How to get a UK iPad early

Desperate to get your hands on Apple's iPad? Frustrated by the international launch date delay? Then let Us help you fill that tech hole with our guide to buying an iPad.

Buy one and have it shipped overSounds simple enough, but Apple ain't no fools. You'll need a US credit card and a US address to ship it to, neither of which the average Englander has.

Fortunately a number of sites will let you ship products direct to them, before they're bundled up and forwarded to your actual address in the UK. Mind you it's not a cheap way of doing things, and after scouring the net for the shipping weight and size of delivered iPads -- which for your reference are approx. 1.54 kg and 29cm x 25cm x 11cm -- our designated carrier, BundleBox.com, returned a total cost of £108.11 to get the must have iPad to your door. That does, however, include VAT and import duties and the company's own fee but there is still the small problem of procuring a US credit card.

If you ask nicely Bundlebox will take care of this purchasing of an iPad for you, but if you're a hands on sort of person try USunlocked.com, which gives you a virtual pre-paid debit card for payments on US websites.

EbayWhere would we be without eBay? Most of us will probably be a hell of a lot richer, and in the case of the iPad that is no different.

Models are exchanging hands at a hefty premium through the auctions, but if you look hard enough there are some reasonably priced Buy It Now options.

We found a 16Gb WiFi iPad being shipped from the US for around £412 (such as this one, but Wired does NOT know or endorse this seller). Watch out though: if a seller labels it incorrectly you're likely to have your shipment delayed while customs send you a hefty bill for the import duty and VAT.

If that sounds a bit too risky, then how about you make someone else shoulder the responsibility? Oneenterprising eBayer had listed a hand delivery option to any major airport in the world, but its $10,000 Buy It Now price probably put buyers off.

Fly to the USFairly obvious: fly over and collect one yourself -- volcanic ash clouds permitting. However, beware as stocks are in short supply and you may find that that whistle-stop 24 hour round trip to the Apple Store ends up with you spending a night in a damp motel and an early morning wait outside the shop.

Lowest bid auctions These aren't the best way to secure an iPad as you're not actually guaranteed to win, but with a bit of luck you could be the proud owner of the world's cheapest iPad, with some sites such as Swoopo.co.uk claiming to have sold iPads for as little as £24.37.

That sounds like a bargain, but factor in delivery and the "bidding price" charged by the site, not to mention the fear of not actually winning, and it hardly seems worth it.

Make a friend buy you oneNo, not as a present -- although if you're in the giving spirit I'd quick like one, thanks -- but get a friend living in the US, or just visiting, to run down to the Apple store and grab you an iPad. Sounds simple; because it is.

BriberyWe're not entirely sure who you'd bribe to get one, but you could start off with someone who actually works at Apple. Or us, since we have a couple.

Failing that, and in the absence of a friend living in America, how about bribing a stranger to go and buy one for you? Run a search for people on Twitter who've tweeted that they're about to fly to the UK and drop them a message asking for an iPad. In return for a ride in your Ferrari (or Hyundai), free accommodation during their stay, or a slap up meal at Beefeater you might just get lucky.

If that doesn't win them over, how about you offer them a free iPad? Get them to buy an extra iPad for themselves and when they bring it, pay them for two.

As you can see, it's not going to be easy joining the iPad club ahead of its UK launch, but if you can think of any other sneaky ways then let us know in the comments.