Will Apple release new iPad iterations this year?
Sources from Asia reportedly hint that there won't be an iPad Air 3 released this year. This is down to Apple's decision to focus on making the alleged 12.9-inch iPad Pro for now, thus moving the iPad Air 2's successor's unveiling to 2016. The jumbo iPad will reportedly be out November this year.
According to MacRumors, quoting a statement made in Economic Daily News by Fubon Hardware investment advisor Liaozian Li, Apple "may want the attention on the new iPad Pro and thus will let its main assembly plant for iPads, Foxconn, focus on the Pro to maximize deployment capacity." As such, Li said a new iPad Air may not see the light of day until next year.
In addition, reports also say that "Apple might discontinue the iPad mini range altogether after the 4th generation mini." 9to5Mac said that this statement is "highly speculative" as the Cupertino-based company would not even know for certain whether the iPad Mini 4 is the last mini tablet it will make.
"That seems like a decision that would be made after seeing how the market reacts to the mini 4. Perhaps Apple is planning to build a hybrid Mini/iPod touch next year?" the site speculated.
There also are suggestions that the next iPad mini may just be likely an upgrade, considering the rumored rear shell included a design that is similar to the iPad Air 2.
"While it's possible Apple won't upgrade the iPad Air 2 this year, the company has been constraining supplies of the iPad Air to third-party retailers, suggesting the iPad Air 2 would become the lower-cost option as an iPad Air 3 slots into Apple's tablet lineup," MacRumors opined. "However, it's possible Apple introduces an iPad Air 3 with minimal additions, as it did with the iPad mini 3."
Going back to the rumored 12.9-inch tablet Apple is preparing for a November release, it's been alleged that the company appeared to be expecting a less-than-enthusiastic response to the iPad Pro. DigitTimes said that the iPhone maker is "rather cautious about placing related orders and the initial shipment volume is much lower than most market watchers' expectations."
Could this be down to the Surface Pro 3's performance in the tablet race? Some observed that the caution exercised by Apple is most probably due to "declining iPad sales and weakening demand in the overall tablet market," as noted by MacRumors in another report.
Nevertheless, Apple fans will be looking forward to the later months of this year to see what the company has in store for them.
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