Apple's 4G iPad debuts in Australia

Apple's new iPad went on sale in Australia Thursday, greeted by throngs of fans hungry to get hold of the US consumer giant's latest 4G-ready tablet computer. While numbers were down compared with launches of earlier iPads, the still-solid turnout reflects demand for Apple products, even though analysts say the new version is a collection of incremental improvements rather than a major technological innovation. Apple shares breached the $600 (Dh2,203) mark for the first time yesterday on the Nasdaq, but gave up some of the gains in morning trading. The stock is up 47 per cent for the year and nearly ten per cent for the month. A single Apple share now costs more than the Wi-Fi-only iPad, which is priced at $499. he initial rush for the first new third-generation iPads sold globally was not at one of Apple's gleaming glass and polished wooden stores in Sydney, but across the road at Australian phone company Telstra. Telstra opened two stores just after midnight local time to begin selling the iPad, stealing an eight-hour march on Apple. David Tarasenko, a 34-year-old construction manager, who was the first to pick up the iPad, said ever since Apple chief executive Tim Cook revealed the tablet's third iteration, he couldn't wait to get one. "When Tim Cook announced it, it sounded like such a magical tool. I just got hyped into it, I guess," he said.