Apple fans will soon be able to buy its iPad 3G tablets in the domestic market because the United States company has received regulatory approval to sell them, sources said Monday.

Apple presently sells the Wi-Fi-only iPad in the domestic market while the 3G-equipped iPad is also available in overseas markets. The 3G iPad model allows users to access the Internet in any place that has a 3G network in China which has limited Wi-Fi network coverage.

The 3G iPad is expected to cost from 5,000 yuan (US$757) including tax, 20 percent higher than the Wi-Fi-only model, industry officials said.

An Apple device that supports the 3G mobile technology standard WCDMA has been approved by the State Radio Regulatory Center, a body under the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the center said on its website on December 29.

Apple and China Unicom declined to comment.

But a China Unicom official, who didn't want to be identified, told Shanghai Daily that the model would debut "in the first quarter."

China Unicom is the country's No. 2 telco and operates a national 3G WCDMA network. It's also the exclusive distributor of the iPhone in China, which debuted domestically last September.

A batch of 3G-capable tablet personal computers will debut in China this year.