Several analysts, including Gene Munster of Piper Jaffray, are now estimating that Apple has sold more than a million iPads (most of them being shipped or sold to U.S. residents). Over the weekend, 49 of 50 stores surveyed were completely sold out of the iPad 3G. If his previous estimate stands, he will be extremely conservative for the June quarter, at just 1.3 million sales.

The pace of orders will surely increase as the Wi-Fi and iPad 3G versions become available in international locations in the May/June time frame.

Update: The announcement was made earlier today by Apple. They have already sold more than one million iPads in less than a month since launch. 12 million apps and 1.5 million eBooks have been downloaded since that date. The full PR report has been added below.

CUPERTINO, California—May 3, 2010—Apple® today announced that it sold its one millionth iPad™ on Friday, just 28 days after its introduction on April 3. iPad users have already downloaded over 12 million apps from the App Store and over 1.5 million ebooks from the new iBookstore. 

“One million iPads in 28 days—that’s less than half of the 74 days it took to achieve this milestone with iPhone,” said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO. “Demand continues to exceed supply and we’re working hard to get this magical product into the hands of even more customers.”

iPad allows users to connect with their apps and content in a more intimate, intuitive and fun way than ever before. Users can browse the web, read and send email, enjoy and share photos, watch HD videos, listen to music, play games, read ebooks and much more, all using iPad’s revolutionary Multi-Touch™ user interface. iPad is 0.5 inches thin and weighs just 1.5 pounds—thinner and lighter than any laptop or netbook—and delivers up to 10 hours of battery life.*

Developers have created over 5,000 exciting new apps for iPad that take advantage of its Multi-Touch user interface, large screen and high-quality graphics. iPad will run almost all of the more than 200,000 apps on the App Store, including apps already purchased for your iPhone® or iPod touch®. 

*Battery life depends on device settings, usage and other factors. Actual results vary.

Apple ignited the personal computer revolution with the Apple II, then reinvented the personal computer with the Macintosh. Apple continues to lead the industry with its award-winning computers, OS X operating system, and iLife, iWork and professional applications. Apple leads the digital music revolution with its iPods and iTunes online store, has reinvented the mobile phone with its revolutionary iPhone and App Store, and has recently introduced its magical iPad which is defining the future of mobile media and computing devices.

[via AppleInsider]

Before this purchase, the company was regularly releasing updates for both its free and pro versions, which were available for both Mac and Windows computers. If you want to take advantage of the software, you will need to download it here, as nearly everything on the site (including these downloads) will be taken down within the week.

A Web-Based Operating System

Google will either incorporate the desktop environment into Android for mobile devices and tablet PCs or introduce it in a more stripped-down version of their Chromium/web-based operating system. It is likely that a lot of changes will be made before it is converted to either of these systems, but there is certainly the potential that it will be included in some form.

For the mobile devices, it would likely make it easier to arrange and display applications as well as status messages from social networking sites. The interface wold certainly allow a user to interact with the display using fingers for control.

Competition Against Apple

Again, this purchase may also have something to do with Google’s fight against Apple. Google may have figured that Apple was going to purchase the company and stepped in to do so before the Cupertino-based company could. At this point, the purchase’s outcome is as clear as what Apple is going to use Lala’s purchase to do: integrate it into iTunes or offer another cloud-based solution.

In the war of two of the biggest technology companies, one company will stand out from the rest, and that is the company that is able to out-innovate the other, while still being able to maintain the high consumer satisfaction.

Google’s latest project, which the company is putting a lot of emphasis on, is the Chromium OS, which is an open source project. The primary focus is on netbooks, but it may eventually scale to other devices, including tablets. A mockup and UI concepts have emerged on this page, which indicate the direction Google may be taking when it begins producing a device for market.

The main UI and features included will be as follows:

• Keyboard interaction with the screen will be anchored, split, attached to focus.
• Access to websites will be provided using touch or search.
• Contextual actions triggered through speech or touch input.
• Zooming UI for multiple tabs.
• Tabs presented along the side of the screen.
• Creating multiple browsers on screen using a launcher.

If Google goes after the tablet market like they have been going after the phone market, it is likely that multiple manufacturers will be sporting devices powered by the Chromium OS, although Google may have the last say as to what can be customized and what can’t be.

The main problem with how Google is trying to corner these markets is the same reason Microsoft ultimately failed at launching products like the Zune and their Windows Mobile phone platforms (which are both dramatically losing sales). While many respect Google for their search business, which is shown with their share of the search market, those who aren’t familiar with their motivation behind releasing these products will fall in the trap. With the Nexus One and any devices Google releases under their branding, they have full access to everything on your phone, which is said to “improve Google’s search results.”

Apple is in the market of providing evolutionary devices. We’ve seen plenty of tablets in the past, but Apple’s approach on how the tablet should be used is completely different. Never before has a company launched a device with an extremely successful application store. There are less apps available for the iPhone OS than the Windows platform, but they are generally regarded (as a whole) to be better and easier to use.

Many of Apple’s products have had nearly two decades of research behind them. The MessagePad, the first device made available under the Newton platform, was released in 1993. Some of the overall technology and ideas behind the device made it into the iPhone and later, the iPad. Google wasn’t even a company at this time. Those who purchase Apple’s products are accustomed to an experience regarded to as higher than the competition.

The Nexus One, Motorola Droid, and Palm Pre are all in the smart phone market, yet none have really been able to steal significant sales from the iPhone. Perhaps they are slowing the growth of the iPhone in the near-term (next several months), but this may simply be due to the fact that Apple hasn’t updated their iPhone since last summer. Flooding the market with devices won’t help Google: support has reportedly been horrible for their Nexus One launch.

Upfront costs for these devices are all quite similar, between $179 and $199 for contract-base devices and in the $529 to $599 range for devices without a contract. Two-year plans are also quite consistent across the board, only changing when data plans must be included or the carrier is different.

Google’s marketplace for their tablet computer will be much like the experience of Google Chrome. While they promote a clean, fast experience, as soon as you begin using the software, it becomes evident that the speed and interface haven’t been polished. Apple’s iPhone has been polished (as well as many of the included apps).

When someone spends $2,500 to $3,000 on a device over the lifespan of a contract, will they choose a device that works as intended or a device that looks like it should work as intended, that has all the specs. to go with the look?

Ultimately, the tablet market will boil down to some of the same principles as the latest saga of the smart phone market.

For now, we have user-created mockups and a video showing how the Chromium OS will look on a tablet device. Remember, the device is still in “mockup” stage, and there have been no prototypes displayed yet. Apple’s device will hit the market in about two months’ time.

Concepts and UIs

Video Showing Tablet UI

The photos were originally obtained by Engadget, but can now be found around a number of tech blogs.

The dimensions of the device are apparently between 9- and 10-inches, which supports the many rumors that stated this would be the dimensions. At this point, there is still a lot of speculation, as we know that there will be a tablet (especially with this many “realistic” photos being released), however we don’t know whether all these features (such as a front-facing camera), 3G connectivity, or how we will be able to interact with the device.

Pricing at this point can run between $800 to $1,000, as it will cost obviously higher than an unsubsidized iPhone of $599 to $699, although Apple could have gotten a great deal to ensure that prices remain competitive. No clues have pointed to specifics on how much storage it will have, but 64GB at this point sounds like a good bet.

At the event, there may also be an updated suite of iLife/iWork applications. If not, they may wait until later this year or may even skip the year, as a result of Apple’s planning.

An iPhone announcement may also be made, but the event will be all about Apple’s latest creation, rather than anything else.

View the photos below of the new, rumored tablet. Let me know what you think of the tablet, once it is released, and whether you will be purchasing one.

While there is a lot of speculation surrounding these images, they are fairly close to what the actual product may look like, in terms of actual size and what its intended function may be. However, other users have pointed out that the reflections and noise is slightly off, although this was obviously intended to be a “leak” photo.

They were posted by Dustin Curtis, a user interface designer, who supposedly got them from a friend.

A later tweet said is as follows: Dustin Curtis: 1; Internet: 0, with a link to a live stats page showing the amount of traffic he is currently receiving.

Obviously: If they were in fact real, Apple would already have issued a cease and desist letter to take the photos down.