With the (rumored) next-generation iPad approaching its (rumored) announcement on March 7th, I thought it would be interesting to collect some of the predictions we’ve made thus far based on the rumors and oft-quoted “inside reports” we have heard until today.

Unlike most Apple product launches, like, say, the iPhone 4S in October, there seems to be a certain degree of certainty in what the device is going to look like and the hardware changes it’ll feature when compared to the existing iPad. Thanks to various parts that have surfaced from China, several mentions by Daring Fireball’s John Gruber, and a general assumption that “it’s about time”, it appears the iPad 3 is going to feature a high-resolution, 2048 x 1536 Retina Display. Just like the jump from iPhone 3G-era displays to the iPhone 4, a Retina iPad (which John Gruber has been predicting since 2011) would allow for crisper graphics on screen and a better reading experience thanks to the increased number of pixels per inch.

Reported in just about any recent rumor on the iPad 3, the Retina Display has become the marquee addition those who follow Apple rumors expect to see in the next-gen device. As we’ve seen with our previous coverage, however, there are other hardware changes that Apple could bring to the iPad 3, namely better cameras, faster processor, and LTE connectivity.

In the past months, I have seen reactions from people who have followed the iPad 3 rumors typically split in two categories:

Theory #1: iPad 3 has Retina Display, new cameras, LTE, new A6 processor.

Theory #2: iPad 3 has Retina Display, slightly improved cameras, faster A5 processor.

The two theories imply that the new iPad is going to be a major revision with dramatically faster CPU and graphics to power the Retina Display plus LTE connectivity, or a speed-bump of the existing iPad with the addition of a Retina Display, but no LTE, dramatically faster processor, or iPhone-class cameras. Both are based on a series of rumors, patterns, and facts to be considered. (more…)

The typically reliable John Paczkowski at All Things D is claiming this morning that Apple’s next iPad, so far unofficially dubbed the iPad 3, will be announced by Apple at a media event in San Francisco in the first week of March. This rumor, if true, will follow last year’s announcement timeframe — the iPad 2 was unveiled on March 2, and went on sale on March 11 in the United States.

Sources say the company has chosen the first week in March to debut the successor to the iPad 2 and will do so at one of its trademark special events. The event will be held in San Francisco, presumably at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, Apple’s preferred location for big announcements like these. No word yet on a street date for the iPad 3 (assuming that’s what it’s called), though my guess is retail availability will follow roughly the same schedule as that of the iPad 2: available for purchase a week or so after the event.

In his story, Paczkowski reiterates previous rumors of a device sharing roughly the same form factor of the iPad 2, only carrying a higher resolution display, possibly a “Retina” one with 2048 x 1536 pixels of resolution. This is not the first time a major publication has weighed in to speculate on the features and release date of the next-generation iPad: back in January, a Bloomberg report claimed that the iPad 3 would feature LTE, a Retina Display, and a quad-core Apple-branded processor to power the device’s higher resolution screen. As for other rumors surrounding the device, it’s been speculated that the iPad 3 would be slightly thicker than the iPad 2 to accomodate a bigger battery and different display, with parts floating around China suggesting that the increase in thickness should be around 1 millimiter. Other parts have surfaced as well among Chinese retailers, albeit they simply don’t offer any insight into the possible functionalities of the new iPad.

All Things D has been a very reliable source of Apple information in the past, correctly predicting the iPhone 4S’ October launch and Apple education event of January 2012.

According to a rumor posted by Bloomberg this afternoon, production for Apple’s next generation iPad, unofficially dubbed ‘iPad 3′, has ramped up and will reach full volumes in February. Several rumors in the past months have tried to pinpoint the exact hardware features of the iPad 3; Bloomberg claims the device will sport a quad-core processor, LTE compatibility and a sharper screen with ‘greater resolution’.

Apple Inc. (AAPL)’s next iPad, expected to go sale in March, will sport a high-definition screen, run a faster processor and work with next-generation wireless networks, according to three people familiar with the product.

Since the introduction of the iPad 2 last year, many industry observers in the Apple community have noted the iPad 2 hardware wouldn’t have been able to manage an increased number of pixels on screen, which require faster processing power. A quad-core CPU, however, would enable Apple to support a ‘Retina’ 2048×1536 screen resolution (thus doubling pixels on screen as the with the transition from iPhone 3GS to iPhone 4), faster app switching and smoother video playback. Support for LTE would allow for faster data connections in regions where 4G is available, and it’ll likely be added through new chips by Qualcomm. According to Bloomberg, LTE will be introduced on the iPad first as the device has got a bigger battery than the iPhone, and LTE is widely known to require a larger amount of power than GSM and CDMA chips.

Bloomberg adds the iPad 3 is ‘expected’ to become available in March, a timeframe that would resemble last year’s iPad 2 launch with a press conference in early March and product rollout in the following weeks. From a design standpoint, recent rumors have suggested the iPad 3 will be either thicker or thinner than the iPad 2 due to the addition of the Retina display, so we’d take this speculation with a grain of salt. Bloomberg’s report seems to fall in line with several separate rumors from the past months, suggesting that the iPad 3 will be a not so minor upgrade with new screen, LTE and quad-core CPU (like A6 processor from Apple).

According to DigiTimes, which admittedly has quite a mixed record on Apple rumors, manufacturers in Apple’s supply chain have begun delivering parts and components for the next generation iPad. From this information, DigiTimes believes that the next iPad will be available in 3-4 months (aligning with March or April next year), with iPad 2 component supply beginning to wind down now.

OEM production of iPad 2 will remain high at 14-15 million units in the fourth quarter of 2011 but decline to 4-5 million units in the first quarter of 2012, paving the way for the launch of the new iPads, the sources noted.

Furthermore, the Chinese Commercial Times reports that Foxconn will begin production of the next-generation iPad in January, with production volume ramping up in February. It is expected that production of the next iPad will reach 9.5-9.8 million units in the first quarter of 2012.

[Via DigiTimes]

According to DisplaySearch analyst Richard Shim in an interview with CNET, the iPad 3′s 2048 x 1536 QXGA display is currently in production, with names like Samsung, Sharp, and LGD now laid on the table. The iPad’s possible Retina Display, which would double the pixels from the current 1024 x 768 display found in the iPad and the iPad 2, is rumored to find its way into the next generation iPad by 2012. Excited yet?

Shim says that finished iPad 3s with their aluminum shells and upgraded 4:3 displays could be finished in December following the few weeks it takes it takes to assemble Apple’s latest tablet. 9to5 Mac has already found hints of Apple’s next iPad, codenamed J2 (supposedly the 3G model with J1 being Wi-Fi only) in the iOS 5 source code, following a DigiTimes report that 2 million iPad 3s would be produced by the years end.

Keep in mind that an iPad 3′s Retina Display would have more vertical pixels than the 27″ Apple Thunderbolt Display currently on the market, with a resolution of 2560 x 1440 pixels. Provided Apple could even sell such a pixel precise display, what would it mean for developers and designers creating new and unique interfaces for the iPad? And remember the transition period from the iPhone 3GS to the iPhone 4? Yikes. Leave your thoughts in the comments below!

[CNET via 9to5 Mac]

According to a new report by The Wall Street Journal, Apple will begin trial production of the next-generation iPad with key component suppliers in October, with the device set to debut in “early 2012″ featuring a “high resolution display”. Whilst speculation in the past months had claimed Apple would release two iPads in 2011, with a possible “iPad 3″ likely set for a Fall release alongside the iPhone 5, recent rumors have indicated Apple would either stick with its annual release cycle, or launch a minor refresh of the iPad 2 — dubbed iPad 2 HD — this year, focusing on improving screen resolution and processor speed.

The Wall Street Journal seems to believe the former theory, claiming that “[the] next generation iPad is expected to feature a high resolution display – 2048 by 1536 compared with 1024 by 768 in the iPad 2″ with a launch in early 2012.

One component supplier to Apple said the company has already placed orders for parts for about 1.5 million iPad 3s in the fourth quarter.

“Suppliers will ramp up production and try to improve the yield rate for the new iPad in the fourth quarter before its official launch in early 2012,” said a person at the supplier.

Rumors surrounding a second iPad to be released in the fall started when both TechCrunch and Daring Fireball’s John Gruber hinted at an iPad 3 coming out this year for a “fall surprise”. Since then, speculation has been running wild as to whether Apple could really release the iPad 3 in 2011 whilst they were still struggling to meet demand for the iPad 2, which Apple COO Tim Cook later described as the “mother of all backlogs” due to a combination of high customer demand, and component shortages. However, at the Q3 earnings call in July Apple reported 9.25 million iPads sold in the quarter, mentioning that iPad 2 supply improved “dramatically” in the previous months.

Whereas several websites are still backing up the claims of a second iPad to be released in 2011, a report from Digitimes in June detailed how Apple had just began component certification for the iPad 3 set to come out next year. Technical details of the new device are unclear, although a number of reports in the past months — as well as graphical elements found in the iOS operating system — suggested Apple wants to build a “Retina Display” in the iPad 3 by doubling the existing resolution of the device, bringing it to 2048 x 1536 pixels up from 1024 x 768.

According to a report in the Korea Times, Apple has begun quality testing LCD displays from Samsung and LG for the iPad 3. A source claims that the LCD displays currently being tested are QXGA with a resolution of 2048 x 1536 – a resolution twice that of the current iPad display. Such a resolution for a 9.7″ display would mean the display has roughly 260 DPI and would likely fit under the ‘Retina Display’ marketing term – despite the fact that for the iPhone it was specified to be above 300 DPI, this is because the iPad is normally held further away from the eyes, and thus the DPI requirement is lower.

Apple’s upcoming iPad 3 will feature an improved display to support quad extended graphics (QXGA), a display resolution of 2048×1536 pixels with a 4:3 aspect ratio to provide full high definition (HD) viewing experience, said a source close to the talks

A deal between the two display manufacturers and Apple is also supposedly close to being finalised. One source told the Korea Times “Apple has traditionally preferred to use the same providers of the same parts for the same device, even as they evolve to different versions. I don’t see any fundamental change to that approach”. That said, it comes at a time when the relationship between Apple and Samsung is strained amid ongoing legal battles between the two companies. In fact just last week it was rumoured that Apple may be shift production of an A6 processor to TSMC.

Although neither LG or Samsung would not comment on these suggestions, Samsung officials did stress that the chances are “very low” for the current legal battles to affect Apple’s relationship with the LCD manufacturing division of Samsung. LG, however, is reportedly “euphoric” about increasing LCD orders from Apple and other handset and tablet manufacturers amid a still slow global recovery. It should also be noted that just a few weeks ago, there was a rumor of an iPad HD that was set to arrive this fall that would feature an increased resolution display, just like the one described by this report, and be aimed at ‘pro’ users.

[Korea Times via The Next Web]