Hot off
the record-smashing release
of Apple’s brand new iPhone 5s and iPhone 5c, Apple has sent invitations to newspapers and blogs for a press conference scheduled to take place on Oct. 22 at 1:00 p.m. EDT, 10:00 a.m. PDT.
The company still has plenty in the pipeline, but the co-stars of next week’s event are expected to be a completely redesigned fifth-generationiPad as well as an updated iPad mini with a brand new Retina display. Both of the new devices will launch soon after being announced at next week’s event, and there’s plenty more in store from Apple next week.
Apple’s fifth-generation iPad is widely expected to be smaller and thinner than the current-generation model, and it will seemingly be redesigned to better match the look of the iPad mini. Photos of purported casings from the “iPad 5? have been pictured a number of times,
most recently in the new space gray color that Apple introduced on the new iPhone 5s.
Several unconfirmed reports also suggest that
the fifth-generation iPad will be equipped with a Touch ID fingerprint scanner like Apple’s new flagship iPhone.
The tinier iPad tablet is also expected to be refreshed next week. Among the iPad mini upgrades expected at the show are a faster Apple A7 processor, new
space gray and
gold color options and of course a high-definition Retina display.
Apple will likely show off a few other new products that will launch ahead of the holidays as well, possibly including an updated Apple TV set-top box and refreshed Mac computers. We should also see iOS 7.1 for the first time, and Apple will likely share OS X 10.9 Mavericks and Mac Pro release dates as well.
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We’ve heard numerous rumors about what’s in Apple’s pipeline, but the most recent report suggests that a 12-inch MacBook and an iPad with a sharper display are on tap for 2014.
KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo predicts that Apple will launch a 12-inch MacBook with a design that he refers to as an “ultra-slim clamshell form factor.” The new model is expected to site between the 11-inch and 13-inch MacBook Air laptops in size, and the display is said to be on par with that of the Retina display MacBook Pro.
Kuo doesn’t specify what type of MacBook we can expect, but he says that it could “redefine laptop computing once again following the milestone created by the MacBook Air,” according to
Apple Insider.
Apple may upgrade the display quality of its iPad line as well, according to the analyst. Although a fifth-generation iPad hasn’t even debuted yet, Kuo says that Apple will launch a sixth-generation tablet in 2014. This alleged iPad 6 would feature as much as 40 percent more pixels than the current iPad’s 2,048 × 1,536 display.
The iPhone maker hasn’t confirmed any information about its upcoming product roadmap, but Kuo has a strong track record when it comes to predicting Apple announcements. In 2012 Kuo wrote that the iPhone 5, iPad Mini and 13-inch Retina display MacBook Pro would debut before the end of the year, which proved accurate.
We’re expecting to learn more about what Apple has in store for its new iPads at its
press event on Oct. 22. The Cupertino, Calif.-based company is rumored to unveil a second-generation iPad Mini with a Retina display and a successor to the fourth generation iPad. Apple’s rumored iPad 5 is expected to feature a sharper display, thinner design and faster A7 processor.