With Apple's thinner, lighter iPad Air and Retina display-equipped iPad mini out in the open, what's left for Apple to do?
Rumor has it that the Mac maker is working on an even larger iPad, commonly referred to as the "iPad Pro." We've combed through all of the rumors and scuttlebutt to bring you everything we've heard so far about this alleged iPad Pro.
Apple did something interesting with the launch of the latest full-sized iPad (aside from a total hardware revamp): Gave it a new name. The iPad Air alludes to the Cupertino, Calif. company adopting the naming convention of its laptop lines, the MacBook Air and Pro series, for its premiere range of tablets.
Logic would dictate, then, that if Apple were to release an even more sizable iPad, it would be with a professional bent and named the iPad Pro. So, we're looking at 2014 for a newer, bigger iPad entering a product category that has seen little success thus far. Will Apple be the one to legitimize the "professional's tablet?"
What is it? A brand new, larger iPad
When will it release? Either spring or fall 2014, we expect
What will it cost? Likely somewhere between the iPad Air and MacBook Air
iPad Pro release date
The iPad Pro release date will be in 2014, following the iPad Air, which released November 1, 2013. However, there are many rumors regarding the tablet's firm release date.
Unnamed Foxconn sources have told Chinese news site Pad News that Apple plans either a late winter/spring or October 2014 release date. To further confuse things, these sources also claim that Apple is working on two versions of the pro-level slate.
According to Pad News, an iPad Pro with a 2K screen resolution will launch in April 2014, while a 4K iPad Pro will land in October. Kore a Times's sources at a "local first-tier display supplier" report that a single version will launch "sometime early next year" with a nearly UHD resolution.
Even more sources reporting to China's United Daily News, point to another iPad Pro manufacturing partner entirely: Quanta Computer. This company currently helps produce Macs and iPods for Apple, but has yet to build tablets. That said, a brand new manufacturing partner for a brand new device would make an October release more likely.
iPad Pro design
It's doubtful that Apple would do much to change the shape of the iPad Pro in its leap to 12.9 inches, the supposed size most rumors point to. The iPad Air's design was applauded by critics (us included), and early sales projections say that consumers are into it.
It should go without saying that the iPad Pro will inevitably be heavier than the iPad Air. To even meet the iPad Air's feathery 453.6 g at 12.9 inches would be a miracle of modern engineering. That said, not much should stop Apple from meeting the Air's super svelte profile at 7.5 mm thin.
iPad Pro keyboard case
Back before the iPad Air unveiling, former Apple fellow Jamie Ryan< /a> claimed to have heard from current Apple employees that an iPad keyboard case was in the prototyping stage. Ryan went on to say that the keyboard case mimicked the Microsoft Surface Touch Cover.
While it didn't make the latest iPad debut, the iPad Pro would provide the perfect stage for the reveal of Apple's proprietary iPad keyboard case. Ideally, this keyboard would connect physically to the tablet much like the Smart Cover does today, but use Bluetooth for the interaction. Plus, an included keyboard would all but be a must for a professional-grade tablet.
iPad Pro, meet iOS 8
While no rumors spe cifically point to this, it's pretty much a given that the iPad Pro will run the latest iOS. If the pro-level pad launches in October 2014, then this is almost a certainty, as we expect iOS 8 to launch alongside the awaited iPhone 6 in September. However, our friends at MacLife seem to disagree.
iPad Pro storage
This is Apple's chance to differentiate the iPad Pro from the iPad Air even further. Pro fessionals expect lots of space from their computing platform of choice, and while the current 128GB iPad maximum is nice, it might not be enough.
Of course, a 256GB, 12.9-inch iPad would cost a small fortune, but what does the end user care when it's on company dollar?
iPad Pro home button
You can bet the farm that Apple will include its TouchID technology into the iPad Pro home button. Fingerprint security has become all but a must-have feature on enterprise laptops, and this professional iPad will have to meet that standard to gain better traction.
Rumors point to an iPhone 6 prototype having no home button, according to Business Insider. But that seems an unlikely fate for both devices, given that the iDevice form factor is minimalist enough as is.
iPad Pro screen
This is where things get way interesting. First, the Korea Times reported, citing Apple's "local first-tier display supplier," that the 12.9-inch iPad Pro will sport an almost-UHD resolution when it arrives in early 2014.
A later rumor, this time from China's Pad News, pointed to both 2K and 4K resolution iPad Pro models in the works. Per the story, Apple is prototyping a 2K model that would likely exceed that of the Kindle Fire HDX 8.9's 2560 x 1600 (264 pixels per inch) and blow away the iPad Air's 2048 x 1536 (339 ppi).
A 4K iPad Pro would likely come in around 4096 x 3072, beating the 4K TVs available today. Pad News also claims that Apple intends to launch both of these prototypes in 2014, with a 2K version to come in April and a 4K model to launch in October. It seems unlikely to us that Apple would release two models in the same year. No, wait, that's already happened.
iPad Pro processor
Again, this shouldn't be a major shocker. While actual rumors are scarce, the iPad Pro will almost undoubtedly use a beefier version of of Apple's 64-bit A7 chip, if not an all-new A8 processor.
That said, it looks like Apple intends to drop the amount of Samsung-made A8 chips in 2014, thanks to its increasingly intense rivalry with the Korean handset maker. At any rate, expect even further gains in power and battery life from Apple's latest processor.
What will be more interesting to see is whether 64-bit processing has an effect on the iPad Pro's enterprise capabilities.
iPad Pro camera
Not much, if anything, has been said of the iPad Pro's shooter. Given that this tablet will be as large as (although lighter than) a number of laptops, we wouldn't be concerned too much with what kind of photos the tablet can take.
More important will be the iPad Pro's front-facing webcam. Will we see a higher resolution snapper on the front for quality video conferencing? Well, we sure hope so. A truly HD webcam would get heavy travelers more jazzed about an iPad than ever.
iPad Pro eye tracking
To put an even finer point on the importance of the iPad Pro's webcam, Apple would be r emiss not to include eye tracking technology. The company has already seen startups like uMoove interested in providing the tech.
The iPhone 6 is expected to come with eye tracking features. Now, all that's left is to implement them in a way that makes sense on an iPad Pro. Sharing with others what we're looking at on our own screens in conference calls immediately comes to mind.
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