Warning over 'fake' iPad2 tablets for sale on eBay

As the world waits for the release of the Apple iPad2, eBay users are being offered "pre-released" versions of the product.

Given that Apple has not confirmed or denied the release of the iPad2, the eBay auction site is listing "Pre-Sale Brand New Factory Sealed Apple iPad2", which experts say are probably fake.

Clive Longbottom, service director at Quocirca, warned users that these devices were probably fakes: "It's a like the iPhone4, where the copies were adequate, but a users could not download from iTunes, They are probably a cheap copy. Anyone who falls for this will be parting with a lot of money."

With no details of the iPad2  officially released, the internet is rife with rumours of the imminent launch, expected on Wednesday. Apple is expected to add a camera to the iPad2, slim down the device's casing and make improvements to its graphics chips and internal storage, according to the Financial Times.

According to one eBay seller, the iPad2 is based on a carbon fibre shell with a seven-inch display, offers RFID and near-field communications functionality and an automatic hibernation mode.