Another day another, Apple-related rumor with a slim thread of substantiating facts. On the plus side we do know that Apple will eventually release a new version of the iPad which will reportedly feature a thinner case, Retina Display, gyroscope and FaceTime support. It’s inevitable.

What isn’t is when said iPad 2 will actually start shipping. If you know Apple you know they are notorious for being tight-lipped about that sort of thing. However, a new report coming out from the folks at DigiTimes says Apple has let iPad manufacturer Foxconn know that initial shipments of the iPad 2 will begin in 100 days. Of course, this report is unconfirmed but it also suggests Apple’s initial order for the new device will be in the 400K to 600K range.

One of the many things that make this report seem less than reliable are those initial numbers. After all Apple sold more than 300K iPads on the first day it was available and went on to sell 1 Million of the shiny tablets in just 28 days. So, an initial order of 600K seems like not enough if they really want to sell a lot of them. Of course, that could just be for the first day with other shipments coming soon afterward.

However many Apple does end up making for the release you can probably expect lines of people waiting to get their hands on the devices. I’m not sure I’ll be one of them as the first gen iPad seems to do the job just fine for me. Still, it will be interesting, as always, to see what happens.

Now if Verizon and Apple could just get together and come out with the damn Verizon iPhone already that would be something I would wait in line for. Are you guys excited for the iPad 2 or are you going to go for a Verizon iPhone instead if it ever arrives? Sound off in the comments.