iPhones in China have been plagued by sell outs, scalpers, and censored apps. Just when it seems like it can’t get any worse reports are circulating that Chinese customs are levying duties on iPhones brought into the mainland via the Hong Kong border crossings.

Last week we blogged about the launch of the iPad and this weekend the much anticipated iPhone4 hits stores in mainland China. Expect long lines and big crowds buying on the release date this Saturday, September 25. To add to the buzz, Beijing has a whole new Apple Store opening the same day in Xidan’s Joy City.

Watch out Apple. The iPad knockoffs keep rolling out in China, and this time they’re not afraid to hide it. With the name aPad, the makers know exactly what they’re doing (remember when the Great Long Brother Industrial Co., makers of the P88, tried to sue Apple for allegedly stealing the “iPad” concept?). Unlike most Chinese clones of Apple products, the aPad may actually be worthwhile, especially given the iPad still hasn’t been officially released in mainland China. Not that we condone the purchase of knock-offs.

Recent reports on Beijing seem to raise more questions than they answer: Is there really a shortage of good-looking men? What date is the iPad 2 arriving? Do we really need another massive mall? And have we finally gotten closure on a 2011 Forbidden City robbery?

The iPad 3 is coming – eventually. Apple CEO Tim Cook finally unveiled its new features on Wednesday, showing off a higher-resolution screen, ultrafast 4G and Retina display, along with an update to the Apple TV box. Just as the iPhone 4S came out to ambivalent media assessment but saw customers thronging Apple stores worldwide on its release date, the iPad is expected to stir another craze. Pre-orders opened in the US yesterday, and it will officially go on sale on March 16th in the US, Canada, Japan, Hong Kong and the UK, amongst others while it will be released on March 23rd in another batch of 26 countries. Surprisingly, this new made-in-China Apple product had no word on its release date in the mainland, Apple’s second largest market by revenue. Why might that be? Agenda wraps up a few theories.

Check out agendabeijing.com for more on the possible causes behind the iPad delay.