14 DAY TRIAL // Reliable sources in the Far East are reporting that Apple’s upcoming iPad Pro, an uber-sized tablet geared towards creatives and the enterprise sector, will sport a 12.2-inch screen and will allegedly have an enclosure as thin as that of the current-generation iPhones.
Following the #bendgate reports surrounding Apple’s iPad Air 2 this past weekend, it’s somewhat worrisome to picture the iPad Pro as an even larger and thinner slab of aluminum. Only time will tell if Apple can do something about the likelihood of bending new iPads.
Not 12.9, but 12.2 inches
The iPad Pro (or iPad Plus, as we called it on some occasions) will be Apple’s biggest tablet yet. It’s only rumored for now, but there is quite a bit of talk on this subject, especially in the Far East, where iDevices get assembled. In all fairness, the rumors should be true and we should see this device emerge some time next year. However, the screen size is something not all reports seem to agree upon.
So far most (if not all) reports on the iPad Pro have said that Apple plans to equip the thing with a 13-inch screen. More precisely, the panel would reportedly measure 12.9 inches on the diagonal, more than three extra inches compared to the current 9.7-inch spec on the iPad Air line.
A usually reliable source of leaks, Macotakara now cites industry sources as saying that “iPad Pro will have 12.2 inch LCD instead of 12.9 inch which is many reports told.” This is actually the first time the 12.2-inch spec is being mentioned in correlation to the iPad Pro.
Design akin to Surface Pro 3
Interestingly, the source leaking this information reportedly says that the front side of the tablet will look a lot like the one on Microsoft’s Surface Pro 3, a 12-inch tablet that can run a desktop-grade Windows operating system, has CPUs in the i3-i7 range, and comes with a whopping 8GB of RAM. Microsoft’s device also supports digital pens, for Photoshop input and other types of creative use.
Apple’s tablet will most likely not run a desktop OS, and therefore will not pack as much RAM. The device will reportedly be as thin as the iPhone 6 range of smartphones.
iPad Pro will allegedly also borrow some design cues from the MacBook Air for a good implementation of the iSight camera, Lightning connector, and the Touch ID fingerprint sensor. Finally, the source notes that Apple plans to debut the tablet in the third quarter of next year.