Skip to main content

Apple iPad 3 rumor: debut in 3-4 months

Image used with permission by copyright holder

Here’s a tidbit that should surprise no one: Anonymous sources in Asia are telling DigiTimes that Apple’s next-generation iPad — let’s just call it the iPad 3, for simplicity’s sake — will begin shipping in three to four months. That means a launch in March or April.

Unless Apple pulls another iPhone 4S with the iPad 3, and releases it far outside the debut date of its previous models, then March or April would seem the most likely time for the new iPad to arrive. The original iPad, though it was unveiled in January of 2010, started shipping in the US in April. The iPad 2 came out in March 2011. Seeing as Apple usually sticks to a fairly regular release schedule for its products, March or April is right on point. It is possible, however, that we’ll see the new iPad a bit earlier, in February.

That also means this rumor really isn’t that interesting. Basically all it’s saying is, “There’s a new iPad coming out soon!” Which, of course, is obvious — there presumably will be a new iPad coming out for years to come. But what will the iPad 3 (or whatever it’s called) look like?

According to earlier rumors, the device will have a Retina display with double the resolution of the current iPad, meaning something around 2048×1536. The super-resolution display rumor is one we heard just as often with the iPad 2, and that one of course never turned into a reality. So this year, we should all remain at least a bit skeptical, until some hard evidence comes out.

Other rumored features include a faster A6 processor  — or some non-Samsung-made equivalent — that can compete with the robust Tegra 3 quad-core processor that appears in the Asus Eee Pad Transformer Prime tablet, the first to do so.

Details aside, it’s obvious that a new iPad is in the pipeline, so if you’re thinking about getting a new tablet, you might want to wait until March or April to make your choice.

Editors' Recommendations

Andrew Couts
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Features Editor for Digital Trends, Andrew Couts covers a wide swath of consumer technology topics, with particular focus on…
How to sync your Outlook calendar with an iPhone or iPad
Series of three smartphones showing Outlook on mobile.

Outlook is a Microsoft program that runs on your computer and is an essential tool for scheduling appointments, work-related and otherwise. It's really helpful to sync your Outlook calendar with your iPhone so you can keep up with things while you're on the go. However, it's not necessarily obvious how to go about doing so.

Read more
This is when Apple will finally release its new 2024 iPads
Apple iPad Pro 11 with Apple Magic Keyboard.

It's been a long time since Apple introduced a new iPad — October 2022, to be precise. In his latest newsletter, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reinforces his belief that Apple will finally reveal new iPads this spring, perhaps as early as the end of this month.

The Apple expert had previously noted that Apple would release new MacBook Airs and iPads at the beginning of the year. The first part of this promise came to fruition earlier this month when Apple revealed the M3 MacBook Air.

Read more
I’m worried about Apple’s new iPads
The back of the iPad Air 5.

Apple typically releases a new version of its products every year, but 2023 was different. That was the first year Apple did not release any new updates across the entire iPad lineup.

We’re now a couple of months into 2024, and it’s rumored that Apple could be dropping new iPad models this month — as early as this coming Monday or Tuesday. After all, a new M3 MacBook Air just came out, so naturally, we should expect new iPads after not having any update last year.

Read more