Digital ebook Reader , iPad 2 in the wings

Apple Inc (AAPL.O) is hosting a media event next week to show off the next-generation of the iPad, as it prepares to take Digital ebook Reader on new rivals in the fast-growing tablet market.

Apple will host the March 2 gathering at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in San Francisco, the same venue where Apple unveiled the original iPad in January 2010.The characteristically succinct invitation featured an image of a 7 inch ebook readercalendar page with a giant "2" emblazoned in the center, peeled back just slightly to reveal the familiar form of an iPad. The invite teased, "Come see what 2011 will be the year of."

Given the sheer crush of competing tablets coming on the market, new and best gadgets Apple will face a bigger challenge to wow consumers with the new iPad, which is expected to go on sale in April.The iPad has completely dominated the nascent tablet wholesale computer accessories market, but literally dozens of new color ebook readerdevices are set to launch this year, so Apple will have to prove it can stay one step ahead of its pursuers.Apple sold nearly 15 million iPads last year, when it had the market largely to itself. Analysts expect the company to at least double that figure this year, as the overall market explodes to more than 50 million units.Industry watchers expect Apple to show off a thinner, lighter and faster version of the 10-inch touchscreen tablet, and also add a front-facing camera to enable video chatting using the company's FaceTime application.

With the original iPad priced starting at $499, investors will also be watching to see if Apple plans to creep farther down the price E-ink ebook readerchain to broaden the iPad's appeal.Apple's rivals has so far been unable to match the iPad on price. But Apple has pinched its own gross margins by pricing the tablet lower than its serious competitors.