Apple continues its domination of the tablet market with the release of the new iPad on Friday.

Only announced last week at Apple’s iPad event, the new iPad is already promising to be a game changer. The device will be available at Apple stores and the Apple online store at 8 a.m. local time in the US, Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore, Switzerland and the UK. Not one to leave out US territories, Apple will be launching the device on the same day in Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands.

As we extensively covered with the announcement of the new iPad last week, the new iPad features a new and impressive Retina display, and the new A5X chip with quad core graphics that will power the next generation of iPad gaming. It also features a 5 megapixel iSight camera that can capture beautiful photos and 1080p HD video. More impressive is that it retains the 10-hour battery life of its predecessor.

The new iPad also supports 4G LTE for amazingly fast network speeds over mobile connections. This functionality is only available in the US and Canada. Everywhere else will have to keep on using 3G.

As far as pricing is concerned, prospective buyers will have to pony up $499 for the 16GB Wi-Fi model, $599 for the 32GB model and $699 for the 64GB model. If you want speedy 4G LTE support, expect to spend a whole lot more with the 16GB model going for $629, the 32GB modle going for $729 and the 64GB model going for $829.

If you have some kind of aversion to the Apple store, online or brick and mortar, you will be able to obtain the new iPad from select Apple retailers like Best Buy, Radio Shack, Sam’s Club, Target and Walmart.

With the launch of the new iPad, the iPad 2 is dropping in price to $399 for the base model. This should make it slightly more affordable for more people to get into tablet computing.

The rest of the developed world (i.e. rest of Europe and Mexico) will be able to get their mits on the new iPad starting on March 23.

On a side note, if you plan on pre-ordering from the Apple online store, just know that the initial allotment is sold out. You’re going to have to wait till March 19 if you want to get your hands on it. Of course, you could always try braving the lines at traditional retail stores on Friday.

If you want to know more about the new iPad, check out previous coverage over the last week.