The sellers and buyers on South Africa's online marketplace bobshop.co.za are bracing for the newly released generation three iPad, code-named the new iPad by Apple.

(15 March 2012) The new iPad is set to release internationally around mid-March, but the term "iPad 3" has already soared among the twenty most popular searches on bobshop. Visitors to the site perform about 120,000 searches every week.

While over 85% of iPads for sale on Bob Shop are brand new, it is expected that there will be an increase in second-hand first and second generation iPads listed on the site as early adopters hurry to make space for the newest offering.

Almost from the moment when the first generation iPad was launched in March 2010, this device emerged as one of the most coveted products on Bob Shop, says Bob Shop CEO Jaco Jonker.

At the time, the impatient South African consumers were ready to pay extra to be the first to flaunt an iPad. Many sellers on Bob Shop obliged by supplying the device months before it became available in the country through the traditional channels.

The story was repeated with the launch of the second generation iPad, roughly a year later. Sellers on Bob Shop were again among the first with the goods. This time round, the number of second-hand devices on offer also increased.

bobshop expects the similar pattern to be played out with the advent of iPad 3.

On one hand, there will be more second-hand units, as early adopters hurry to sell their old iPads and make space for generation three in their mobile computing life. On the other hand, the sale of brand new older models is set to slow down. Last week, only 25 iPads were sold on the site, down from earlier average numbers, and more than half of them were second-hand.

The prices of brand new iPad 2 devices currently listed on Bob Shop range from R4950 for a 16GB model to about R8000 for a model with 64GB, 3G and Wi-Fi. In second-hand version, the same models are priced from R3500 and up to R7000 respectively.

We will probably see a further decrease in the pricing of both new and second-hand units, which means that late adopters now have a chance to own an iPad 2 at a lower price, says the Bob Shop CEO.

Jaco Jonker also warns consumers to be cautious when buying the third generation iPad:

"As always when something widely coveted is about to hit the market, we at Bob Shop will increase our vigilance. We also advise buyers to exercise due caution, to check the seller's past performance and ratings on Bob Shop and to carefully read the item description, especially noting the expected delivery time.

"In any case", he adds, "it seems that this time consumers should not be in a hurry to put their hands on the first crop. Official channels are promising to get iPad 3 to South Africa within days from the international launch. If that does happen, buyers can look forward to somewhat better pricing on Bob Shop".