Apple expected to ship 6,500,000 iPads in first quarter, 40,000,000 in 2011

Apple expected to ship 6.5M iPads in first quarter, 40M in 2011

"Shipments of the iPad, including the second-generation model to be announced by Apple today, are expected to be between 6 million and 6.5 million in the first quarter of 2011, on their way to 40 million for the calendar year.

The numbers from DigiTimes on Wednesday show that Apple expects to significantly ramp up production of the iPad as 2011 wears on. For the initial launch of the iPad 2, Apple is expected to have between 300,000 and 400,000 units available.

Apple reportedly ordered between 1.7 million and 2 million iPads in January and February. Order volumes for March, including the to-be-announced iPad 2, are expected to top 2 million."