Apple on Monday declined to provide weekend iPad sale numbers, saying only that it was "thrilled" by how many tablets buyers snapped up.
"We had a record weekend and we're thrilled with it," Tim Cook, Apple's CEO, said during a conference call intended to discuss what Apple planned to do with some of its cash hoard.
With the new iPad, he said, "it just keeps getting better."
In a separate statement, meanwhile, AT&T - which is offering the 4G version of the new iPad - said it "set a new single-day record for its iPad sales and activations."
The iPad went on sale Friday morning, and many Apple Stores featured long lines of shoppers eager to purchase the "resolutionary" new tablet.
According to stats from mobile ad network Chitika, the new iPad made up approximately 4.65 percent of iPad traffic on its network over the weekend.
Trip Chowdry, an analyst for Global Equities Research, however, said in a Monday note that if the new iPad was as successful as the iPhone 4S launch, the new iPad traffic should have been between 12-15 percent. Apple sold more than 4 million iPhone 4S smartphones during their first three days on the market.
"The converged view, by looking at the U.S. application traffic only, probably indicates that the U.S. new iPad sales may be somewhat light," Chowdry wrote.
Chowdry suggested that iPhone 4S sales, which helped Apple move 37 million smartphones during the fourth quarter, were related to an "emotional outpouring" after the Oct. 5 death of Steve Jobs.
The new iPad, however, did not include enough compelling upgrades to convince iPad 2 owners to ditch their year-old tablet for the new one, Chowdry suggested. There was also the lack of emotional outpouring and high gas prices, he wrote.
Update: Chowdry might want to reassess. Later in the day, Apple revealed that it sold 3 million new iPads over three days.
When the first-generation iPad was launched in 2010, consumers snapped up 300,000 tablets in the first day. Apple did not reveal first-day sales for the iPad 2, but Apple acknowledged that it was hit with the "mother of all backlogs" for its second-gen tablet.
For more, check out PCMag's full review of the new iPad and the slideshow below. PCMag's lead analyst for mobile, Sascha Segan, gave the device 4.5 out of five stars for its breathtaking display, large app selection, and excellent 3G and 4G network compatibility.
Editor's Note: This story was updated at 12:15pm Eastern with comment from AT&T.