As expected, the third wave of Retina-grade new iPads are hitting international markets today, including South Korea, Brunei, Croatia, Cyprus, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Malaysia, Panama, St Maarten, Uruguay and Venezuela. The last batch was on March 23, which covered most of Europe, while the initial rollout included select major markets in North America, Europe, and Asia. The final wave will be next week, April 27, when the new iPad hits Colombia, Estonia, India, Israel, Latvia, Lithuania, Montenegro, South Africa and Thailand.

Apple has been beating Samsung on their Korean home turf with the iPad 2 alone, so it's a safe assumption that the new iPad will further cement iOS dominance there. I have the sneaking suspicion that  the new iPad will do equally well elsewhere in the world. I feel a little bad for those who have had to wait so long to get their mitts on one, but no doubt the wait is creating a fair bit of excitement for launch day. Any international readers out there really itching to get a new iPad? Have any of you resorted to ordering one from abroad?

If you get your new iPad today, jump into our iPad 3 Forum and give us your review!

This Friday, April 20, Apple will be releasing the new iPad in Brunei, Croatia, Cyprus, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Malaysia, Panama, South Korea, St Maarten, Uruguay and Venezuela. Next Friday, April 27, Apple will be adding Colombia, Estonia, India, Israel, Latvia, Lithuania, Montenegro, South Africa and Thailand to the list as well. That's a total of 22 new countries.

The new iPad first launched on March 16 in the U.S., Australia, Canada, the U.K. and 8 other regions, and on March 25 in Italy, Spain, Ireland, Mexico, and 21 other regions

While the original iPad and iPad 2 were US-only for a month and had slow international rollouts, often attributed to constraints in screen supplies, the new iPad's release schedule has been incredibly aggressive, especially considering it requires Retina display panels.

If you're in one of the regions getting the new iPad over the next two weeks let us know -- are you buying one, did you buy one already in another region, or are you still waiting for now?

Full press release below.

New iPad Arrives in South Korea & 11 Additional Countries This Week

CUPERTINO, California―April 16, 2012―Apple® today announced the new iPad®, the third generation of its category defining mobile device, will arrive in South Korea and 11 additional countries on Friday, April 20. The new iPad features a stunning new Retina™ display, Apple’s new A5X chip with quad-core graphics and a 5 megapixel iSight® camera with advanced optics for capturing amazing photos and 1080p HD video. The new iPad still delivers the same all-day 10 hour battery life* while remaining amazingly thin and light.

In addition to South Korea, the new iPad also will be available beginning on Friday, April 20 in Brunei, Croatia, Cyprus, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Malaysia, Panama, St Maarten, Uruguay and Venezuela. Beginning on Friday, April 27, the new iPad will be available in Colombia, Estonia, India, Israel, Latvia, Lithuania, Montenegro, South Africa and Thailand.

The new iPad Wi-Fi models will be available in black or white for a suggested retail price of $499 (US) for the 16GB model, $599 (US) for the 32GB model and $699 (US) for the 64GB model. The iPad Wi-Fi + 4G models will be available for a suggested retail price of $629 (US) for the 16GB model, $729 (US) for the 32GB model and $829 (US) for the 64GB model.** The new iPad will be sold through the Apple Online Store (www.apple.com) and select Apple Authorized Resellers. Additionally, iPad 2 is available at a more affordable price starting at just $399.

Just in case you weren't completely convinced of Apple's dominance in the world of tablets, the iPad has managed to beat out Galaxy Tab sales in Korea, which is Samsung's home turf. 1 million iPads have been sold in the region since November 2010, claiming 70 - 80% of the overall Korean tablet market. Meanwhile, electronics reseller Gazelle is reporting that Amazon's Kindle devices deprecate in value about 22% in faster than the iPad. It's a little unfair to compare the iPad to simple e-book readers; the real test for the Kindle brand will be how well the Amazon Kindle Fire will fare in the long haul.

It's still too early to see how well the Kindle Fire will do in the reseller market, but it's hard to imagine the thing going for much cheaper than the $200 it retails for. Gazelle's CEO explains that frequent price drops and releases of multiple models helps to accelerate reduced prices on Android devices. The iPhone, by contrast, is still worth 60% of its value after being available for a year, while top-of-the-line Android handsets are only worth 40% of their original price.

For all of the squabbling that Samsung and Apple do around the world, beating a manufacturer in their own country is a huge symbolic victory. Of course, Samsung still has a gigantic lead in a number of other industries, such as television, but even that might not last if Apple decides to make an iTV. During the iPad 2 launch in the spring Korean retailers quickly sold out, even though about two-thirds of the models being sold were Wi-Fi-only. Even as a homegrown company, I have trouble imagining Samsung building up that much excitement around their next tablet.

As for the resale value, that's good news for those who frequently upgrade, but not so great for those getting into the game initially. The folks at Gazelle warned that it's often not worth paying an extra $100 or $200 for extra storage capacity, if your main concern is selling the device later on. It sure would be nice if we could get a microSD memory card slot on these things, then memory denominations would be significantly less of an issue.

In any case, are any original iPad owners out there thinking of upgrading soon, or does this news of stable resale value keep you happy with your purchase?

Source: AppleInsider, CNN

Apple's iPhone 4S is now available factory unlocked in the U.S. from Apple.com. Why it took until November when countries like Canada and the UK got unlocked models at launch, who knows? But if you've been waiting to go contract and SIM-lock free, now's your chance! (Reminder: Only the GSM/AT&T version is available unlocked, not the CDMA/Verizon/Sprint version).

Apple has also launched the iPhone 4S in 13 more countries, namely Albania, Armenia, Bulgaria, El Salvador, Greece, Guatemala, Hong Kong, Malta, Montenegro, New Zealand, Panama, Poland, Portugal, Romania and South Korea.

If you grabbed a new iPhone 4S today, let us know where and which model you got! And if you need more information to help you decide and get up to speed, check out:

iPhone 4S Features

• iPhone 4S review
• iOS 5 for iPhone and iPad walkthrough

iPhone 4S Buyers Guide

• Should you get an iPhone 4S?
• Spec Wars: iPhone 4S vs. Samsung Galaxy S II vs. BlackBerry Bold 9900 vs. HTC Titan vs. Pre3
• iPhone 4S, iPhone 4, or iPhone 3GS: Which should you get?
• AT&T vs. Verizon vs. Sprint: Which iPhone 4S should you choose?
• Verizon and Sprint iPhone 4S and the limitations of CDMA
• 16GB, 32GB, or 64GB: Which iPhone 4S capacity should you get?
• Black or white: Which iPhone 4S color should you choose?
• How to sell your old iPhone before upgrading to the iPhone 4S

iPhone 4 Starters Guide

• iPhone 4S glossary
• How to setup your new iPhone 4S
• How to transfer your data over from your old iPhone to your new iPhone 4S
• How to transfer your data over from your old Android, BlackBerry, webOS or Windows Phone to your new iPhone
• iPhone 4S tips and how-tos
• iPhone Live! podcasts (with video!)

iPhone 4S apps

• iPhone 4S apps
• TiPb Top 5s

iPhone 4S accessories

• TiPb iPhone 4S Accessory Store
• Amazon iPhone 4S Accessories

iPhone 4S help

• iPhone 4S tips and how-to
• iPhone 4S forum

Apple will be revising their iPhone warranty and return policy in South Korea due to customers that were unhappy about their current return policy. If a customer receives a defective device they will be able to exchange it for a brand new device instead of a refurbished one within 1 month of the original purchase date.

Korean iPhone customers are not happy about Apple replacing defective devices with refurbished ones that have used parts in them when the actual warranty states they are entitled to a refund, new device, or free repair. When Apple spokesperson Steve Park was asked about the new warranty policy in South Korea he declined to comment.

I've personally never had any issues with refurbished iPhones from Apple. I've actually had better luck with them than brand new out of the box units. I've actually heard that refurbished units undergo a more rigorous testing cycle than brand new units. Not sure how much truth there is to that but I seldom have issues.

When Apple exchanges your products are you ok with receiving refurbished units? Have you had issues with them?

Bloomberg

South Korean carrier SK Telecom announced yesterday that it will begin offering the iPhone 4 on March 16th, further expanding the reach Apple has made in Korea and breaking the exclusivity KT Telecom previously held for the iPhone.

"SK Telecom is proud to offer iPhone 4 on the nation's top network," said So Jin-Woo, President of Platform Business and Co-CEO of SK Telecom. "Our customers will benefit from flexible tariff plans tailored to their unique usage needs along with a high level of customer care."

Eager iPhone buyers can pre-register starting today from their website or at one of 1,500 authorized SK Telecom retail outlets. Although SK Telecom runs both CDMA and HSPA networks they have announced the iPhone 4 will function under their HSPA infrastructure.

Any readers in Korea planning on picking up an iPhone 4 on March 16th? Let us know in the comments!

[SK Telecom]

Apple's iPad launched in 11 more countries today, namely Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, Hungary, Malaysia, Norway, Poland, Portugal, South Korea, Sweden, and Taiwan. While many of you snuck them out of the US or other countries early on, many more are just getting them for the first time. Did you get a new iPad today, are you planning on getting one over the holidays? Let us know in the comments!

Either way, if you're wondering what to do after you get your shiny new iPad just keep reading after the break for TiPb's advice on getting updated, apps, accessories, tips, and help!

[List of countries via MacRumors, thanks Jarl-otto for the picture!]

• Get updated: Chances are your new iPad came with iOS 4.2.1 but just in case the shipments went out early and you got iOS 3.2 instead, make sure you plug it into iTunes see if there's an iOS 4.2.1 software update waiting for you. Download it and let iTunes do its thing. We don't recommend using an iPhone or iPod backup to restore from -- it can make things glitchy. Set it up as new iPad now and save yourself some headaches later. (And hey, if you like tips like this, check out our tips section for more!)

• Get up to speed. Our iOS 4.2 for iPad walkthrough is a must-read. If you're in a rush and just want to get started now, now, now, each walkthrough begins with an "everything you need to know in 10 minutes video" so click, watch, and get going!

• Get apps and games. There are 10s of thousands of iPad specific apps in the iTunes App Store and you can also run iPhone apps in pixel-double mode. We're keeping track of them in our Apps section which is full of the latest news and reviews.

• Get accessories. Every Apple device looks the same and every Apple Store sells the same stuff. If you're wanting something different -- a splash of color, a bit of style, a new look, check out our accessory reviews for all the pros, cons, and ratings.

• Get talking. If you just want to talk about your new iPad and all those apps and accessories, or if you need help getting started (or to trouble-shoot bugs), or advice and recommendations, we have the best community on the web waiting for you (yes, you!): TiPb Forums. We've even got a Jailbreak Forum if you're curious and want to more about taking your iPhone into expert mode.

Still not enough? Check out the other posts. We've got contests and give-aways, polls and award votes, bug fixes and how tos, and much, much more. Bookmark TiPb now and come back often, we want to hear from you!

Pre-orders for Apple's iPhone, set to debut in South Korea Saturday, have already hit 53,000 on carrier KT Corp. With a market of over 400,000 smartphone users and 47 million handset holders in general, and entrenched local competitors like Samsung and LG, AP quotes the former as saying it thinks Apple will "invigorate" things.

Very likely. The iPhone has apparently already caused SK Telecom, the largest in South Korea, to drop service prices for the Samsung Omnia. Apple has also shown the ability to turn dumbphone users into smart, so growing that 400,000 towards that 47 million is no doubt what KT Corp is really interested in.

If you're picking up an iPhone in South Korea, let us know how it works for you!

[Special thanks to cherryhead25 for previous iPhone in Korea tips!]