Apple likely sold between 400,000 and 500,000 iPad 2 devices this weekend, depleting the number of available tablets at Apple Stores and other retailers nationwide, according to analysts.
Those lining up to purchase the iPad 2 were not all Apple fanboys. Research from Piper Jaffray suggests that as many as 70 percent of those polled were new to the iPad.
Piper Jaffray spoke with 236 people in line for the iPad 2 on Friday in New York and Minneapolis, and found that 70 percent of people had never purchased an iPad before.
"Typically demand on Apple product launch days is driven by upgrades, but our data suggests Apple is gaining new iPad users vs. upgrading existing ones," senior research analyst Gene Munster said in a Monday note to investors.
Munster suggested that this is critical for Apple to maintain its lead in the growing tablet market. "As the user base grows Apple's lead widens, and the company has a proven track record of building unmatched brand loyalty, which we believe will be a potent combination as the table market evolves," he wrote.
About 47 percent of people polled were buying the Wi-Fi + 3G model and 41 percent were buying the 32GB version, up from the 32 percent who bought the 32GB model the first time around.
While many buyers were new to the iPad, 65 percent already owned an iPhone and 24 percent owned a Kindle, though only 6 percent planned to use the iPad for e-reading. About 17 percent planned to use the tablet for apps and gaming, a 9 percent increase from last year.
On Friday, Piper Jaffray predicted iPad 2 sales between 400,000 and 500,000 over the weekend, a number it still believes to be accurate. For comparison, Apple sold 300,000 first-generation iPads in the first few days last year. Piper Jaffray noted that its sales estimates are really just for the first day, March 11, because Apple Stores and other retail outlets quickly sold out on Friday.
"In calling various retailers over the weekend that carry iPad 2 (Apple stores, Target, Best Buy, etc.) we were unable to find any availability," Munster wrote.
Brian White, a senior research analyst with Ticonderoga Securities, saw similar trends.
"Our field checks over the weekend indicate that the iPad 2 sold out at every Apple and non-Apple store we contacted," White wrote in a Monday note. "In fact, all the stores had worked through iPad 2 inventory by Saturday afternoon, and there were no new iPad 2 deliveries on Sunday."
Apple stores, however, said they were hopeful to receive new shipments this morning, White said. But the number of iPad 2's provided to third-party sellers like Best Buy and Verizon "were a fraction of what the Apple stores received," White wrote.
The strong sales "bode well for the momentum of the iPad franchise," White wrote. "For tablet competitors, we believe consumers have spoken, and life just got a lot tougher if you plan to compete with the iPad 2."
Overall, White predicted that Apple will sell 27.36 million iPad 2's in fiscal year 2011, for revenue of $16.92 billion.
PCMag was at the Apple Store in Manhattan and in San Francisco checking out the lines. See the slideshow above for more details, and see PCMag's full review of the iPad 2 as well as the unboxing.