Apple fans hoping for first glimpse of new iPad

Today sees the much-discussed launch of Apple’s iPad 2, the successor to company’s popular tablet product. Or at least, that’s what Apple is expected to unveil at an event it has organised for this afternoon.

True to form, the company has steadfastly refused to confirm or deny anything other than the fact it “is hosting an event”, fuelling the kind of “self perpetuating speculation” a leading technology journalist has called: “the golden key to its success”.

“Apple almost doesn’t need to do any promotion because we are locked into a cycle. I would imagine there is some managed, strategic leaking of information going on. There are also things that leak from third party manufacturers, such as cases with holes for camera lenses which fuel speculation,” said Martin Bryant, European Editor of technology website The Next Web.

Apple launches are typically hotly-anticipated affairs with hysteria whipping-up among the Californian company’s die-hard advocates often months in advance, despite Apple’s strictly adhered-to policy of refusing to release any details.

Bryant said: “The wall of silence adds to the anticipation and the excitement that surrounds an expected Apple launch. It is self perpetuating: the less the company says, the more people want them to speak and the more the attention to the announcement they eventually make grows.” But he admitted that he did not know how long that kind of interest would last.

He added: “Certainly in terms of technology, a lot of announcements happen without any notice so that all of the bloggers get the information at the same time, creating a burst of excitement as they all rush to cover it at the same time.” An Apple spokesman refused to comment further.