iPad 3 Production Underway for Early March Shipments?

Japanese blog Mac Otakara reports that Apple's manufacturing partners Foxconn and Pegatron have begun production on the next-generation iPad, with Foxconn once again bearing approximately 85% of the load. According to the report, the initial production batch is targeted for shipment in early March, in line with a number of rumors regarding the iPad 3 launch.

According to Chinese source, Foxconn Technology and Pegatron Technology started next generation of iPad assembly with Foxconn bearing 85% and Pegatron taking 15% of the production load like as iPhone 4S. Accelerated schedule is made possible by earlier Chinese New Year festival, 23rd-28th January.

This first lot production implements LCD's, which are produced by Sharp Electronics Corporation, and aims to be shipped at early March, source told.

The report reiterates several of the details found in iLounge's reports on the device, including descriptions of a form factor that looks approximately the same as the iPad 2 but which is slightly thicker. Mac Otakara notes that tight-fitting iPad 2 cases will apparently not fit the new model but that the Smart Cover will be compatible with the new model despite an adjustment in the location of the device's magnets.

dark gray smart cover
Mac Otakara has at times offered accurate information, but has had a few missteps including claims of a late 2011 launch for the iPad 3, new flash memory for MacBook Air solid state drive, and a SIM-less iPhone 4S.

Related Roundup: iPad
Buyer's Guide: iPad (Caution)
Related Forum: iPad

Popular Stories

New Things Your iPhone Can Do in iOS 18

20 New Things Your iPhone Can Do in iOS 18.2

Monday December 16, 2024 8:55 am PST by
Apple released iOS 18.2 in the second week of December, bringing the second round of Apple Intelligence features to iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 models. This update brings several major advancements to Apple's AI integration, including completely new image generation tools and a range of Visual Intelligence-based enhancements. Apple has added a handful of new non-AI related feature controls as...
iphone 16 apple intelligence

Apple Drops Plans for iPhone Hardware Subscription Service

Wednesday December 18, 2024 11:39 am PST by
Apple is no longer planning to launch a hardware subscription service that would let customers "subscribe" to get a new iPhone each year, reports Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Gurman first shared rumors about Apple's work on a hardware subscription service back in 2022, and at the time, he said that Apple wanted to develop a simple system that would allow customers to pay a monthly fee to gain...
iPhone 17 Pro Dual Tone Feature 1

iPhone 17 Pro Rumored to Stick With 'Triangular' Camera Design

Wednesday December 18, 2024 2:36 am PST by
Contrary to recent reports, the iPhone 17 Pro will not feature a horizontal camera layout, according to the leaker known as "Instant Digital." In a new post on Weibo, the leaker said that a source has confirmed that while the appearance of the back of the iPhone 17 Pro has indeed changed, the layout of the three cameras is "still triangular," rather than the "horizontal bar spread on the...
elevation lab airtag battery

Your AirTag's Battery Will Last for Up to 10 Years With Elevation Lab's New TimeCapsule Enclosure

Wednesday December 18, 2024 10:05 am PST by
Elevation Lab today announced the launch of TimeCapsule, an innovative and simple solution for increasing the battery life of Apple's AirTag. Priced at $20, TimeCapsule is an AirTag enclosure that houses two AA batteries that offer 14x more battery capacity than the CR2032 battery that the AirTag runs on. It works by attaching the AirTag's upper housing to the built-in custom contact in the...
apple tv 4k yellow bg feature

New Apple TV Rumored to Launch Next Year With These Features

Tuesday December 17, 2024 9:02 am PST by
The current Apple TV 4K was released more than two years ago, so the streaming device is becoming due for a hardware upgrade soon. Fortunately, it was recently rumored that a new Apple TV will launch at some point next year. Below, we recap rumors about the next-generation Apple TV. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman last week reported that Apple has been working on its own combined Wi-Fi and...
blackmagic vision pro

Blackmagic Debuts $30K 3D Camera for Capturing Video for Vision Pro

Monday December 16, 2024 4:17 pm PST by
Blackmagic today announced that its URSA Cine Immersive camera is now available for pre-order, with deliveries set to start late in the first quarter of 2025. Blackmagic says that this is the world's first commercial camera system designed to capture 3D content for the Vision Pro. The URSA Cine Immersive camera was first introduced in June, but it has not been available for purchase until...
mac pro creativity

Apple Launched the Controversial 'Trashcan' Mac Pro 11 Years Ago Today

Thursday December 19, 2024 7:00 pm PST by
Apple launched the controversial "trashcan" Mac Pro eleven years ago today, introducing one of its most criticized designs that persisted through a period of widespread discontentment with the Mac lineup. The redesign took the Mac Pro in an entirely new direction, spearheaded by a polished aluminum cylindrical design that became unofficially dubbed the "trashcan" in the Mac community. All of ...
iPhone 17 Slim Feature

'iPhone 17 Air' With 'Major' Design Changes and 19-Inch MacBook Detailed in New Report

Sunday December 15, 2024 9:47 am PST by
Apple is planning a series of "major design" and "format changes" for iPhones over the next few years, according to The Wall Street Journal's Aaron Tilley and Yang Jie. The paywalled report published today corroborated the widely-rumored "iPhone 17 Air" with an "ultrathin" design that is thinner than current iPhone models. The report did not mention a specific measurement, but previous...

Top Rated Comments

Themaeds Avatar
169 months ago
"with Foxconn bearing 85%"

...and also 85 percent of the suicides :( Remember that while we all love our gadgets, there is a human cost in getting them to us.
Just of curiosity, does this ever deter you from buying one?
Score: 29 Votes (Like | Disagree)
swarmster Avatar
169 months ago
"with Foxconn bearing 85%"

...and also 85 percent of the suicides :( Remember that while we all love our gadgets, there is a human cost in getting them to us.

Statistically speaking, wouldn't it be expected that 85% of a group of people bear 85% of suicides? The suicide rate at Foxconn is better than the rest of China.
Score: 16 Votes (Like | Disagree)
scott911 Avatar
169 months ago
Statistically speaking, wouldn't it be expected that 85% of a group of people bear 85% of suicides? The suicide rate at Foxconn is better than the rest of China.

exactly. I don't want to suggest anyone shouldn't be making conditions as good as possible for factory workers - but the simple truth is:

A Chinese citizen is MORE likely to commit suicide outside of foxconn than inside foxconn.
Score: 14 Votes (Like | Disagree)
TWSS37 Avatar
169 months ago
I hope so. I've been holding off since the first iPad to get the third version.
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)
gnasher729 Avatar
169 months ago
"with Foxconn bearing 85%"

...and also 85 percent of the suicides :( Remember that while we all love our gadgets, there is a human cost in getting them to us.
Every year, about 30,000 US citizens who don't own iPads or iPhones commit suicide. There is a human cost in not owning them.

(The US postal service has less than half the number of employees that Foxconn has. Being employed there apparently drives so many people crazy, that the term "going postal" is used today for someone who grabs a gun and starts shooting random people).

Just of curiosity, does this ever deter you from buying one?
Most people don't care, some know about statistics, and the others should think about how many suicides there would be if nobody bought anything made at Foxconn and 800,000 employees lost their jobs.
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
jdylan Avatar
169 months ago
Oh, really?

"with Foxconn bearing 85%"

...and also 85 percent of the suicides :( Remember that while we all love our gadgets, there is a human cost in getting them to us.
What does that even mean? 85% of the suicides? You sound like either a troll or a moron. The suicide rate for US college students is 4 times what it is at a Foxconn factory, and at Foxconn, it is much less than at comparable factories in China. What about for US soldiers? They commit suicide, so should we not deploy them anymore? What about car factories in Japan? Should we compare those rates also, and "think" about what we chose to buy/drive? People commit suicide, it doesn't matter if they are rich or poor, Chinese or America.
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)