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Apple's 'iPad Air 3' to Be Branded as an iPad Pro With Smart Keyboard and Apple Pencil Support

augustya said:
Don't you guys also want the 3D Touch on the iPad Air-3/Pro I think that could also be handy !
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No. I have it on the 6s+ and it's fine but not earth shatteringly useful. Handy for quick access to something with the phone in one hand. Less critical for a tablet you're likely using with two hands while sitting down. Also I'd be worried about pressing hard in the middle of a large screen.

Pencil support on a large screen tablet is a lot more important IMO
 
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I already have an iPad Pro 128 wifi & cellular with pencil and smart keyboard and I would prefer the smaller size pro but I'm used to the great battery life and hope they can achieve the same but I don't know how they could without underclocking the A9X, reducing the four speakers and also screen resolution.
I'm hoping they can though and I'll swap in a heartbeat.
 
subjonas said:
I don't know how people can seriously hope for/demand no price increase with such an abnormal jump in specs.

And I really hope the ones that were complaining that the air should have the same specs as the pro but with a smaller screen, aren't the same ones now (pre)complaining that the price shouldn't reflect the upgrade.

I hate blowing money as much as the next person, but c'mon, let's have SOMEWHAT reasonable expectations here. That would really save me a lot of eye rolling.
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What's abnormal?

Ram increase? iPad Air 2 had that with no price increase. iPhone 6s/6s+ had that with no increase

Faster CPU? They always have a faster CPU

Smart connector? It's a tiny thing that allows them to sell $130 keyboard covers. No need to increase the price

Pencil support? Might cost them something to change the screen type but again - it's there to upsell you a $100 pencil.

There is nothing fundamentally abnormal in the spec jump. If a lot of people buy the keyboard and pencil, Apple will make a killing on accessory profit.
 
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augustya said:
Don't you guys also want the 3D Touch on the iPad Air-3/Pro I think that could also be handy !
Click to expand...
I want it.

My understanding is that 3D touch is a hardware feature built into the screen. So is the ability to use Pencil. That's why they can't just turn on 3D touch on an iPhone 6 or enable Pencil on an iPad Air 2. And I read somewhere that Apple's suppliers were not having much luck (so far) building screens as large as the iPad Air where 3D touch works reliably.

Until they figure out how to make it work on larger screens, and how to make 3D touch and Pencil work together (where both the screen and the Pencil are measuring pressure), we'll be be stuck with mere 2D touch on the larger iOS devices.
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mrklaw said:
What's abnormal?

Ram increase? iPad Air 2 had that with no price increase. iPhone 6s/6s+ had that with no increase

Faster CPU? They always have a faster CPU

Smart connector? It's a tiny thing that allows them to sell $130 keyboard covers. No need to increase the price

Pencil support? Might cost them something to change the screen type but again - it's there to upsell you a $100 pencil.

There is nothing fundamentally abnormal in the spec jump. If a lot of people buy the keyboard and pencil, Apple will make a killing on accessory profit.
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If the spec increase is not enough for you to justify whatever price Apple sets, then the iPad Air 2 is probably your best bet. If you already own one, you just saved a ton of money.
 
KPOM said:
The 12.9" also has a higher resolution, and likely longer battery life. My guess is that they price it at $599 for 32GB, which is $200 less than the 32GB 12.9" model. If you want LTE, you'll need to get the 128GB model.
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If
doelcm82 said:
I want it.

My understanding is that 3D touch is a hardware feature built into the screen. So is the ability to use Pencil. That's why they can't just turn on 3D touch on an iPhone 6 or enable Pencil on an iPad Air 2. And I read somewhere that Apple's suppliers were not having much luck (so far) building screens as large as the iPad Air where 3D touch works reliably.

Until they figure out how to make it work on larger screens, and how to make 3D touch and Pencil work together (where both the screen and the Pencil are measuring pressure), we'll be be stuck with mere 2D touch on the larger iOS devices.
[doublepost=1456482146][/doublepost]
If the spec increase is not enough for you to justify whatever price Apple sets, then the iPad Air 2 is probably your best bet. If you already own one, you just saved a ton of money.
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Well 3D touch could only work for finger, don't think that's a problem and isn't the reason it wasn't in the Pro. It's that the 3D screen design isn't scaleable to Pro size, need to wait for their new design to be finished that will scale.
 
mrklaw said:
No. I have it on the 6s+ and it's fine but not earth shatteringly useful. Handy for quick access to something with the phone in one hand. Less critical for a tablet you're likely using with two hands while sitting down. Also I'd be worried about pressing hard in the middle of a large screen.

Pencil support on a large screen tablet is a lot more important IMO
Click to expand...

IMO the 3D Touch is far more useful than the Pencil. How many people are gonna use the Pencil only the Artists, Graphic Designers and those sort of people whereas a 3D Touch everybody can use and has far more utility than a Pencil which a normal person is just gonna use to scratch or remove wax from his ear. Big Deal !!
 
So - because of iPad Pro we've not only seen a delayed release of the Air 3, but it's now also being re-branded as "Pro" and will likely see a price bump as well.

No wonder iPad sales are in the toilet. I was looking forward to the Air 3 but if it sees a price hike for no apparent reason I will be sticking with my Air 2 until I can pick an Air 3 up (or whatever they call it) for "normal" iPad prices.
 
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Sooooooo.... hang on.. What makes the iPad Pro, "Pro"?

If they'd released this spec last year and introduced the Pencil that would have been a sweet move.
 
doelcm82 said:
If the spec increase is not enough for you to justify whatever price Apple sets, then the iPad Air 2 is probably your best bet. If you already own one, you just saved a ton of money.
Click to expand...

My point was arguing against the post assuming a price hike because of abnormal spec increase. I was trying to point out it isn't really abnormal vs other years where you get retina screens, big CPU bumps, touch ID etc. An A9X is just this years CPU, and a stylus compatible screen and accessory port? Meh. Nothing there justifies an increase over the current Air 2 price.
 
This is great news if it becomes reality. I've always thought that Apple would eventually release a 9.7 inch version of the Pro. It makes complete sense to me. I can see them starting a new release cycle where they large Pro comes out in the Fall and the smaller Pro in the Spring.
 
Hmmm interesting - Id be tempted to get both. I wanted the Pro just to use as a large touchscreen mixing desk for Logic Pro. Its perfect for it. And then if you got the Pencil and it worked on two sizes. Interesting. I assume pencil will eventually work on iPad mini too - I mean its still a good size for sketching ideas.
 
I'm not interested in this model, though the larger iPP is something that the family wants and I've since warmed to the idea. A good thing, though is apple opening up the idea of the stylus on the tablets. Its something that is long over due.
 
Perfect! This is exactly what I was hoping for honestly. I really hope this is true.
 
I wonder what will happen to the iPad Air's? is it simply going to be the iPad Pro and the iPad Mini?
 
Rogifan said:
So the iPad should only come in one size, one color and maybe two storage options? I have a feeling many would complain about that. The reason all these choices exist are to meet specific price points.
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Not at all. I was just curious the actual inventory total all the size, storage, color and connection types amount to. I do think they are watering down just a tiny bit though.
 
Dave245 said:
I wonder what will happen to the iPad Air's? is it simply going to be the iPad Pro and the iPad Mini?
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Maybe they'll just keep selling the Air 2 along side the 9.7 inch Pro? It will be interesting to see what they do with the whole iPad line.
 
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thekeyring said:
So there will be iPad Pro in two sizes, and iPad mini? These actually makes a lot of sense.
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I'd actually have expected iPad Mini, iPad, and iPad Pro models. The "Air" designation doesn't make much sense anymore, but two Pro models and a Mini seems like it would leave a gap in the middle.
 
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rudychidiac said:
Why not continue the Air branding? As if the iPad branding line isn't f*cked up already...

Just call it iPad Air 3
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To be honest, I don't see the point of the "Air" branding. What's the point of calling the iPad Air as such when the iPad mini is technically smaller and lighter? You have 3 iPad lines, just call them the iPad mini, iPad and iPad Pro and call it a day already.
 
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