New iPad Quietly Continues International Tour with 9 More Countries, Still No China

Posted 04/27/2012 at 4:51am | by J.R. Bookwalter

Although it didn?t merit a press release from Apple, the new iPad continues winging its way around the globe on Friday, touching down in nine more countries where users won?t be able to enjoy 4G LTE.

The Next Web is reporting that Apple has released the new iPad in nine more countries on Friday, bringing its worldwide total to 57. It?s the fourth such wave of new iPad launches since the tablet debuted in March, continuing the company?s rapid rollout of new products.

The lucky countries are Colombia, Estonia, India, Israel, Latvia, Lithuania, Montenegro, South Africa and Thailand -- none of whom will be able to take advantage of those sweet 4G LTE data speeds, which are currently exclusive to the U.S. and Canada.

Curiously, China continues to be excluded from the new iPad launches, despite Apple getting an all-clear on the Wi-Fi only version. Electronic devices are ?required to pass certification in order to access Chinese telecom networks,? and it appears the cellular version of the new iPad is still underway.

A potentially bigger problem in the Chinese market is Apple?s current trademark spat with Proview, who claims to still hold the trademark on the iPad name in that country. A negative outcome in court could have serious implications for Apple, including an outright import ban on the tablet unless they settle with Proview.

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