manufacturing delays. US users can start pre-ordering the devices online and in-store from March 12.

Apple has not yet announced UK pricing, but the entry-level model will cost $499 in the US. The Wi-Fi only, 16Gb model is expected to be priced around £389 in the UK. Other markets that will receive the product before the end of April include France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Switzerland, Australia, Canada and Japan.

Already, ‘iPad clones’ are appearing from China, hitting shelves even before the real thing. The so-called ‘Shenzhen shanzhai’ (the industry of imitation electronics brands that has grown up around China’s hi-tech capital, Shenzhen) has come up with products such as the Epad (from Superman Industrial) and the TESO.

However, neither has tried to copy the Apple’s user experience, and indeed, both are closer to conventional netbooks, as they run Windows and the Atom processor. However, they do not have keyboards, and so look more like new tablets from the likes of Hewlett-Packard. More iPad-like is the Hanwon TouchPad, with 10.1-inch screen, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, though also running Windows 7. “The speed with which the shanzhai has copied the iPad - and maybe improved upon it - is impressive,'' said Michael Clendenin, managing director for Chinese consultancy RedTech Advisors.

Even worse news for Apple will be the grey market for real iPads – some Chinese firms are reported to be taking ‘pre-orders’ for smuggled devices priced as low as $732, and sporting the Wi-Fi that will be illegal in official models, should Apple launch in China this year.