iPad Pro 2 Release Date, Specs Rumors: Launch With iPhone 8 in September 2017?
Is Apple about to introduce a new iPad Pro this year in a screen size that has never been seen before in its flagship tablet line?
The buzz about an upcoming 10.5-inch iPad Pro 2 has been gaining ground since late last year, and although the alleged Pro model missed its rumored March release, consumers are still holding out for a much later launch.
Speculations about a new iPad Pro was fueled by Apple's soft launch of a low-cost 9.7-inch tablet last March 21. The said tablet, simply called the iPad, is priced at $329 and has reportedly replaced the iPad Air 2.
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Given this surprise development in the Cupertino-based tech company's tablet lineup, a new iPad Pro may not come until late this year, possibly in the fall. Rumors point to a possible double-launch with iPhone 8 in early September, although Apple might also decide to launch the rumored iPad Pro 2 model at its own launch event in October.
The 10.5-inch iPad Pro 2 is expected to feature a near bezel-less design, a virtual Home button and an LCD panel. It is also believed that the upcoming iPad Pro 2 lineup will be thicker than their predecessors by approximately 0.3 mm in order to accommodate the rumored changes to the Pro 2's aesthetic design.
Additionally, the 10.5-inch iPad Pro 2 could also see a significant upgrade to its raw performance with the introduction of a new A10X processor chip. Its predecessor, the A10 processor that powers the iPhone 7, was the first chip out of Apple to combine high-power and low-power cores which effectively optimize the device's battery life by alternating between the cores depending on a certain task's level of difficulty.
As for the rumored tablet's software, speculations point to two possible operating systems, depending on when the device will be launched. If the 10.5-inch iPad Pro 2 comes early this year, it will still run on Apple's latest operating system, iOS 10. But if the alleged iPad Pro 2 model comes out alongside the iPhone 8 later this year, there is a much higher chance for the said device to be equipped with the yet to be launched iOS 11.
