Sales gallore! 3 mn Apple iPads sold in 80 days

Apple sold its three millionth iPad 80 days after its introduction in the US and just two days before the release of the company's new iPhone 4 for which there have already been 600,000 pre-orders.

Apple announced Tuesday that iPad, is a revolutionary and magical device with a colour touchscreen that allows users to connect with their applications, content and the Internet in a more intimate, intuitive and fun way.

"People are loving iPad as it becomes a part of their daily lives," said Steve Jobs, Apple's CEO.

"We're working hard to get this magical product into the hands of even more people around the world, including those in nine more countries next month," he added. Developers have created over 11,000 exciting new applications for iPad.

The iPad will run almost all of the more than 225,000 applications on the App Store, including those already purchased for iPhone or iPod touch.

The announcement comes amid supply problems, which have slowed sales across the country.

Apple is now selling about a million iPads a month.

The Cupertino company said it had sold its first million about a month after the April 3 kickoff, and its second million by May 31.

The iPad is now available in a number of countries outside the US, including France, Japan, Canada and Germany.

The iPhone 4, a GSM cell phone which offers features like high-resolution display, FaceTime video calling and HD video recording among others, meanwhile will be available for consumers Thursday at Apple's retail stores.

According to the All Things D blog, some customers who ordered last week have been notified their phones will be shipped to them as early as Wednesday a day early than its release date of June 24.

A 16-gigabyte version of the phone costs $199 for eligible customers, who sign a new two-year AT&T contract.

A 32GB version will cost $299.

AT&T said on Tuesday that it will notify customers who ordered an iPhone 4 through its website when the devices are shipped or available for in-store pickup.

Next Tuesday, five days later than originally planned, the wireless carrier will resume selling the iPhone 4 at its retail stores to customers who haven't already ordered one.

Apple said it took orders June 15 for a record 600,000 iPhones.

The flood of purchases swamped both Apple and AT&T, preventing some orders from being taken.

A day later, AT&T halted the process and Apple issued an apology.

AT&T has been the exclusive US provider of voice and data service for the iPhone since its introduction in 2007.