Apple to sell iPads in China

Tech giant Apple will begin selling the iPad in China on Friday, with the company saying in a statement the gadget will be available in Apple stores and some resellers.

The entry level 16GB Wi-Fi version of the iPad will sell for $US590, with the 32GB model to sell for $US708 and the 64GB model will sell for $US827. There was no further information given about selling the 3G model.

The announcement comes after a flood of imitation devices have spread across the Chinese black market. Several copycat iPhones have also become popular among gadget-lovers in the country.

Part of the problem is the amount of time between announcement dates and actual product launches. Chinese customers were forced to wait two years for the iPhone, resulting in copycat devices, which were often inferior.

“iPad will roll out to many more countries later this year and Apple will announce availability and local pricing for these additional countries at a later date,” the company said.