iPad Air 3 release date,specs, news: has Apple canceled the series?

A promotional image for the Apple iPad Air 2Apple official website

The iPad Air 2 was released two years ago, and yet, Apple has yet to announce a brand new tablet in this lineup. Consumers expected to see the iPad Air 3 during the WWDC event in March, but instead, Apple unveiled the 9.7-inch iPad Pro, and now, news of the iPad Air 3's cancellation are circling around.

According to IT Pro, Apple has given no word regarding the iPad Air 3 in any of their recent events, and instead, the company has focused solely on the iPad Pro. The smaller 9.7-inch model also fills in the niche in the market that the iPad Air used to occupy, and because of this, a new model may no longer be required.

The cancellation of the lineup may also occur due to the imminent launch of the iPad Pro 2 in March 2017. With a new iPad Pro 2 coming out, the iPad Air 3 may be deemed unnecessary at this point. The 9.7-inch iPad Pro 2 may already come with the specs, features, and size benefits that consumers would want in the iPad Air 3.

However, if Apple does launch an iPad Air 3 before the end of November or by March next year, MacWorld reports that it may be the thinnest tablet Apple has ever produced. The iPad Air 2 is only 6.1mm thick, and the iPad Air 3 may use a brand new body to be thinner and lighter than anything that has come before.

The tablet may come with the A9X or the A10X processor and 3 GB or 4 GB of RAM in order to compete with the 9.7-inch iPad Pro and Apple's competitors. It is likely to feature the same 12 MP iSight camera that can take videos at full 4K resolutions, and it is likely to come with iOS 10 right out of the box.

Apple has yet to confirm if the iPad Air 3 is still moving forward and when it may possibly launch.