iOS 7.1, released earlier today, includes support for existing iPad models along with support for two unannounced models, labeled iPad4,3 and iPad4,6. It is possible that these new model numbers represent minor hardware revisions for existing iPads that will be introduced to the market silently, as a more substantial upgrade would push the model numbers higher.

On occasion, Apple has implemented new hardware components for its iOS devices without a public announcement and these minor changes often go unseen by consumers as they tend to introduce very minor improvements in efficiency. For example, an Apple TV update in January of 2013 revealed a new Apple TV, which turned out to be a minor update with a smaller A5 chip. That change was not obvious to Apple TV purchasers, but it did warrant a model number jump to 3,2 from 3,1.

newipads

Image courtesy of 9to5Mac

Existing iPad Air models are numbered 4,1 and 4,2, while Retina iPad mini models are numbered 4,4 and 4,5, suggesting one new iPad Air for the 4,3 designation and one new Retina mini for the 4,6 designation.

As noted by 9to5Mac, it is also possible that iPad4,3 and iPad4,6 represent iOS devices that are optimized for networks in other countries.

Top Rated Comments

goodcow Avatar
131 months ago
Maybe they're the models with 2GB of RAM, since 1GB is a joke.
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
sundragon Avatar
131 months ago
Maybe they're the models with 2GB of RAM, since 1GB is a joke.
Ultimately, 2GB is would be fantastic but the comparison is not a direct apples to apples. It's Apples to Androids... :D

LOL, unlike Android, nothing runs in VM (it's all native code and 64-bit OS/Apple apps on the 5S iPad Air - 32bit OS/Apple apps on previous models) so the need for 2GB is a lot less than Android which runs the UI in VM along with everything else...

Google (LOL) ART is replacing Android's Dalvik to improve this disparity. It's the reason a dual core A7 1.3 GHZ with 1GB of RAM runs circles around a quad core Snapdragon 800 at 2.2 GHZ...

http://arstechnica.com/apple/2013/09/review-with-the-iphone-5s-apple-lays-groundwork-for-a-brighter-future/
http://www.extremetech.com/computing/170677-android-art-google-finally-moves-to-replace-dalvik-to-boost-performance-and-battery-life
https://source.android.com/devices/tech/dalvik/art.html
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Parasprite Avatar
131 months ago
What can't you do on an iPad that you think requires more RAM?

Endless animated gif scrolling on tumblr.

Not that I condone using tumblr or anything.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
usarioclave Avatar
131 months ago
Maybe they're the models with 2GB of RAM, since 1GB is a joke.

What can't you do on an iPad that you think requires more RAM?
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
bushido Avatar
131 months ago
Endless animated gif scrolling on tumblr.

Not that I condone using tumblr or anything.

omg loading gifs on an iPad is the worst. i cant even count how many times tumblr or safari crashes loading them
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
commander.data Avatar
131 months ago
iPad 2 replacements?
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)

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