With sales of the iPad declining for five straight quarters, Apple will be looking to make a statement with the next generation of its flagship tablet. Though the iPad remains the standard-bearer for the category, a gaggle of rivals -- from Samsung to a collection of mostly lower-end competitors -- have continued to cut into Apple's market share since the iPad Air 2 and Mini 3 debuted in October 2014.
That noted, Apple has introduced an array of interesting new features and products over the past few months including Force Touch, which brought pressure-sensitivity to the new MacBook trackpads; the Apple Watch; and its Apple Pay service, which continues to gain traction and add retail partners. There is speculation that elements of these technologies could find their way into the next iPad.
Apple could also inject new life -- and further profitability -- into the iPad line by creating a new high-end model with a larger screen.
.jpg)
Of course, Apple remains characteristically tight-lipped about all of this. Into this vacuum of fact-based evidence, the Internet is awash in rumor, theory, and hearsay about speeds, feeds, designs and features. Even the product name is a subject of conjecture, with "iPad Pro" and "iPad Plus" emerging as the most credible contenders.
With the important caveat that this is merely a rumored product -- and one which may never even see the light of day -- we present the top predictions that have bubbled to the surface.
Announcement and release dates
There's a long shot that the company could introduce the iPad Pro at its World Wide Developers Conference, scheduled to run from June 8 to 12 in San Francisco. (CNET will have live coverage of the June 8 keynote.) But given that Apple has debuted new iPads, large and small, in October or November since 2012 (about a month after the iPhone is generally unveiled), that timeframe is much more likely. An autumn release -- alongside, we assume, an iPad Air 3 and Mini 4 -- would also dovetail with the presumed availability of an updated iOS 9 mobile operating system, which Apple will almost certainly preview at its June WWDC event.Mobile app development
Design
Apple Insider theorizes that the new iPad Pro will feature a 12.9-inch touchscreen, which would give it a significantly larger profile than both the 7.9-inch Mini 3 and 9.7-inch Air 2. (Other reports peg the screen size at 12.2 inches.) It's difficult to imagine an iPad that's much thinner than the Air 2 (which measures 6.1 millimeters, just slightly thicker than the thinnest tablet on the market, the Dell Venue 8 7000).
New colors are always an option, however, and Apple could change things up by moving beyond the current generation's choices of gold, silver, and space gray.
Touch
It's quite conceivable that Apple will incorporate Force Touch into the next iPad, adding a dimension of pressure sensitivity to the device's interactive capacity.
.jpg)
There are also murmurs about the possibility of an Bluetooth iPen stylus that incorporates pressure sensitivity. Though there is something distinctly un-Apple about this -- Steve Jobs famously disparaged the accessory -- stylus-equipped tablets like the Surface Pro 3 and phablets like the Galaxy Note 4 have been enthusiastically received by many consumer and professional users.
NFC
Though the iPad Air 2 and iPad Mini 3 include support for online Apple Pay, they do so without near field communication capabilities (NFC), which enable tap-to-pay functionality. Apple included support for NFC in the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus, however, and more recently in the Apple Watch. The popularity of the iPad doubling as an electronic cash register in retail locations, and the increasing penetration of Apple Pay, which leverages the technology, makes NFC a possible feature for the next iPad.
Connections
Given that the USB-C port was included on the new MacBooks introduced in April 2015, it's entirely possible that Apple would use the same connection on the next iPad. Whether or not that would be in addition to or in place of the standard Apple Lightning port is anyone's guess, but the inclusion of USB-C could enable the larger iPad to be move flexible with accessories -- including keyboard docks and external monitors -- than the current models.
Less likely is support for inductive charging -- a feature found on the Apple Watch and an increasing number of non-Apple smartphones including the Samsung Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge.
Mobile’s strategy is the key to any business success in todays digital world. Pixotri technologies works one-on-one with businesses and individual product lines to develop a comprehensive mobile presence that complements your existing brand identity while building out your mobile brand.
Contact us for your mobile app development requirements.email- info@pixotritechnologies.com. Visit our website: www.pixotritechnologies.com
No comments:
Post a Comment