By Herman Lai, posted Sep 5, 2011 at 8:18 AM, 2,235 views,

iPad 2 Smugglers Will Soon Stop Smuggling 3G iPads From Hong Kong [Update]

For those Chinese Apple fanboys who are waiting for the 3G version of iPad 2 to be officially available in China Apple stores, here’s a piece of good news for you. Chinese tech site Sina Tech reported that Apple’s official China site has “accidentally” leaked the official price for 3G iPad 2, check out the price tags after the break.

UPDATE (Sina):

The screenshot above showing China’s Ministry of Industry Technology (MIIT) had approved a W-CDMA 3G device for Apple on August 29. Penn-Olson indicated the product ID number is the same as the AT&T 3G iPad 2. Since W-CDMA 3G network is only provided by China Unicom, the device is very likely to reveal by Unicom first.

The screenshot above was found when searching “3G iPad 2″ on Apple’s official China site:

WiFi+3G iPad 2(16GB) White/Black — RMB 4,688
WiFi+3G iPad 2(32GB) White/Black — RMB 5,488
WiFi+3G iPad 2(64GB) White/Black — RMB 6,288

Under the price, it noted 2-3 days for shipping but “Temporarily not available”. It is very likely to have an official announcement of the 3G iPad 2 availability shortly.

Price Comparison [3G iPad 2]

Price in Hong Kong (converted to RMB):

WiFi+3G iPad 2(16GB) White/Black — RMB 3,910
WiFi+3G iPad 2(32GB) White/Black — RMB 4,550
WiFi+3G iPad 2(64GB) White/Black — RMB 5,190

Price in United States (converted to RMB):

WiFi+3G iPad 2(16GB) White/Black — RMB 4,300
WiFi+3G iPad 2(32GB) White/Black — RMB 4,950
WiFi+3G iPad 2(64GB) White/Black — RMB 5,840

Basically, purchasing any Apple products in China will cost you more, since the difference in price between things in Hong Kong and Mainland China is more from the 17% value added tax than from currency differences, as both currencies are tied tightly to the US Dollar. And most importantly, Hong Kong has no sales tax. That’s the reason why we are always seeing people smuggling iPads from Hong Kong to China. However, there’s a risk for smuggling iPads. The customs will charge you tax if you are found bringing along a brand new iPad. So, some iPad smugglers will not take the risk, and they will just get the stocks from China Apple stores.

Source: Sina Tech via Penn Olson