Johannesburg - Apple's iPad tablet computer has been officially - but exclusively - released in United States stores with South Africa is expected to receive the iPad later this year.
Some impatient South Africans will, however, pay no heed to the small issue of authenticity and will simply themselves import their devices through friends or suppliers in the US.
The process by which products are imported and sold through channels not approved or authorised by the manufacturer is known as the "grey" import market.
If someone in South Africa (other than the authorised distributors, Core and Vodacom, in the case of the iPhone) imports an iPad today, this is, according to Arthur Goldstuck, MD of research and consultancy group World Wide Worx, a grey import.
The iPad is the latest gimmick, but there are innumerable examples of grey products in the form of cameras, flat-screen television sets, navigation instruments and the like.
According to Goldstuck these types of products are often cheaper than they would have been if bought through an official dealer. No, he assures us, grey products are not illegal.
Have2Have is a supplier already shipping iPad devices to South Africa. But its MD, Simon Swanich, said that the group is not a "grey importer".
The rationale is that Swanich understands that not everyone is fortunate enough to have friends overseas who can buy products that are unavailable locally.
One might, therefore, regard Have2Have as a virtual shopping centre. According to him all the items on his company's website are sold by the stores listed.
Have2Have buys iPad devices from an authorised retailer in the US, Swanich said. For its part, Have2Have regards itself as a service provider, and holds no stock.
It's the stores that are responsible for the accuracy of the information, the determination of the prices and for offering product support and guarantees.
South African legislation permits this practice in the interest of the consumer who should understand that these products are authentic and neither inferior nor different.
The product itself is not grey, he says. The term "grey" refers, rather, to the process of getting the item into South Africa.
In his view, consumers turn to the grey market for three reasons: because the manufacturer possibly does not have a local representative or agent; because the product may not be available locally; and because a better price is available.
