Apple readies second-generation iPad

March Madness could take on a whole new meaning if Apple gives the world another iPad next week.

Apple Inc. is expected to unveil the second generation of its wildly successful media tablet, widening its head start against competitors just starting to sell their first tablet computers.

The Cupertino, Calif.-based company e-mailed invitations to a media event in San Francisco yesterday that show a calendar page with the corner peeling away to reveal an iPad underneath. The large "2" on the calendar page denotes the event's March 2 date, but is also a hint that Apple is about to announce the follow-up to the original iPad.

Key features of the current model:

It's about the size of a large book and has been likened to an overgrown iPhone or iPod Touch.

It has a bigger screen that makes reading e-mails, surfing the Web and watching movies easier on the eyes.

With a starting price of $499, it's less expensive than many computers and, at 1.5 pounds, it also weighs less.

Apple sold more than 15 million iPads in its first nine months on sale, including 7.3 million to holiday shoppers during the October-December quarter - about a million more for the quarter than analysts were expecting.

As usual, Apple has not said anything about the highly anticipated next version of the iPad, leaving rumors to swirl unchecked online.