The iPad Mini and fourth-generation iPad became available on Friday morning, in the three-day period since then, Apple says it has sold three million new tablets.
It's not the first time Apple has sold 3 million tablets in a weekend — the third-generation iPad sold at that rate. But that sales figure included cellular models sold through wireless carriers, whereas this time only the Wi-Fi-only models are on sale, so it's seen as a spike by the folks in Cupertino.
"We set a new launch-weekend record and practically sold out of iPad Minis," Apple CEO Tim Cook remarked, according to a press release issued by the company. "We're working hard to build more quickly to meet the incredible demand."
The press release explains that the launch-weekend sales total of Wi-Fi-only iPad Mini and fourth-generation iPad is "double the previous first-weekend milestone of 1.5 million Wi-Fi-only models sold for the third-generation iPad in March."
The sales boost may be helped by a wider global presence. The iPad Mini and fourth-generation iPad launched in 34 countries on Friday. The third-generation Wi-Fi-only iPad was initially only available in the U.S., Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, Puerto Rico, Singapore, Switzerland, UK and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
The next question is, will the LTE-enabled cellular versions of the iPad Mini and fourth-generation iPad break sales records as well? They are expected to start shipping "in a few weeks in the U.S. and in many more countries later this year," according to Apple.
Want more tech news or interesting links? You'll get plenty of both if you keep up with Rosa Golijan, the writer of this post, by following her on Twitter, subscribing to her Facebook posts, or circling her on Google+.
