At least 200,000 US residents will get their hands on Apple's new iPad on Saturday, convinced that, without ever having held one, the mouseless computer is right for them.

Meanwhile, a much bigger group, made up of Apple's investors, is already sure it will like the new device even more.

Spurred in part by iPad anticipation, shareholder enthusiasm has more than doubled Apple's market capitalisation in the past year, driving it past Google and Walmart. At $214bn, Apple is worth more than every US company but ExxonMobile and Microsoft.

Apple is trading at 23 times its profit from the past 12 months, which does not include iPad sales - higher than most companies, certainly, but well below Google's price-to-earnings ratio of 28.

All but six of the 32 analysts surveyed by Thomson/First Call rate Apple "buy" or "strong buy" and many have the stock as their top pick in technology, though they differ on how well the iPad will fare.