The current iPad lineup is a cluttered and confusing mess. There are two sizes of iPad Pro, a single iPad Air, two generations of the regular iPad and the iPad Mini that’s still alive and kicking. It’s hit or miss with which Apple Pencil works with which iPad, and only one iPad has the camera on the side for landscape FaceTime calls.
Not only are the current iPad offerings confounding, but they are also getting state. Apple didn’t release any iPads last year, making it the first calendar year without a new iPad since Apple’s tablet was first released in 2010. If the rumors are true, the long wait for new iPads is almost over. New iPad Pro and Air models are expected in early May, according to the latest report from Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman.
Apple needs to do something with the iPad to keep consumers interested in its device that’s neither iPhone nor MacBook. The iPad has always occupied the middle ground between the company’s phones and laptops, and now it has company in this in-between zone with the arrival of the Vision Pro. CNET’s Scott Stein said the Vision Pro feels like “an iPad exploded into space.” The Vision Pro is far too expensive right now to cannibalize iPad sales, but as its price comes down in the years to come, it will compete with the iPad for our third-screen needs and dollars.
We will soon get confirmation to which direction Apple is taking its tablets. Here’s what the rumored updates will look like for each iPad line.
