There’s unconfirmed speculation that there are production problems for Apple iPad which is due for release later this month.  According to one of the suppliers, the supply of iPad’s on the initial release may be limited to 300K units (instead of 1M units originally planned) and that could push the release to April.

Is this another ploy by Apple to create a frenzy on the iPad tablet or are they pulling a Barnes & Noble Nook Xmas? The chance of real supplier issues is more likely since we’ve seen this from other new device releases.  Not to say Apple couldn’t plan this, but what do they have to gain from this?  Shorter initial supply creates more of a buzz from the free press (whether bad or good).  If Apple does release the limited supply and stick to the original date, then consumers are more inclined to have a ‘buy it now’ mentality.   On the flip side, the delay could drive a few more sales to competitors (e.g. Amazon Kindle, Barnes & Noble Nook, or Sony eReader) because of disappointed customers.  But if you are a true Apple enthusiast, what’s a few more days!

Regardless of the reality, can this be actually GOOD for Apple?  The fanfare is not the same without a production/supply issue.  Whether you are going to line up overnight at the Apple store or don’t care for version 1.0 of iPad, the suspense will end soon or in this case, we should say later!