Report of Hands-On with iPad 3 Rear Shell and Other Components

iLounge, which just last week updated its claims regarding details of the next-generation iPad with mention of improved cameras, today reports that it has viewed what appear to be at least prototype parts for the device.

The parts, which seem to include the rear shell and front glass bezel, reportedly corroborate iLounge's earlier claims of an almost imperceptibly thicker body and an upgraded iPhone-like rear camera.

The new iPad’s body is so slightly thicker than the iPad 2 that the change is unnoticeable on first inspection; a roughly 1mm increase will barely be perceptible to users. We’ve heard that the only accessories that might have issues are cases, and then, only cases that were precisely contoured to fit the iPad 2’s back. On the rear, the camera in the upper left corner has become bigger—noticeably so when placed alongside the iPad 2, but not so huge that anyone would think they were different at a distance. The new camera hole is silver-ringed, and does in fact look the same size as the iPhone 4S’s much-improved rear camera system, minus the LED flash.

iLounge's Jeremy Horwitz reports that some accessory manufacturers are claiming that the iPad 3 will come with a slightly smaller screen, but a front glass bezel seen by Horwitz fails to support that notion. Otherwise, the locations of all external features of the iPad 3 remain identical to those on the iPad 2.

leaked ipad 3 display
Previous leak of claimed iPad 3 display

Horwitz cautions that the rear shell part he was able to view seems to have been produced at least six months ago and thus may not represent the final design for the next-generation iPad, which he notes could be called the iPad 3 or perhaps some variation on the iPad 2 name. But the parts do apparently support iLounge's existing claims of Apple's design tweaks for the next-generation iPad, which many are expecting to debut around March of this year.

Related Roundup: iPad
Tag: iLounge
Buyer's Guide: iPad (Caution)
Related Forum: iPad

Popular Stories

best buy holiday

Best Buy Reveals Black Friday Plans With Sitewide Sales Available Now

Friday November 8, 2024 10:05 am PST by
Black Friday sales are continuing today with Best Buy kicking off early Black Friday deals that will last for the next few days. Similar to other retailers, Best Buy's early Black Friday event includes sitewide savings on Apple products, headphones, TVs, monitors, video games, and more. Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with Best Buy. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may...
mac mini thermal architecture feature

New Mac Mini Has Modular Storage, 256GB Model Will Have Faster SSD

Friday November 8, 2024 7:06 am PST by
Apple has returned to using two 128GB storage chips in the new Mac mini with 256GB of storage, according to a partial teardown video shared on social media today. This means the base-model Mac mini with the M4 chip will not have significantly slower SSD speeds compared to higher-end configurations of the computer with 512GB, 1TB, or 2TB of storage, as multiple NAND chips allows for faster SSD...
iphone passcode green

Cops Suspect iOS 18 iPhones Are Communicating to Force Reboots, Making Unlocking Harder

Thursday November 7, 2024 2:20 pm PST by
Law enforcement officials in Detroit, Michigan are warning other police officers about an alleged iPhone change that causes Apple devices stored for forensic examination to spontaneously restart, reports 404 Media. iPhones that are undergoing examination have apparently been rebooting, which makes them harder to unlock with brute force methods, and Michigan police think that it's due to a...
Generic iOS 18

Everything New in iOS 18.2 Beta 2

Monday November 4, 2024 12:34 pm PST by
Apple today seeded the second betas of upcoming iOS 18.2 and iPadOS 18.2 updates to developers, and Apple is continuing to refine the Apple Intelligence capabilities. There are also a handful of smaller features that are worth knowing about. Find My Find My has a new option to Share Item Location with an "airline or trusted person" that can help you locate something that you've misplaced....
maxresdefault

Hands On With Apple's New M4 Mac Mini

Friday November 8, 2024 12:21 pm PST by
Apple launched the new Mac mini, iMac, and MacBook Pro models with M4 chips today, and because the Mac mini is the only one of the machines that got a design update, we thought we'd check it out to see how it compares to the prior version. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. The 2024 version of the Mac mini is much smaller than the previous M2 model, so it takes up...
High Power Mode Feature 2

Apple Expands High Power Mode to MacBook Pro and Mac Mini Models With M4 Pro Chip

Thursday November 7, 2024 12:15 pm PST by
High Power Mode is available on the 14-inch MacBook Pro, 16-inch MacBook Pro, and Mac mini models with the M4 Pro chip, according to Ars Technica's Andrew Cunningham. The feature was previously limited to Macs with Apple's highest-end "Max" chip, so this is the first time it is available on Macs with a "Pro" chip. This is the second time that Apple has expanded availability of High Power...
next generation carplay multi display

Here's the Latest on Next-Generation CarPlay After 2.5 Years of Waiting

Wednesday November 6, 2024 8:33 am PST by
It has been nearly two and a half years since Apple first previewed next-generation CarPlay at WWDC 2022, and it has still yet to become available in any vehicles. Below, we recap the latest information about next-generation CarPlay. Launch Timing Apple's website continues to say that the first vehicles with next-generation CarPlay support will "arrive in 2024," but it has yet to provide ...
Apple MacBook Pro M4 hero

Skipping the New MacBook Pro? Here Are the Rumors About M5 Models

Friday November 8, 2024 9:35 am PST by
The new 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models with M4, M4 Pro, and M4 Max chips launched in stores today. If you are not planning to upgrade this year, be aware that there are already rumors about next year's MacBook Pro models with M5 series chips. It appears the MacBook Pro will remain on an annual upgrade cycle next year. Apple supply chain analyst Ming-Chi Kuo today said camera module...

Top Rated Comments

Mjmar Avatar
168 months ago
My only concern is whether or not it will have a retina display.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
newyorksole Avatar
168 months ago
I know it is incredibly superficial but adding even one millimeter will not be acceptable. We are still in the middle of the "thin is in" race. Other manufacturers are shaving away at those millimeters Apple will be expected to do so as well.

who cares if it's 1MM thicker. Apple still has better software and a better ecosystem as well as better support and a better looking product.

let's see "other manufacturers" get that down pact.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Darlo770 Avatar
168 months ago
iPad 2S?

I have this horrible feeling it's going to be the iPad 2S released in March, with a retina screen but Dual-Core (higher clock speed) to drive that new display (not a Quad-Core yet). I just want somebody to say a dual-core technically couldn't drive a retina display that large. Could it? :( This would be Apple down to a tee, saving the quad-core for the iPad 4 (and it's 'major hardware upgrades' rumoured recently).
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Shrink Avatar
168 months ago
I must say that the photo in the news story took my breath away. I couldn't be more moved and excited. Any way to get a large, framed version? :rolleyes: :D
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
adildacoolset Avatar
168 months ago
Lol, apple haters are haters. When they launch a phone, they want it to be bigger. When they launch a tablet, they want it to be smaller. And the companies that are making their stuff are converting phones to tablets, and tablets to phones. Just popped up into my head
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Slurpy2k8 Avatar
168 months ago
Apple,
please include the following in iPad 3

* SD Card Reader
* Hi Res (720p) Front Facing Camera for Skype calls
* Hi-res display
* more memory

The last 3 will happen. The 1st won't.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)