The Apple rumor mill is churning once again – not just about the expected summer release of a new iPhone (or two), but you bet a new iPad is in the works for 2013.
After all, more than 100 million tablets have sold since 2010, as of October 2012 – and that’s before the 4th generation iPad (dubbed iPad with Retina Display) and iPad mini made its debut – so if you were Apple, wouldn’t you want to keep the momentum going? And lest we forget Android tabs are gaining ground, especially from the Samsung camp.
If you don’t have the time or desire to scour tech sites for the latest rumors on the tablet, the following are 5 things you can expect from the iPad 5 – though be aware none of these so-called facts or features have been confirmed by Cupertino.
Design
According to a number of sources, Apple's iPad 5 will have a design similar to 7.9-inch iPad mini -- with its thin bezels, “diamond-cut” edges and flush back.
There’s also buzz the iPad will move to an all-glass body like its iPhone 5 smartphone. The first four generations of iPad had black or white acrylic plastic surrounding the 9.7-inch screen.
Cult of Mac says a redesigned LED backlighting technology could be responsible for the new iPad’s thinner and lighter design.
“It’s likely that part of the thinner/lighter design will be reducing the size of the LED backlight, partly by making the display more efficient and partly by using more efficient LEDs,” said Paul Semenza, analyst at NDP DisplaySearch. “The other significant change that we feel is likely is a shift to a film-based touch sensor.”
Screen
This new LED backlighting system, which helps make the tablet thinner and lighter, doesn’t necessarily mean Apple will change the screen technology on the iPad 5, says freelance writer Killian Bell. “It’s unclear at this point, however, whether the display technology itself will change in order to accommodate the thinner frame.”
NDP DisplaySearch’s Semenza says Apple may or not use Sharp’s IGZO displays, which are currently used in small electronics products sold in Japan. Along with being thinner than LCDs, they consume less power. iLounge also suggests using Sharp’s IGZO display in the iPad 5 could help Apple maintain its 10-hour battery benchmark.
Cult of Mac says Apple might not yet adopt IGZO technology because Sharp cannot produce enough to meet Apple’s demands – yet.
French blog Nowhereelse.fr published what they claim are leaked photos of the front glass, which does in fact look like the design of the new iPad is influenced by the iPad mini.
Cameras
The iPad with Retina Display’s cameras were noticeably better than the iPad 3, upgrading the rear-facing iSight camera to 5 megapixel stills and 1080p HD video, while the front-facing FaceTime HD camera can snap 1.2-megapixel stills and shoot 720p HD video. FaceTime video calls are now capable over Wi‑Fi or 4G LTE cellular.
Some predict iPad 5’s rear-facing camera will be upgraded to 8 megapixels, while the front-facing camera might be upgraded to a 1.3 to 3.0-megapixel camera and 1080p HD video recording.
Other rumored specs, as summarized by Gotta Be Mobile include an Apple A7 quad-core processor, up to 128GB of storage (currently maxed out at 64GB) and the iOS 7 operating system.
iOS 7
Apple is expected to officially unveil iOS 7 at its World Wide Developer Conference (WWDC) in June, which is said to include the next-generation Passbook – perhaps with NFC (Near Field Communication) technology for mobile payments.
Yes, the next iPhone is rumored to have a fingerprint reader, a security feature tied to a mobile payment service and NFC – but there’s no telling whether the iPad 5 will have this technology.
And there's also talk of an app called iRadio for high-quality streaming music.
Could a digital wallet or streaming service be the “killer app” that Morgan Stanley analyst Katy Huberty says Apple could debut with iOS 7 later this year? According to an Apple Insider article, iRadio might be an Internet radio service that competes with the likes of Pandora and Spotify – with possible Siri integration for hands-free voice control.
Apple is reportedly in talks with record labels about iRadio. Huberty suggests Apple’s hiring of Adobe's Kevin Lynch – someone with experience in subscription-based services – could be a sign a streaming music service is in the works.
Launch date
DigiTimes has just published a report – based on unnamed “supply chain insiders” -- that predicts the iPad 5 production won’t start until July or August, perhaps in line to capture the back-to-school crowd.
This is much later than previous expected, and reported, by DigiTimes, so it shouldn’t be taken as gospel. In fact, except for last fall’s surprise unveiling of the iPad with Retina Display, new iPads have debuted in the spring (2010, 2011 and 2012) – therefore when the fifth-generation iPad will be unveiled is anyone’s guess.
The only hint it’s coming sooner than later is the fact retailers are beginning to discount the iPad, which is typically a good sign of a successor on the horizon.