Earlier this month, rumours were going around that Apple might launch refreshed iPads but instead, fans got a more affordable Apple Pencil with support for USB Type-C.
However, a report from
DigiTimes suggests that
Apple could drop a new and bigger iPad Air. The iPad Air currently only comes in a 10.9-inch screen size and as per the report, Apple could be prepping to launch one with a 12.9-inch display as well.
The iPad Air sits right between the base model iPad and the iPad Pro, offering the best of both worlds — selective features of the Pro model at an affordable price.
According to Forbes, this would also make sense since another rumour hinted at a bigger iPad Pro at 13 inches for the next upgrade. This model is expected to arrive next year.
“This makes sense: the smaller iPad Pro has an 11-inch display, while the iPad Air screen is just a tenth of an inch smaller at 10.9 inches. So, if an iPad Air with 12.9-inch display comes along, then a 13-inch future iPad Pro would maintain the screen differential,” Forbes added.
In case the bigger iPad Air does surface, it is still expected to come with an LCD display instead of the miniLED backlighting on the iPad Pro.
When should you expect the bigger iPad Air?
According to Apple supply chain analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, you should not wait for any iPad or MacBook releases for the remainder of 2023. Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman also believes similarly saying that the iPad launch, which generally happens a month after the iPhone launch, would not be happening this year.
“If Apple is going to release these this year, they really can’t be much later than early November, surely, to make the most of the run-up to the holiday season. This would probably mean Apple would unveil them in the coming two weeks, putting them on sale the week after that,” Forbes said.
However, rumours also hint at
an iMac refresh before November and the two products launching together does not seem likely. So, the best guess would be next year.
If Apple decides to put off the iPad release for 2024, this would be the first time that the tech giant would skip an iPad launch in a calendar year since the first one was unveiled in 2010.
Apple will be posting its quarterly results on November 2 and this would be the first time since 2018 that the company would do so — usually it happens around late October.
