Retina Display-Equipped iPad 3 to Launch in February?

ipad
The next iPad will be introduced in February according to a research note issued by Citi analyst Richard Gardner, obtained by Business Insider.

According to "several sources" the next iPad will launch in February, and it will sport a screen with double the resolution of the current model.

Gardner says, "there do not appear to be any significant technical hurdles remaining" to prevent a launch of a high-resolution iPad, despite rumors to the contrary.

Gardner's note echoes prior reports of a mid-Winter launch for the iPad 3.

Some reports had been suggesting that Apple's display suppliers were struggling with mass production of the higher-resolution 2048x1536 displays for the iPad 3, but reports over the past few weeks have indicated that the production is now moving along at Samsung, LG, and Sharp ahead of final iPad 3 assembly scheduled to begin next month at Foxconn.

One issue that has remains unclear is whether the iPad 3 will be thinner or slightly thicker than the iPad 2. Several sources have claimed that the iPad 3 will need to be slightly thicker due to the adoption of a dual light bar system to handle the significant jump in display resolution. But another report from late last month claimed that Apple will be utilizing a new display technology to support the high-resolution without requiring dual light bars, a development that will allow the iPad 3 to be slightly thinner than the current model.

Related Roundup: iPad
Buyer's Guide: iPad (Buy Now)
Related Forum: iPad

Popular Stories

iOS 18

Here Are Apple's Full iOS 18.5 Release Notes

Tuesday May 6, 2025 2:17 pm PDT by
Apple today seeded the release candidate version of iOS 18.5 to developers and public beta testers, giving us a look at the final version of the update that will be provided to the public next week. With the release candidate, Apple provided release notes, so we have a more complete look at the new features that are included in the update, including those that weren't found during the beta...
siri glow

iPhone Users Now Able to Submit Claims in $95 Million Siri Spying Lawsuit

Wednesday May 7, 2025 11:40 am PDT by
If you owned a Siri-compatible device and had an accidental Siri activation between September 17, 2014 and December 31, 2024, you could be eligible for a payment from Apple as part of a class action lawsuit settlement. Apple in January agreed to pay $95 million to settle a class action lawsuit involving Siri spying accusations, and a website to distribute the funds has now been set up and...
Nineth iOS 19 Feature

iOS 19 Beta is a Month Away With These New Features for Your iPhone

Thursday May 8, 2025 7:37 am PDT by
The first iOS 19 beta is just one month away, and there are already many new features and changes that are expected with it. Apple should seed the first iOS 19 beta to developers immediately following the WWDC 2025 keynote, which is scheduled for Monday, June 9. Following beta testing, the update should be released to the general public in September. Below, we recap the key iOS 19 rumors...
Foldable iPhone 2023 Feature Homescreen

Apple's Foldable iPhone Display Tech May Set New Industry Standard

Thursday May 8, 2025 3:29 am PDT by
Apple's upcoming foldable iPhone will feature a new type of display panel developed by Samsung that has never been used in a foldable product, claims a source with links to Apple's supply chain. According to the account yeux1122 on the Korean Naver blog, the foldable iPhone will use a custom display process for which Apple will hold branding trademark rights, and that meets Apple's stringent ...
iPhone 17 Pro Blue Feature Tighter Crop

iPhone 17: What's New With the Cameras

Friday May 2, 2025 3:52 pm PDT by
We've still got months to go before the new iPhone 17 models come out, but a combination of dummy models and leaks have given us some insight into what we can expect in terms of camera changes. Apple is adding new camera features, and changing the design of the camera bump for some models. You might be skeptical of dummy models, but over the years, they've proven to be a highly accurate...
Mayday Calendar

Apple Acquisition Hints at Upgraded Calendar App on iOS 19 or Beyond

Friday May 9, 2025 9:13 am PDT by
Apple acquired Canadian startup Mayday Labs in April 2024, according to a European Commission listing, spotted by French blog MacGeneration. The acquisition had not received widespread attention from tech publications until now. Apple is legally required to report certain acquisitions to the European Commission, under the terms of the EU's Digital Markets Act. Mayday Labs founder Jeremy...
maxresdefault

Video Review: Two Months With the M4 MacBook Air

Wednesday May 7, 2025 12:42 pm PDT by
It's been nearly two months since the M4 MacBook Air launched, so we thought we'd take another look at the machine now that it's been out long enough to do some serious testing with it. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. Introduced in March, the MacBook Air is equipped with Apple's latest and greatest M4 chip, so it's more than capable of handling day-to-day tasks...

Top Rated Comments

deannnnn Avatar
175 months ago
To quote Seth Meyers from the iPad 2 launch, "just in time to make everyone feel bad about their Christmas present."
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
notjustjay Avatar
175 months ago
I really have no problem if it's slightly thicker than an iPad 2, especially if that added thickness can mean longer battery life or better performance.
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
ThunderSkunk Avatar
175 months ago
Who'd want to buy someone an iPad for christmas when a month or so later there's going to be an improved version out for the same $?

...oh. People not paying attention.

...which helps clear out the old stock. Makes sense I guess. ...kinda sucks though.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
basesloaded190 Avatar
175 months ago
Sounds good.

Although it should be noted that it WILL be slower than the iPad 2. It'll also take a fair while (1+ year) for most apps to get retina resolutions too for obvious reasons.

Both of those "facts" couldn't sound more like the opposite of the truth
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
chrmjenkins Avatar
175 months ago
Dual core Cortex A15 chips won't come out until late 2012, too late to be used in the iPad 3. I also think quad core isn't that great in a tablet, since there aren't a lot of background tasks and most apps aren't that well multi-threaded (if they even are at all).
Not true. Samsung's Exynos 5250 will launch in Q2 of next year on 32nm node. If Apple stays with Samsung, they could do the same. Historically, they've launched equally or before comparable Samsung SoCs built on the same node. (A4 beat Hummingbird, A5 beat Exynos 42xx in US launch).

Do expect the GPU to be bumped again, as we're talking about above 1080p HD resolutions here. I expect to see the MP4 variant of the PowerVR SGX 543 chip (iPad 2 currently uses MP2 variant), much like what's in the Playstation Vita, though with even higher clocks as well.
I disagree. That's pushing the power envelope without claiming anything back to save battery. I think the next move is to either shrink the 543 and clock it up or make the jump to Rogue cores.

I don't think a Q1 launch is likely given the availability of 32nm/28nm. Apple is pretty much running the tablet game right now, so I could see a February launch if they prioritized getting a retina iPad over everything else, but the benefits of waiting only a few months for a 28nm/32nm node to ramp up are hard to ignore from a battery standpoint, especially since you're talking about a display that is likely more power hungry.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Jbrumz85 Avatar
175 months ago
I'll get excited when it's announced.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)