According to a report from the iTech Post, the iPad Air 3 is unlikely to be released alongside the iPhone 7 this September due to the fact that Apple has just launched the 9.7-inch version of the iPad Pro. Instead, the iPad Air 3 will likely have to be launched sometime in early 2017 unless they would be willing to release two iPads in one year.
The report further reveals that the iPad Air 3 has long been overdue. The iPad Air 2 launched as far back as October 2014 and there have been no official updates ever since. Even the iPad Mini line has not seen any updates in recent years, with the iPad Mini 4 being the last official update from Apple.
It is further reported that if the iPad Air 3 indeed comes out it is likely going to feature a few minor changes to improve its design and performance. According to the report, the iPad Air 3 is likely going to feature an all-aluminum body and it will be significantly thinner than the iPad Air 2.
According to the report it is also likely going to feature a minimum of 32 GB of storage and will run on the new A9X chip. Since it is not going to release until 2017 it is also likely going to feature iOS 10 right out of the box, introducing many new features and capabilities that are not present in iOS 9.
The report further reveals that the iPad Air 3 may come at a $599 price tag but this may be lowered to just $399 if the iPad Air 3 does not feature the True Tone display that was utilized in the iPad Pro 9.7-inch model. The prices are still based on speculation, however, and are subject to change.
It is important to note that Apple has yet to make any announcements regarding the iPad Air 3, and as such any information at this point should still be considered as a rumor.
