Last week, Apple sent out invitations for an event taking place on October 23. The company didn't say what it has in store for the gathering, but it's widely expected that the iPad mini will be making its debut there. Now that we've got an idea of when the smaller iPad will be making its debut, though, many folks are wondering when the thing will actually launch. There's been nothing concrete on that front so far, but a number of reports are pointing toward November 2 as a possible date. Today TechCrunch reports that the iPad mini will hit stores on that day, which the site says it's heard from a source that's "previously proven reliable with unreleased Apple info."

Claims of a November 2 launch for the iPad mini also surfaced earlier this week from GeekyGadgets, which allegedly got its information from a tipster that's "close to a major U.K. retailer." The same source is said to have provided the site with the correct iPhone 5 release date in the past. Finally, 9to5Mac recently sent out a tweet saying that it's also heard whispers of a November 2 release for Apple's new shrunken iPad, but it's been unable to get confirmation of the date so far.

While there's been no hard evidence to support the rumors of a November 2 iPad mini launch quite yet, a debut on that date does seem to make sense. Apple has been known to release new products on Fridays, with the new iPad arriving on March 16 and the iPhone 5 hitting stores on September 21. Those devices also landed on store shelves a little over a week after first being introduced by Apple, which is exactly what the timeframe for the iPad mini would be if it debuts on October 23 and then hits stores on November 2. Unfortunately for prospective buyers, the iPad mini's price tag is still a mystery, but hey, at least now we've got an idea of how much time you've got left to save up some cash for one, right?

Via TechCrunch, GeekyGadgets, @9to5Mac