A new survey suggests that nearly half of iPad owners are eager for another opportunity to throw $100 bills at Apple. Conducted by PriceGrabber, the poll shows that 42% of iPad owners intend to purchase Cupertino's latest slate.
Of that 42%, 39% plan to buy an iPad 3 by the end of 2012, 30% want to upgrade their device within a year, 20% said they'd pony up in the first month of the iPad 3's arrival, and 11% intend to upgrade during the launch week.
It's worth noting that we're not talking about a huge sample here. The survey included 1,829 US Web shoppers. Only 22% of the participants own a tablet and 52% of those folks have an iPad (again, 42% of that 52% want an iPad 3).
If our math is right, that essentially breaks down to 88 people who plan to purchase an iPad 3 – not as impressive as all the percentages would have you believe. Still, there's no doubting Apple's ability to sell gobs of gadgets.
Although Apple hasn't shared official details yet, respondents have high expectations. When asked what features were most important to them in considering an iPad 3 purchase, 54% of current tablet owners said they want a cheaper option – a possibility as Apple positions itself against Amazon's Kindle Fire. Some 53% want a better battery, 49% desire an SD card slot, 44% hope for an improved camera with flash, 44% want a new A6 SoC, and 41% are looking for an HDMI port.