Apple is widely expected to announce new iPad Pro models as early as April, and ahead of time, accessory maker ESR has added a variety of 2021 iPad Pro cases and folios to its online store that offer some potential design clues.
While the cases suggest that the next-generation iPad Pro will not have any significant design changes, ESR informed MacRumors that there will be fewer speaker holes on the new models. This lines up with a report from Japanese website Mac Otakara, which in January claimed that the number of speaker holes on the new iPad Pro models will be reduced by one third, although the reason for this supposed change is unclear.
A one-third reduction would work out as follows:
11-inch iPad Pro: 13 holes per speaker → 8-9 holes per speaker
12.9-inch iPad Pro: 17 holes per speaker → 11-12 holes per speaker
The new iPad Pro models are still expected to feature four speakers for stereo sound, with two on the top edge and two on the bottom edge.
The new iPad Pro models are expected to be equipped with a faster A14X chip that is virtually identical to the M1 chip in the latest Macs. Last week, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reported that the new models could also feature Thunderbolt support, which is certainly plausible given that the M1 chip supports Thunderbolt on Macs. Gurman also expects improved cameras and a Mini-LED display on at least the 12.9-inch model.
Mac Otakara reported that the new 12.9-inch iPad Pro will be approximately 0.5mm thicker, whereas the 11-inch model will apparently have the same thickness, further suggesting that a Mini-LED display could be exclusive to the larger model.
The new iPad Pro is also expected to support 5G with a Qualcomm modem in cellular models.
As noted by French website iPhoneSoft, ESR has also listed new cases for third-generation AirPods that suggest Apple's wireless charging case will be slightly elongated, as previously rumored. The new AirPods are expected to have a similar design as the AirPods Pro, but without Active Noise Cancellation or silicone ear tips to maintain differentiation.
Thursday January 23, 2025 6:41 am PST by Joe Rossignol
iOS 18.3 should be released to the public next week, following beta testing since mid-December. While the software update is a relatively minor one, it still includes a handful of new features, changes, and bug fixes for iPhones.
Below, we recap everything new in iOS 18.3.
Notification Summary Changes
Examples of inaccurate Apple Intelligence notification summaries
Apple Intelligence...
Thursday January 23, 2025 7:32 am PST by Joe Rossignol
Walmart still does not accept Apple Pay or other NFC payments at its more than 4,600 stores across the U.S., and it stood firm on its reasoning for that today.
A spokesperson for Walmart today informed MacRumors that its position on contactless payments has not changed since we last reached out about the matter in 2022. The big-box retailer said it remains focused on its own convenient...
Tuesday January 21, 2025 4:31 pm PST by Juli Clover
Apple provided developers and public beta testers with the release candidate version of iOS 18.3 today, and with it comes release notes confirming what's new. While we knew about several of the features that are in the update, there are some lesser known tweaks and bug fixes.
The update adds new Visual Intelligence features for iPhone 16 models, it tweaks Notification summaries on all...
Wednesday January 22, 2025 2:07 am PST by Tim Hardwick
Popular caller ID app Truecaller is rolling out an update that brings real-time caller ID support to its iOS subscribers.
Apple introduced Live Caller ID Lookup in iOS 18, allowing third-party caller ID apps to securely retrieve information about a caller from their servers, hence today's Truecaller update.
iPhone users can enable the Live Caller ID Lookup feature by going to Settings ➝ ...
Tuesday January 21, 2025 12:46 pm PST by Joe Rossignol
A leaker known as "Majin Bu" today shared an alleged image of a component for the rumored, ultra-thin "iPhone 17 Air" model.
The blurry, pixelated image shows a pair of rear iPhone shells with a pill-shaped, raised camera bar along the top. On the left side of the bar, there is a circular cutout that appears to be for a single rear camera. On the right side of the bar, there appears to be an ...
Wednesday January 22, 2025 6:01 pm PST by Joe Rossignol
A new Apple TV is expected to be released later this year. In this article, we recap rumored features and changes for the device.
The next Apple TV will be equipped with Apple's own combined Wi-Fi and Bluetooth chip, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. He said the chip supports Wi-Fi 6E, which would be an upgrade over the current Apple TV's standard Wi-Fi 6 support. Wi-Fi 6E extends the...
Friday January 17, 2025 2:42 pm PST by Joe Rossignol
iOS 19 is still around six months away from being announced, but a new leak has allegedly revealed a completely redesigned Camera app.
Based on footage it obtained, YouTube channel Front Page Tech shared a video showing what the new Camera app will apparently look like, with the key change being translucent menus for camera controls. Overall, the design of these menus looks similar to...
Friday January 24, 2025 1:55 am PST by Tim Hardwick
Apple is set to release iOS 18.3 next week, bringing further refinements to Apple Intelligence features, a couple of neat new capabilities to iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 devices, and bug fixes.
While not quite as packed with new features as Apple's preceding iOS 18 point releases, iOS 18.3 still introduces capabilities that aim to make your iPhone smarter and more intuitive. Below, we've...
Wednesday January 22, 2025 9:39 am PST by Joe Rossignol
New information has surfaced that indicates the rumored iPhone SE 4, iPad 11, and new iPad Air models are nearing launch.
A private account on social media platform X today revealed that iOS 18.3 or iPadOS 18.3 will be preinstalled on all of those upcoming devices when they are released. It is still unclear exactly when the devices will launch, but this information suggests that Apple will...
Less speakers worst sound. I honestly think the new iPad Pro should have more speakers. It gives you better sound and sound quality.
Fewer speakers doesn't equate to worse sound. Apple could use a higher quality speaker to deliver better sound. We don't know. Fewer speakers just equates to fewer speakers. If true, I'd be more inclined to think Apple would be using a higher quality component instead of offering degraded sound on their top tablet offering.
I hope they don’t start following the path of iPhones/Macs and make iPad gradually thicker and thicker. It feels really great right now, and it’s important in such a big device.
