Want to know just how big the iPad 3 will be?

Hint: It is going to be huge! Almost a third of people polled said they're planning on buying one

What's more exciting than March madness this month? By the looks of it, Apple's unveiling of its newest tablet - the iPad 3, which is being released next week. 

A report released today by InMobi, entitled iPad 3 and the Mobile Market, tried to gauge just how many people would be buying the iPad 3 when it is finally released. Based on its finding, Apple is going to have a lot to be smiling about.

In a poll consisting of 689 people, 29% were planning on buying an iPad 3, and 65% of those people would also consider buying an iPad or iPad 2 at a lower price, according to inMobi, the world's largest independent mobile ad network. More than half, or 54%, of the people who said they would buy an iPad 3 don't yet own a tablet, so even if sales fall short of predictions, it will still lead to increased iPad sales, and a bigger share for the overall market for Apple. 

Price seems be the only concern for Apple. Half said they would buy the iPad 3 if it were over $500, but if the price goes over $599, 57% of those surveyed said they would buy an older model that was cheaper.

The report comes a day after Pew Internet reported that, for the first time, more Americans now owned a Smartphone than those whose who owned regular phones, indicating that we are quickly moving toward a society dependant on faster, mobile computers. Tellingly, the most important feature for people who want to buy the iPad 3, more than a longer lasting battery or better connectivity, is speed.

Tablet sales are forecasted to hit 40 million by next year. PC sales increased by only 3.8% last year, and while sales are expected to increase over 10% this coming year, that is still a decrease from previous projections of over 12%. While tablets still have a way to go before fully overcoming PC sales, that is definitely the way it is trending, 

While Apple's global share of the market has gone down from nearly 100% in the third quarter of 2010, due to increased competition from companies like Samsung, it still held over 50% by the fourth quarter of last year.

In what must be the best news of all, according to InMobi's study, 44% of the people surveyed would not even consider another tablet brand instead of the iPad. For the other 56% surveryed who would buy another brand, second place went to the Samsung Galaxy, with 27% saying they might consider buying it. Only 14% said they would buy a Kindle.

Apple got out in front with the iPad, and now they seem to have cornered the market on what will no doubt be the future of technology.

The launch for the iPad 3 will be held on March 7.