Apple iPad sales to begin at 8am on Friday

Apple has announced that it will start selling the third generation iPad at 8am local time in Australia, the US, Canada, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore, Switzerland and the UK on Friday, March 16.

Apple-CEO-Tim-Cook-unveils-the-new-iPad-during-an-Apple-product-launch-event-at-Yerba-Buena-Center-for-the-Arts-in-San-Francisco-California-AFP

Apple has announced that it will start selling the third generation iPad at 8am local time in Australia, the US, Canada, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore, Switzerland and the UK on Friday, March 16.

While Apple store doors will officially open at 8am, many people are expected to line up overnight in order to be the first to get their hands on the new iPad -- an occurrence that has become a tradition for Apple gadget lovers around the globe.

Late last year Samsung made headlines when it set up a temporary shop meters away from an Apple store in Sydney and offered its own smartphone to people who were lining up for a tiny AU$2. Samsung also attempted to undermine Apple fans with a series of ads that portrayed them as lemmings.

Despite Samsung's taunts, Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster estimates that Apple will sell upwards of 1 million iPads on the first day of sales.

The new iPad features the highest resolution display ever seen on a mobile device. It also has an improved 5MP camera, 1080p video, voice-to-text dictation and fast 4G connectivity. The entry-level 16GB WiFi model is priced from $499. The 16GB WiFi + 4G version is priced from $629.

"Every customer who buys a new iPad at an Apple retail store will be offered free Personal Setup service, helping them customise their iPad by setting up email, loading new apps from the App Store and more, so they'll be up and running with their new iPad before they leave the store," said Apple Australia in a March 15 email.

Thinking of lining up or even camping out to get your hands on the latest Apple device? Technology blog Gizmodo has put together a list of all the items you will need for your extended wait.