Apple Planning Thicker Bezel-Free 10.5" iPad Pro With 9.7" Footprint and No Home Button [Updated]

Apple has a nearly bezel-free 10.9-inch iPad Pro under development without a Home button, according to Japanese website Mac Otakara.

ipad_lineup_2016_sides
The report said the nearly bezel-free design will allow for the 10.9-inch model to have the same overall footprint as the current 9.7-inch iPad Pro. A top bezel will remain in order to provide space for the front-facing FaceTime camera, but the bottom bezel will be reduced, according to supply chain sources cited.

The much-rumored 10.9-inch model will also be marginally thicker at 7.5mm, the same depth as the original iPad Air. The current 9.7-inch iPad Pro measures 6.1mm thick. The next 12.9-inch model will also be 0.3mm thicker at 7.2mm, while a rumored 7.9-inch iPad Pro will allegedly likely have the same dimensions as the iPad mini 4.

Earlier this month, a group of Barclays analysts said Apple will launch a trio of new iPad Pro models in March, including the aforementioned bezel-free 10.9-inch model and refreshed 9.7-inch and 12.9-inch versions. The note likewise said the 10.9-inch model will have a 9.7-inch footprint without a Home button.

Multiple rumors have pointed towards a new iPad in the 10-inch range, but the exact screen size has varied in each report. KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said 10.5 inches, echoed by DigiTimes, while an earlier Mac Otakara report said 10.1 inches. Mac Otakara and Barclays now appear to agree on 10.9 inches.

Mac Otakara previously said the 10.9-inch iPad Pro will feature quad microphones, compared to the dual-microphone setup on existing iPad Pro models, and retain a 3.5mm headphone jack. More "revolutionary" changes, including a switch to OLED displays, are expected in 2018, according to Kuo.

Update: At some point after publishing its article, Mac Otakara has changed "10.9-inch iPad Pro" to "10.5-inch iPad Pro," which is the more agreed upon display size for the rumored tablet.

Related Roundup: iPad Pro
Buyer's Guide: iPad Pro (Caution)

Popular Stories

iPhone 17 Pro Blue Feature Tighter Crop

iPhone 17 Pro Launching in Three Months With These 12 New Features

Saturday June 14, 2025 5:45 pm PDT by
The iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are three months away, and there are plenty of rumors about the devices. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of June 2025:Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro models have a titanium frame, and the iPhone X through iPhone 14 Pro have a...
apple watch ultra 2 new black

Apple Watch Ultra 3 Finally Coming After Two-Year Hiatus

Monday June 16, 2025 8:45 am PDT by
Apple will finally deliver the Apple Watch Ultra 3 sometime this year, according to analyst Jeff Pu of GF Securities Hong Kong (via @jukanlosreve). The analyst expects both the Apple Watch Series 11 and Apple Watch Ultra 3 to arrive this year (likely alongside the new iPhone 17 lineup, if previous launches are anything to go by), according to his latest product roadmap shared with...
apple watch ultra snow

6 Features Coming to the Apple Watch Ultra 3

Tuesday February 25, 2025 9:00 am PST by
The Apple Watch Ultra 3 is expected to launch later this year, arriving two years after the previous model with a series of improvements. While no noticeable design changes are expected for the third generation since the company tends to stick with the same Apple Watch design through three generations before changing it, there are a series of internal upgrades on the way. By the time the ...
terminal macos tahoe

Apple's Terminal App Gets Colorful Redesign in macOS Tahoe

Monday June 16, 2025 4:12 am PDT by
Apple's Terminal app is getting a visual refresh in macOS Tahoe, and it's the first notable design update since the command-line tool debuted. The updated Terminal will support 24-bit color and Powerline fonts, according to Apple's State of the Platforms presentation at WWDC25. The app will also adopt the new Liquid Glass aesthetic with redesigned themes that align with macOS 26's broader...
iOS 26 on Three iPhones

Apple Says iOS 26 Won't Be Available on These iPhone Models

Tuesday June 10, 2025 6:58 am PDT by
Apple this week revealed that iOS 26 is compatible with the iPhone 11 series and newer. That means that iOS 18 is the end of the road for the iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, and iPhone XR, which were all released in 2018. However, those devices will continue to receive security updates for at least a few more years. iOS 26 is compatible with the following iPhone models: iPhone 16e iPhone...
Logitech Logo Feature

Logitech Announces Two New Accessories for WWDC

Friday June 13, 2025 7:22 am PDT by
Alongside WWDC this week, Logitech announced notable new accessories for the iPad and Apple Vision Pro. The Logitech Muse is a spatially-tracked stylus developed for use with the Apple Vision Pro. Introduced during the WWDC 2025 keynote address, Muse is intended to support the next generation of spatial computing workflows enabled by visionOS 26. The device incorporates six degrees of...
iPadOS 26 App Windowing

Apple Explains Why iPads Don't Just Run macOS

Friday June 13, 2025 7:46 am PDT by
iPadOS 26 allows iPads to function much more like Macs, with a new app windowing system, a swipe-down menu bar at the top of the screen, and more. However, Apple has stopped short of allowing iPads to run macOS, and it has now explained why. In an interview this week with Swiss tech journalist Rafael Zeier, Apple's software engineering chief Craig Federighi said that iPadOS 26's new Mac-like ...
iphone 16 pro models 1

17 Reasons to Wait for the iPhone 17

Thursday June 12, 2025 8:58 am PDT by
Apple's iPhone development roadmap runs several years into the future and the company is continually working with suppliers on several successive iPhone models simultaneously, which is why we often get rumored features months ahead of launch. The iPhone 17 series is no different, and we already have a good idea of what to expect from Apple's 2025 smartphone lineup. If you skipped the iPhone...

Top Rated Comments

CaneCollegeboy Avatar
112 months ago
Because the home button fails on 9/10 Apple devices. It's so much better to accidentally 'tap' the screen wrong.
Did you make that up? Ive never had a home button fail and ive had more than a dozen apple products so far.
Score: 29 Votes (Like | Disagree)
svenning Avatar
112 months ago
0.3mm thicker!!! Ive is going to get a heart attack when he finds out
Score: 25 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Mascots Avatar
112 months ago
Don't freak out - they'll still offer the iPad Pro 12.9 1, the iPad Pro 9.7 1, the iPad Air 2, the iPad Mini 4 on top of an iPad Pro 12.9 2, iPad Pro 10.9 Pro, and maybe just sprinkle in a little Mini 5 and iPad Air 3 (both only with modest updates so it can't compete with the Pro 9.7 1)

Because why not throw it all at the wall and see what sticks instead of focusing an already all over the place and seemingly lost product line.
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)
citysnaps Avatar
112 months ago
Because the home button fails on 9/10 Apple devices. It's so much better to accidentally 'tap' the screen wrong.
Of course you have a source for that claim, right? Post it up.
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
TheHorrorNerd Avatar
112 months ago
Headline :
"Apple Planning Thicker Bezel-Free 10.9" iPad Pro With 9.7" Footprint and No Home Button"

A top bezel will remain in order to provide space for the front-facing FaceTime camera, but the bottom bezel will be reduced, according to supply chain sources cited.

How is this, by any stretch of the imagination "bezel-free?"
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
RichTeer Avatar
112 months ago
Can someone explain to me what makes an iPad "Pro"?

I'm honestly curious on the facts here, because none of the rumored changes (nor the current specs) seem to.
The increased price...
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)