Apple has already confirmed that it will be holding a stand-alone event next week. According to speculations, the "Infinite Loop" event scheduled on March 21 will have fans see the launch of a number of new Apple iterations, including a smaller iPad Pro.
TechRadar says that if the rumors about the new iPad Pro are proven correct, the new iPad iteration will bridge the gaps between the Pro and Air editions of the Apple tablet lineup. While the 2016 iPad Pro will reportedly maintain a comfortable 9.7-inch screen that is a signature of the Air series, the new flagship will still retain many of the 12.9-inch iPad Pro's specs and features. This means that rather than a replacement for the iPad Air lineup, the 2016 edition can be considered as an "iPad Pro Mini."
The new iPad Pro is said to carry the same A9X processor that is featured in its predecessor, paired with at least 2 GB of RAM. The new iPad will reportedly carry the same Smart Connector port on its left side. This means that the smaller iPad Pro will introduce its own accessories such as smaller Smart Type covers and third-party keyboards.
It is also said that the new iPad Pro will still offer Apple Pencil support.
Meanwhile, Forbes managed to check out how the new iPad Pro looks like, thanks to a TechSmart team reverse-engineering an alleged 2016 iPad Pro case. In terms of the design, the 3D render seems to confirm that the new Apple tablet is a scaled-down iPad Pro.
According to the industry follower, in addition to the Smart Connector on the left side, the new iPad Pro seems to feature the same quad-speaker outputs on the sides. A 3.5mm jack is also present, which debunks rumors that this year's lineup of Apple mobile products will do away with the audio jacks.
