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iPad Pro (2018) rumor review: new design and new features?
We've been hearing some faint rumors about new iPad Pro models that would, allegedly, be announced alongside the new iPhones in just a few days and launch before 2018 is over.
So, what's going to be new? What does the rumor mill say about them? Let's dive in and see what to expect!
Design
Last time we saw a pair of iPad Pros be released, they came in two form factors — one had a manageable 10.5-inch display, while the other sported a gargantuan 12.9-inch screen. Needless to say, the smaller version is a customer favorite, since it strikes the balance between portability, hardware power, and price (in Apple product terms, at least).
Well, rumor has it that the 10.5-inch version's screen might grow a bit this year. According to leaksters, the smaller variant will have an 11-inch display this time around. However, this may not mean that the iPad will grow in size — we are, in fact, expecting to see a new design, with slimmer bezels, and possibly even Face ID. As far as the bigger iPad Pro — the rumor mill says it'll retain its 12.9-inch screen.
Now, there's a bit of a mistery here we haven't deciphered yet. A small design element in the form of an elliptical pad spotted both in alleged leaked schematcis and a supposed iPad Pro case. It's located on the back of the device, just behind the Lightning connector. Is it a fingerprint scanner? Is it a new type of proprietary connector for a dock or another form of accessory? We do not know just yet.
Last but not least, some speculate that the new iPads will do away with the headphone jack, following in the footsteps of the 2016 iPhone 7. Hopefully, this one turns to be a dud rumor, but hey... Apple did say this archaic connector is a thing of the past.
Features
For years now, we've wondered if 3D Touch will be coming to the iPad line at any point. Well, we are getting close to an answer. And not only is that answer "no", there are also rumors floating about that Apple will be removing 3D Touch from its future iPhones as well. Yup, apparently, the tech's usefulness does not outweight
its production costs.
That aside, we expect from the new iPad Pros what we've always gotten from the iPad Pro line — support for the Apple Pencil as well as a Smart keyboard accessory to give the tablets a laptop-like use.
The rumor mill insists that we will see Face ID on the new iPads, which would mean thinner frames around the display and no Touch ID. Apple doesn't like to complicate stuff by adding a lot of options to choose from, so it's either face-scanning or fingerprint scanning for the new devices. And recent rumors suggest the former.
Specs
Of course, we can expect Apple's latest and best mobile chip to be in the new iPad Pros. Rumors suggest that the company's newest silicone would be build on an 7 nm process. In other words, it'd be faster and more energy-efficient than last year's A11 Bionic. Supposedly, it would be called the A12X (chips in the iPads always have that X in them to denote they are slightly more powerful than the iPhone variant). But hey, we get that every year.
There has been no word on whether the RAM would be updated and we'd have to say chances are slim. Last time around, the iPad Pros had 4 GB of RAM. That's plenty enough for contemporary mobile devices, and especially for iOS, which loves to freeze anything and everything in the background, leaving a lot of resources untouched.
Now, if you're hoping for an AMOLED panel, we're going to have to stop you there. There is absolutely no evidence to support that Apple will be switching away from LCD screens on its tablets and we kind of find it hard to believe that the company would do so at this stage. Why? For one, the 120 Hz LCD panels Apple uses for the iPad Pros right now are pretty awesome as they are. Then, there's the fact that a ton of AMOLED resources are going towards the new iPhones.
Price and release date
Assuming the rumors are correct and the new iPad Pros for 2018 get unveiled at the same September 12th event as the iPhone Xs and iPhone Xs Max, we'd expect them to become available in a week or so afterwards. Perhaps the weekend of the 20th - 22nd September.
And what about price? We believe the new iPads will fit in the very same price brackets as the tablets they are replacing. So, the iPad Pro 11" would start at $650 for a 64 GB Wi-Fi model and the new 12.9" iPad Pro would start at $800 for the 64 GB Wi-Fi version.
