Its all rumor at this point, but I don't get it. Which is going to be the pro model? The 9.7" or the 10.5"? Which is going to be the low end model? Will the iPad mini get an update? Seems like the MacBook Air syndrome all over again. Too many models. Apple will confuse things with this line up. Keep it simple. Mini, midrange model and the 12.9" model. Stop with the pro moniker altogether. Just call them ipads and update accordingly.
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Second Source Claims Apple Will Launch 10.5-inch iPad in 2017
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The answer to fragmentation of the line is:
-2x iPad Pro , a 10.5 inch and a 12.9 inch with similar specs and a few exclusive iOS 10/11 features(simple file management and multi account by touchid for example.
-1x iPad 9.7 inch
-1xiPad SE. 7.9 inch iPad
-2x iPhone pro, 1x5.8 inch and 1x 5.1-5.2 inch with oled, dual cams, etc, perhaps even a form of split screen , touchid embedded in screen, curved sides, etc.
-1x iPhone , 4.7 inch
-1xiPhone SE, current 4 inch
They only need to add a MacBook SE , something like an updated MacBook Air 11 inch under the se name, and their entire mobile line-up makes sense.
For the desktops, drop the Mac mini and the Mac Pro, and then release:
1x iMac pro: upgraded and better specced 27 inch 5K iMac
1x iMac , 21 inch 4K
1x iMac SE, 21 inch iMac at 1920x1080.
Or something like that.
So an ES line for a value line , than a regular line, and a real high end / tech line-up.
No idea what they could do for the Apple Watch and Apple TV line-up. Would live an appletv pro though with PS4 like graphics for gaming, dedicated game controller(s) , wifi router with smart home, personal assistant (amazon echolon) capabilities, speaker, etc.
-2x iPad Pro , a 10.5 inch and a 12.9 inch with similar specs and a few exclusive iOS 10/11 features(simple file management and multi account by touchid for example.
-1x iPad 9.7 inch
-1xiPad SE. 7.9 inch iPad
-2x iPhone pro, 1x5.8 inch and 1x 5.1-5.2 inch with oled, dual cams, etc, perhaps even a form of split screen , touchid embedded in screen, curved sides, etc.
-1x iPhone , 4.7 inch
-1xiPhone SE, current 4 inch
They only need to add a MacBook SE , something like an updated MacBook Air 11 inch under the se name, and their entire mobile line-up makes sense.
For the desktops, drop the Mac mini and the Mac Pro, and then release:
1x iMac pro: upgraded and better specced 27 inch 5K iMac
1x iMac , 21 inch 4K
1x iMac SE, 21 inch iMac at 1920x1080.
Or something like that.
So an ES line for a value line , than a regular line, and a real high end / tech line-up.
No idea what they could do for the Apple Watch and Apple TV line-up. Would live an appletv pro though with PS4 like graphics for gaming, dedicated game controller(s) , wifi router with smart home, personal assistant (amazon echolon) capabilities, speaker, etc.
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Here's what everyone in this thread seems to be missing:
If you take the 9.7" iPad screen, which is currently at 264 PPI, and change the PPI to 326 (iPhone PPI) while keeping the same number of pixels, you get the 7.9" screen used in the iPad mini.
If you take the 264 PPI screen from the 12.9" iPad pro (2048 x 2732), and shrink it to 326 PPI (with the same number of pixels) what do you get? A 10.5" screen! I doubt this is a coincidence.
I heard a few people on podcasts, blogs and other sites, mentioning that they loved the increased UI screen estate provided by the 12.9", but eventually found it too big and heavy so they went back to the 9.7" when the pro version was released.
A 10.5" iPad at 326 PPI would provide the same exact 2048 x 2732 resolution as the bigger pro, but would be lighter and more portable. And for those who don't need more UI estate and have vision problems, could run in zoomed mode using the 9.7" UI layout.
And developers wouldn't even have to make any change to their apps (given that they already support the 12.9"), they would run natively using the 12.9" UI but on a denser screen, just like what happened with the iPad mini.
Are you saying the better specced iMac replaces the Mac Pro? It wouldn't come close..
"In August, KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said the same thing and earmarked the same A10X processor for the tablet, suggesting there may be more substance to this particular rumor."
So because 2 people have said that the new iPad will have an A10X, then the rumour carries more credence? Wow, not like the iPad has had the same processor as the current iPhone with an X stuck on the end of it since "The New iPad" back in 2012. Don't have to be an expert to have guessed that... gheez.
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Nicely done. And as a 9.7" iPad Pro user, I would be all over the 10.5 is your analysis is indeed true.
So because 2 people have said that the new iPad will have an A10X, then the rumour carries more credence? Wow, not like the iPad has had the same processor as the current iPhone with an X stuck on the end of it since "The New iPad" back in 2012. Don't have to be an expert to have guessed that... gheez.
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Nicely done. And as a 9.7" iPad Pro user, I would be all over the 10.5 is your analysis is indeed true.
Because making more versions of something that nobody wants will make them want it more?
What folks want in an iPad Pro is the macOS. Until Apple gets that through its thick skull, the product will continue to die a slow death. iOS is good for a phone and for a TV, it is not good for a professional tablet.
What folks want in an iPad Pro is the macOS. Until Apple gets that through its thick skull, the product will continue to die a slow death. iOS is good for a phone and for a TV, it is not good for a professional tablet.
Have you ever tried running Remote Desktop to a Mac from iPad? It gives you an idea how that doesn't work very well. I suppose with some tweaks maybe it would be ok but we don't really want just ok. I'd rather see iOS gain functionality and remain optimized for mobile devices.
I don't see much sense in this rumor. Apple is not going to add another iPad line without eliminating one. Also, bezeless wouldn't work at all. iPads are too big and heavy to grip without a bezel.
And as hundreds of people have already stated elsewhere on Macrumors forums: macOS surely is nowhere close to be ready for a tablet, it has zero touch optimisation. OS X on a tablet has existed for a while, I guess you're using the Modbook for a while, right?
How is such an iPad better than a Mac? Why make an iPad into a Mac? Why not just get a Mac?
Because iPad sales are absolutely tanking. Some kind of extra functionality needs to be added to halt the slide otherwise in 5-10 years time they will be a complete irrelevance.
Evidence to support this?
Chromebooks are outselling Macs. Is this because of the enhanced functionality that Chromebooks offer?
Consoles outsell gaming PCs. Because they are more functional?
Smartphones are 90% of people's primary computing device. Because they are more capable than the traditional PCs they displaced?
More functionality does not equal more sales. Targeted, streamlined and reliable functionality is what matters more. Most people don't need or want a jack of all trades machine.
(And Apple is less concerned with absolute unit sales and more concerned with margins. iPads are doing fine. Apple will not be the biggest company in the world forever, no matter what they do.)
Not to say they should never overhaul the iPad. But they shouldn't do so in a way that just makes it mimic a Mac. What's the point? Why not just get a Mac?
iPads certainly aren't doing fine, they are only being kept respectable by the increased margin provided by the pro models.
People might not want a jack of all trades machine as you put it but it seems people dont want to pay $500 plus for a bigger iPhone either. Sales down for eight quarters in a row, sales at their lowest ebb since 2011.
But you believe what you want.
https://www.macrumors.com/2016/02/17/ipad-sales-predicted-lowest-since-2011/
Better specced /faster than a 3 year old Mac Pro ?
Of course they can make a faster iMac now than a current Mac Pro . They could even choose to include a separate thunderbolt based high end workstation gpu.
(There were even some rumours about a monitor with an high end gpu built in).
The form factor would never handle the graphics performance of a Mac Pro. There's a reason they use mobile GPUs in those things.
You couldn't put Xeons and FirePro in that casing. You wouldn't be able to cool it efficiently.
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I still see people using them. An insurance salesperson came by our place last night to talk about a policy, and he had an iPad Pro with all of the relevant forms from the various providers installed on it. We were able to fill them out and sign them using the Apple Pencil. He told me he wasn't even much of a technology guy, but it got ridiculous carrying around a trunk full of books and forms, issued by something like 40 different insurance providers he worked with. The larger size iPad made it the easiest to read all of the paperwork and interact with it.
But yeah - I agree that they're not generally selling real well. I went with the 9.7" model myself, because I just couldn't see carrying anything larger than that around too often.
But yeah - I agree that they're not generally selling real well. I went with the 9.7" model myself, because I just couldn't see carrying anything larger than that around too often.
I totally believe they have got massive amounts of inspiration from Apple in the past. That goes without saying, but that should not be the issue. The fact that Apple also copy many elements from Samsung's playback but get a free pass from the fanboys who then slag Samsung off for doing like wise gets my goat. Everyone copies everybody else, without this the world would have one product in every category. Imagine how dull that would be.
Agreed. My wife and kids have the mini 2 and it's perfect, besides being a little slow a times.
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Just google "apple copies old designs" and you will see blatant Apple copying!!! Especially copying Braun.
For a company who's telling pc's (Macs) are from the past and iPads are the future they're very slow in refreshing/updating them. But I'm lost these days in what category Apple is focusing except making more money from it.
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Yes, wait till Apple comes out with an Amoled screen (propably from Samsung). All you'll hear is how gorgeous it is and how innovative Apple is (forgetting almost the whole industry is serving their phones in the same price range with Amoled already). Don't even mention a curved iPhone edge, lol
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Yes, wait till Apple comes out with an Amoled screen (propably from Samsung). All you'll hear is how gorgeous it is and how innovative Apple is (forgetting almost the whole industry is serving their phones in the same price range with Amoled already). Don't even mention a curved iPhone edge, lol
"Blatant copying " or "great evolution of classic concepts" as the article says. Which amounts to inspired by.
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Hyperbole much? "Free pass from the fanboys who then slag Samsung off". That's generalizing at its finest.
Apple used to own the tablet market, now they are an ordinary player, with perhaps 15-20% market share instead of 70-90%. Sure their margins are better, but if they would have four times the volume they would make as much, or even more.
Other tablets cost around $100-300. It is obvious to me the company is out of touch when they price their tablets at $600-800 for entry models.