Apple Officially Announces 8:00 AM Local Time Launch for New iPad on Friday, March 16 - MacRumors
Skip to Content

Apple Officially Announces 8:00 AM Local Time Launch for New iPad on Friday, March 16

by

Apple today officially announced that the new iPad will launch at 8:00 AM local time on Friday in the United States and nine other countries. The first hints of an 8:00 AM launch surfaced earlier this week with the grand opening time of Apple's new Highland Village retail store in Houston, and the time was essentially confirmed yesterday with a leaked photo of Apple retail store signage announcing the launch time.

Apple today announced the new iPad, the third generation of its category defining mobile device, will arrive at Apple’s retail stores and the Apple Online Store (www.apple.com) on Friday, March 16 at 8:00 a.m. local time in the US, Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore, Switzerland and the UK; along with Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands.

Apple also notes that customers purchasing the new iPad will receive free Personal Setup to get their new device up and running, while promoting Personal Pickup options available through the Apple Store app for iOS devices.

ipad 3 hand
Finally, the company confirms that the new iPad will be available from Best Buy, RadioShack, Sam’s Club, Target and Walmart in the United States. Carriers AT&T and Verizon have also announced that they will be offering 4G models of the new iPad beginning with Friday's launch date.

Related Roundup: iPad
Buyer's Guide: iPad (Don't Buy)
Related Forum: iPad

Popular Stories

iPad A16 Colors

Here's When to Expect an iPad 12 With Apple Intelligence

Friday May 1, 2026 8:21 am PDT by
A new entry-level iPad 12 with Apple Intelligence support likely remains months away, based on a comment shared by an Apple executive this week. On an earnings call on Thursday, Apple's CFO Kevan Parekh said that the company's iPad revenue in the March-June quarter will face a "difficult compare" due to the the launch of the entry-level iPad 11 with the A16 chip in March 2025. Parekh is...
Read Full Article • 14 comments
Apple Event Logo

Apple's Next Era Begins September 1

Thursday May 7, 2026 10:36 am PDT by
Apple recently announced that Tim Cook will be stepping down as CEO later this year, after 15 years of leading the company. Effective September 1, Apple's hardware engineering chief John Ternus will become the company's next CEO, while Cook will become executive chairman of Apple's board of directors. In his new role, Apple said Cook will assist with "certain aspects" of the company,...
Read Full Article
Four iPhone 18 Pro Colors Mock Feature

iPhone 18 Pro Launching in September With These 10 New Features

Saturday May 9, 2026 6:03 am PDT by
While the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max are not launching until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices. It was initially reported that the iPhone 18 Pro models would have fully under-screen Face ID, with only a front camera visible in the top-left corner of the screen. However, the latest rumors indicate that only one Face ID component will be moved under the...
Read Full Article

Top Rated Comments

P
profets
185 months ago
Pretty amazing what they've done with this launch. Pre-orders with delivery on launch day. Initial launch in ~10 countries? Secondary launch a week later in another 20(?) countries. And it seems they've done all this while having plenty of stock available.

It's almost a work of art what they've done with their supply chain & logistics. Cook is truly shining here.
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Buckeyestar Avatar
Buckeyestar
185 months ago
Oh I see Apple,,,, I pre-order and pay almost $900 for an iPad only to have someone walk into an Apple store, Bestbuy, Wal-mart, At&t or Verizon store and have their iPad before mine is even out for delivery. I say Apple should deliver all Pre-orders on Thursday!

Seriously? Get over it! Last year you would only be putting on order in on the same day as all those people getting theirs by standing in line. Be glad we were able to preorder this time.
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
oscsjc Avatar
oscsjc
185 months ago
This is why I think people that pre-order should have got theirs a day early. We ordered first but we'll get ours last on launch day. :(

Yeah, sucks to be you. Let's see, you don't have to get up early, stand in line at some Best Buy in the cold and hope that you are lucky enough to be in a good place in line to get the exact color and model you desire. Instead you go about your day and some nice person from FedEX rings your doorbell and hand you your shinny new iPad. You are not entiltled. You pre-ordered only because you want to ensure that you get you hands on one on lauch day. boo-hoo.
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
S.B.G Avatar
S.B.G
185 months ago
Mine's been sitting at a FedEx facility in TN since Sunday with overnight delivery, but with a delayed delivery date requested. :mad:
Yours and everyone who per-orderded too. Apple said they'd deliver on Friday, so there's no reason to be angry over it. :)

Although, mine is sitting in Middletown, PA.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Blorzoga Avatar
Blorzoga
185 months ago
Oh I see Apple,,,, I pre-order and pay almost $900 for an iPad only to have someone walk into an Apple store, Bestbuy, Wal-mart, At&t or Verizon store and have their iPad before mine is even out for delivery. I say Apple should deliver all Pre-orders on Thursday!

You mean: anyone can wake up before dawn, sit outside in a lawn chair, be miserable, miss work, and keep their fingers crossed that the store they're at will have the model they want, while all you have to do is wait for a knock on your door. Yeah, Apple's really screwing you over.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
B
B.A.T
185 months ago
I'd rather the Fed Ex guy showed up at 5pm or even on Saturday than waste my time in line. I really hope Dionte's Fed Ex driver is reading this thread and loses his iPad.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Read All Comments