ChangeWave Research released the results of a new consumer survey on Thursday that shows demand for the iPad is high, and that the device is already having a major impact on the eBook Reader (e-Reader) market. Among other things, ChangeWave found that more iPad users are reading magazines and newspapers on their devices than are owners of other e-Readers.

The survey was conducted among 3,174 consumers with the purpose of measuring future demand for the iPad. The company then conducted a second survey of 153 people who already owned an iPad to find out what they thought of the device and how they were using it.

Looking ahead to consumer interest in buying iPads in the future, ChangeWave found that 7% of respondents said they were “Very Likely” to buy an iPad, while another 13% said they were “Somewhat Likely” to do so.

Just after the device was announced by Apple in February, the company asked respondents the same question — at that time, 4% of respondents said they were “Very Likely” to buy one and 9% said they were “Somewhat Likely.” That represents a major increase in demand since the device actually shipped in April.

E-Readers

ChangeWave said that one of the purposes of its latest survey was to gauge how much of an effect iPad has had on the e-Reader market. Out of the original survey respondents, 245 of them identified themselves as currently owning an e-Reader. Of those participants, 62% said their e-Reader was a Kindle, and 16% said they had an iPad.

While that leaves Kindle firmly in the driver’s seat of the e-Reader market, it’s somewhat remarkable that Apple could claim 16% of this market in only a few weeks of iPad availability.

What was more interesting, however, was the finding that iPad owners are reading newspapers and magazines on their devices at much higher rates than owners of Kindle and other e-Reader devices were.

“Importantly,” the company said “fully half of iPad e-Readers (50%) say they read Newspapers on their tablet device compared to just 14% of all other e-Reader owners. Likewise, 38% of iPad e-Readers say they read Magazines compared to 11% of all other e-Reader owners.”

If those kinds of numbers hold up, it would suggest that Apple was correct about being able to offer a better experience in reading such periodicals on the iPad, and it could be a shot in the arm for what it is a struggling industry.

Happiness Is a Warm iPad

Finally, ChangeWave also asked iPad owners about their overall experience using the device. The survey found that 74% of users were “Very Satisfied,” while 17% were “Somewhat Satisfied.” That represents 91% of iPad owners in the happy camp, and 8% of the remaining users said “Don’t Know,” leaving 2% “Somewhat” or “Very Unsatisfied” (there was an even split for those two answers.)

ChangeWave noted in its report, “The iPad ratings are nearly identical to the highest rated Smart Phone among consumers — the Apple iPhone. But we note that Apple has now reached these nosebleed levels with a brand new product.”