According to Mac Rumor sites, whispers heard that Apple is planning on launching the iPad at retail stores on Friday, March 26th at 6 p.m. in similar fashion to the original iPhone launch.

A blog post from the Examiner now makes similar claims of a March 26th launch date with Apple store employees getting training on the device starting on March 10th. The author also claims that the commercials will start beginning on March 15th. Finally, those who camp out for the iPad will receive a “special gift”.

The 3G enabled version of the iPad will follow the Wi-Fi iPad launch by about 30 days, according to Apple.

Sources : MacRumors, AppleInsider, The Extreamer