With 2015 already here, many are looking forward to October, the month assumed to be the launch window for the next Apple tablet. Apple is expected to maintain the same release date for its upcoming flagship device that it had used for unveiling its previous tablets (iPad Air was released on Oct. 22, 2013 and the iPad Air 2 was released on Oct. 16, 2014).
Now, because of the model name that has been designated to Apple's current slate, the iPad Air 2, it has been automatically assumed by gadget enthusiasts that the tech giant will be adopting the model name iPad Air 3 for its next flagship offering. However, according to Macworld, there are rumors that Apple might discard the name "iPad Air 3" and instead, name its upcoming tablet iPad 7.
The iPad Air 3 (or iPad 7) is rumored to sport an even thinner form factor than its predecessor, although that would mean that Apple will have to include a smaller battery pack to accommodate its thinness. The current 9.7-inch iPad Air 2 is 6.1 mm thin, forcing the company to incorporate a 7340 mAh battery into it, while the iPad Air is 7.5 mm thin and is stuffed with a 8827 mAh pack.
The next iPad model is also expected to perform better than the current one. According to information posted by 9to5Mac, the iPad Air 3 or iPad 7 will be housing 4 GB of RAM, which is the threshold of the amount of system memory that a 32-bit operating system can identify. Samsung, which replaced TSMC as Apple's chief chip manufacturer and supplier, has reportedly started working on the company's speedy A9 chipset. It is also expected that the chip will find its way under the hood of Apple's upcoming batch of smartphones, which rumors are referring to as either the iPhone 6s or iPhone 7.
The base model of the iPad Air 2 (16 GB, WiFi only) is currently retailing for $499, so with the iPad Air 3, Apple will be looking to price the product around the same range, with no word on whether or not it intends to bump the existing internal memory capacity of its mobile products.
The iPad Air 3 and other products belonging to Apple are expected to be unveiled in October 2015.
