"2 weeks is not that bad, considering the short pre-ordering period (meaning Apple will have to cope with orders fast).   Question is: still tied with SoftBank? My guess is yes.   Btw, I've linked to this discussion in my iPad 2 in…"

"Oh, I don't know. I haven't really thought it through. And we don't know the prices in Japan yet. I should say instead I know from experience I don't need a two year 3G commitment for my iPad. So based on that I'll look…"

"What I want to know is if softbank is going to pull the same crap this time as they did last time with the iPad launch.  Japan was the only country - that I know of - that made you go into the store to order one.  And that was a mess as…"

"Yeah, but I have a feeling Softbank may start cracking down on swapping microsims in the next year or so. Now that many of us have an iPhone 4 and an iPad, it's too easy to cancel or not continue service on one and just swap sims."

"Just out of curiosity - why?  What is the difference between the iPad you would buy here and the one you would buy in the US.  Neither are sim locked.  I have not checked out the exact prices yet but I imagine that, after shipping,…"

"It wouldn't change my mind because I have the "pre-paid" version and never use the 3G on my current iPad anyway, except when traveling in the U.S. So it would be a huge waste of money to lock myself into a two-year 3G contract,…"

"Yes, but what if Softbank subsidizes iPad2 cost?  Would that change your mind?   If they do what they did for the iPhone4, that would mean you could simply continue your Softbank data plan for 2 more years, cash out your iPad hardware…"

"If I get an iPad 2 I would buy it from the U.S. and use my current SoftBank microSIM if I wanted 3G service. Then sell my iPad on the open market.   doug  "

"This iPad2 looks fantastic- Thinner than an iPhone4?  Are you kidding me?     However, I do think the Smart Cover looks like those light blue plastic lids we use to cover our bathtubs- I think Apple Japan has to change the color used…"

"you can use tiny umbrella to block the baseband upgrade on the iPhone 4 while upgrading to iOS 4.1."

"so with flets hikari I am ineligible?"

"ketahi, i am logged in to mysoftbank on my iphone 4 but i dont see any information about requesting a min-cell on this page. can you be a little more descriptive where to find this? also, i have been reading that softbank gives people free ADSL…"

"No, warranty service for iPhones is country-specific. There is no international warranty."

"yes, you must have the phone shipped to an address in the same country of the store you are buying from. i have and am using and will continue to use (well my wife will) our JP market Softbank iPhone 4. However when I bought the Softbank iPhone 4,…"