Long line ups outside Apple stores in Toronto and across the country formed on Friday in anticipation of the 5 p.m. release of the iPad 2.
CTV Toronto's Alicia Markson reports that outside Toronto's Eaton Centre Apple store, the first person to line up arrived at 7:30 am on Thursday morning.
Oren Lasko said the wait is worth it. "I'm an Apple fan. I need the iPad 2 for work and I wasn't prepared to wait."
Others began to line up beside him in the following hours, but they were asked to leave the mall at 1 a.m. and were only let back in at 5:30 a.m.
"We stood outside with all the other homeless people," one man said.
The massively popular devices start at $519 and top out in price at $849, depending on the model.
Tech expert Marc Saltzman said the iPad 2 shows big improvements over its predecessor. "It's twice as fast so if you're playing games, reading eBooks, surfing the web, you're going to notice some major speed improvement," he said.
Having used one for over a month, Saltzman says he is extremely happy with the new product. "I love it. As Steve Jobs says, it is a magical device."
Saltzman said the product is more evolutionary than revolutionary. "They're not changing the design, it's built upon last year's product," he said.
One of the new features on the iPad 2 is a double camera – one on the front of the tablet and one on the back.
"One is for engaging with real-live video chats, that's the one on the front. On the back, you have one that can shoot high definition video," said Saltzman.
Those who couldn't stand to bear the long lineups may have to wait awhile to buy an iPad 2 if retail stores end up selling out.
On Apple.ca, availability for all models of the iPad 2 is listed at three to four weeks.
With files from The Canadian Press
