-:: Malaysia Mobile Tech News ::-

I’m afraid the answer is “not anytime soon”.  I am basing this on the fact that the Malaysia website still does not have a dedicated page for the iPad.  Instead, when clicking on the iPad icon in the Apple Malaysia Store, one is directed to the generic Asia iPad page.  When I checked, countries such as Australia (where the iPad is confirmed to be arriving in “late April” as per Apple’s latest iPad press release), Hongkong and Singapore all had their own dedicated iPad pages.  However, both the Singapore and Hongkong pages do not have an estimated shipping date.

Malaysia, Indonesia and Thailand users are re-directed to the generic Asia iPad page.  So, this tells me that the iPad is not arriving before the end of April.  If you want one badly, it looks like you’ll have to pay some exhorbitant prices to get one, either from the US (if you’re really desperate!) or Australia (if you’re not *that* desperate).

Sigh.

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The eWeek website recently penned a pieced titled the above – what Apple needs to do before unleashing the iPad on to the public.  I feel that it misses the point entirely, and thank goodness that Apple doesn’t take advice from them regarding product features and launches!  I say that because they’ve practically thrown the kitchen sink at the iPad in terms of those features which they think are important but which are missing from the iPad.  The short of it is, the iPad is what Apple thinks it should be, and not what people like eWeek think it should be – after all, it’s a gamble to introduce any new product into the market, and in this case, this is what Apple thinks the buying public wants.

The usual suspects such as the lack of Flash support is there.  So is running iPhone apps on the iPad without modification, which does not take advantage of the iPad’s screen size and resolution.  There are others too, such as the pricing of 3G plans for the 3G version, etc.  Even the lack of a USB port is something that needs to be fixed.  And if Apple fixes all these, it will look like the HP Slate.  Maybe.  And then how is Apple going to differentiate itself from the “me-toos” out there?  As I’ve always told people – you know what a device does, and what it doesn’t do – if you don’t like it, don’t buy it, it’s a free world.  Just like no one can force you into marrying someone you despise (unless there’s a lot of money in it ).  And whining about it won’t change the situation.  Just buy another product instead!

They must be running out of things to write on that website!

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So says, and reiterates, Steve Jobs, CEO of Apple.  Many were questioning the claim during the iPad’s presentation/unveiling in late January that it has become a talking point of its own on the internet.  Responding to a question from the “government computer news” website of the US, the Apple CEO responded in his typical fashion – short, sharp and straight to the point – “…And, yes, we are getting 10 hours in 1.5 pounds“.  And the email response was typed out on an iPad!

The response was to a question posed by the author of this post asking whether the 10 hour battery life claim was more a marketing claim than a “real world” claim.  Personally I think 10 hours is awesome for a 10 inch device.  I think it’s with WiFi though.  If it’s with 3G on, I’m astounded.  We’ll know for sure once some lucky folks get their hands on the iPad here in Malaysia.  I hope I’m one of them.

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Yep, this must be one of the most eagerly awaited piece of tech news this quarter – the availability date for Apple’s magical and revolutionary device.  Apple announced today that the iPad will be available in its US stores on 3^rd of April, with pre-orders on its website beginning 12^th March, a week or so from today.

Sadly, international availability is only in late April, says the press release.  International pricing is only expected sometime in April.  Drats.

iPad will be available in both Wi-Fi and Wi-Fi + 3G models in late April in Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Spain, Switzerland and the UK. International pricing will be announced in April. iPad will ship in additional countries later this year.

Will we see the iPad in stores in Malaysia before the first half of 2010 is out?  I’m not that confident as I doubt that our insignificant country is high on Apple’s list of priorities.

Depending on the premium I have to pay for the WiFi model imported from the US, I may decide to get one rather than wait for the “official” local version.  But only if the premium is reasonable – after all, I’m stupid, but not *that* stupid  :D

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