NEW iPAD IS A SELL-OUT

THE latest hi-tech gadget to hit the shelves at a Cheltenham store sold out within minutes.

More than 50 people queued up outside Western Computer at Beechwood Shopping Centre to get their hands on the iPad 2. Staff said they were cleaned out of the tablet computers within 80 minutes.

Assistant manager Adam Rayton said: "It was really busy, but that's what we expected. We are hoping to have more within the next few weeks."

First in line was Nicole Martin, pictured right, a nurse from Pittville, who queued from 10am.

The 36-year-old said: "I look after a girl who suffered serious injuries in a car crash and is now confined to her bed. The iPad 2 will help her do things she otherwise wouldn't be able to like drawing, taking photos and listening to music. It will make a real difference."

The iPad 2 is thinner and lighter than the original version, and has a range of new features, including high definition cameras on both front and back. It costs £399.

Leon Goodenough, 13, from Benhall, saved up his birthday and Christmas money to pay for the gadget.

"I've been looking forward to getting it for ages," he said. "It's the best thing out there at the moment and it's great for games. I'm looking forward to using it this weekend."

Store manager Davey Doobie said: We had a fantastic day. The feed back we had from customers was great, we looked after them with cold bottled water and gave them our chairs to sit on. Some people started queuing up at 10am so we wanted to make there stay as comfortable as possible. We had a steady flow of twitter updates posted throughout the day, it proved to be a very handy tool and we gained more followers on the day too.

"Almost all customers got the iPad 2 they wanted and we had very few disappointed people in the line. I think everyone understood the situation and all of the staff acted in the best possible way to reassure those people who would not be able to walk away with this fantastic product."