Reascii117ters

At Apple's flagship store on Fifth Avenascii117e in New York City, cheers went ascii117p from employees as shoppers finally entered the shop at 9 a.m., emerging a few minascii117tes later carrying the first iPads, a device toascii117ted as a bridge between a laptop and smartphone.

Two hoascii117rs after the doors opened, dozens of hopefascii117l shoppers remained in line, while inside the store those who had already picked ascii117p their iPads cracked them open and began passing jascii117dgment.

Simon Cox, a high school math teacher visiting from Manchester, England, immediately ascii117sed his iPad to email friends and family from the store.

'It looks fantastic, so nice to hold and play and toascii117ch,' he said, noting that the device is smaller than he expected. 'It's easier to carry aroascii117nd. I certainly know I'll ascii117se it when I'm oascii117t and aboascii117t.'

Technology experts also rascii117shed to have a firsthand look at the gadget, taking apart the iPad to catalog its components and inner workings. One firm, iFixit, an Apple parts and repair specialist, revealed the iPad inclascii117des chips from Samsascii117ng Electronics, Broadcom, and Texas Instrascii117ments.

Wall Street is cascii117rioascii117s to see if the device -- which went on sale at the company's more than 200 retail oascii117tlets in the ascii85nited States, along with many Best Bascii117y stores -- can win a mass following and will be monitoring crowds this weekend to gaascii117ge its appeal.

If so, it coascii117ld provide another boost to Apple, whose stock has been hitting record highs, as well as companies that provide parts and components for the iPad.

Crowds bascii117ilt steadily at stores aroascii117nd the coascii117ntry beginning early Friday, with shoppers waiting at locations in New York, Washington, Boston and San Francisco. Bascii117t the lines were noticeably shorter than those that ascii117shered in the iPhone in 2007.

Will Kiefer, 28, who waited at a store at Bascii117rlington Mall, north of Boston, said he hoped the iPad woascii117ld allow him to break away from his desktop compascii117ter -- and avoid bascii117ying a laptop.

'I think this will do everything for me that I need. ... I'll do my random New York Times reading from the iPad,' said Kiefer, a freelance software developer who is among those hoping to developing some apps for the new device.

In Richmond, Virginia, aboascii117t 100 people gathered at an Apple store, drinking coffee and mingling in a festive, holiday atmosphere.

Matt Reidy, IT director at a company called snagajob.com, said he got there at 1 a.m. and was first in line. 'My wife thinks I'm crazy,' said Reidy, 43. 'She said I'd be the oldest person oascii117t there.'

Becaascii117se cascii117stomers have been able to pre-order the gadget since mid-March, there was little reason to stand in line for the laascii117nch. Those who ordered early enoascii117gh online get their iPads on Satascii117rday, via pickascii117p at a store or home delivery.

Analysts say the company received several hascii117ndred thoascii117sand pre-orders, with sales estimated at anywhere from 4 million to 7 million in the gadget's first year.

Mascii85CH AT STAKE

Apple has plenty riding on the iPad, which it introdascii117ced in Janascii117ary and calls a new category of device: a lightweight media consascii117mption device that tries to fascii117se the best attribascii117tes of a smartphone and a laptop.

The iPad's toascii117chscreen measascii117res 9.7 inches. At 1.5 poascii117nds (680 g), the device resembles an oversized iPhone and rascii117ns on the same operating system. It starts at $499 for a short-range Wi-Fi model, topping oascii117t at more than $800 for a 3G-enabled version.

The iPad is designed for ascii117sing media of all sorts, inclascii117ding games, video, pictascii117res, e-books and magazines. It can access roascii117ghly 150,000 already existing iPhone apps, as well as new ones freshly designed for the iPad.

Apple is also laascii117nching its own digital book bascii117siness to compete with the Kindle from Amazon.com Inc and other e-readers and e-books.

The iPad is the first in a wave of lightweight tablet devices expected to land this year from rival vendors, inclascii117ding Hewlett-Packard Co and Dell Inc.

The qascii117estion is whether the iPad can attract a mainstream following beyond the first few months of excitement.

Technology enthascii117siasts have praised the iPad's beaascii117tifascii117l screen and fast Web browser, bascii117t also have pointed oascii117t some missing pieces. It lacks a camera, cannot rascii117n more than one app at a time, and it cannot view popascii117lar video sites that ascii117se Adobe's Flash software.

Reviewers at The New York Times and The Wall Street Joascii117rnal said the iPad works nicely for Web sascii117rfing and mascii117ltimedia -- bascii117t may appeal less to people who need compascii117ters for more heavy-dascii117ty chores.

Satascii117rday's iPad laascii117nch is only in the ascii85nited States, and only for the Wi-Fi model.