Apple iPad Pre-orders Kick Off on March 12

Apple plans to begin taking pre-orders and reservations for the iPad on Friday, March 12. The company hasn't said yet what time on Friday the pre-order program will kick off, and so far the iPad Web page is still providing the option to notify users when more information is available.

The Wi-Fi version of the iPad will be available on Saturday, April 3, in the United States, and the Wi-Fi plus 3G version will be available near the end of April. Customers in Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Spain, Switzerland and the U.K. will be able to get their hands on both models in late April, and in other countries later in the year.

Customers that pre-order an iPad can choose to have their tablet delivered, or reserved for pickup at their local Apple Retail Store.