Apple has announced this morning that the iPad 2 will go on sale in 12 more countries this week, kicking off with Japan on Thursday April 28, and then the following 11 countries on Friday April 29: Hong Kong, India, Israel, Korea, Macau, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, South Africa, Turkey and UAE. The iPad 2 will go on sale first in Apple's online stores in the countries in question from 1 a.m. on launch day, and then in Apple retail stores from 9 a.m., which is eight hours earlier than it went on sale in previous launches. AppleInsider reports that Japanese business paper Nikkei said this morning that the iPad 2 would go on sale in Apple's seven retail stores in Japan this Thursday, as well as in Japanese mobile carrier SoftBank's stores. The iPad 2 was originally due to launch in Japan on March 25, but Apple delayed the launch following the devastating earthquake and subsequent tsunami that hit the country. AppleInsider also notes that in the aftermath of those tragic events, Apple's Japanese retail stores became gathering points for people wanting to use the Internet and recharge their phones.
Source: Apple, AppleInsider | Apple to sell iPad 2 in Japan, Hong Kong, 10 other countries this week
