If you're thinking about splashing some cash on a brand-new iPad today – you should probably hold-off for a couple of days.
That's because Apple is holding a hardware event in New York on Tuesday October 30, 2018 that promises to bring a slew of shiny new iPad models, as well as updated Macs.
If you're going to spend some of your hard-earned cash on a new iPad Pro, which start from £619 in the Apple Store, you don't want your new toy to be outdated within hours, right?
According to the latest whispers from inside the secretive Cupertino company, Apple will unveil new iPad Pro models during its upcoming announcement, with a new fifth-generation iPad Mini not scheduled to launch until early next year.
Apple is widely-tipped to overhaul the iPad Pro range with an iPhone X-style redesign, complete with an edge-to-edge screen that follows the curve of the chassis, as well as facial recognition via Face ID. Yes, it's true. The all-new 2018 iPad Pro will purportedly drop the circular home button from previous models in favour of swipe-gestures and Face ID. However, unlike the iPhone XS and other Face ID-enabled iPhones, the iPad display will not have a notch.
Despite the new iPad Pro models sporting thinner bezels, the borders around the display will still be wide enough to accommodate the TrueDepth camera system needed to recognise users' faces to unlock the tablet and authenticate payments.
Earlier reports from the supply chain suggest Apple has managed to tweak its Face ID system to work in both portrait and landscape orientations – something not currently possible with the latest iPhone models.
An alleged CAD model for the upcoming iPad Pro shows a number of the rumoured design changes coming to the high-end tablet range, including the move away from Lightning to USB-C, as well as the edge-to-edge display
iPad Pro is also rumoured to drop the Lightning Connector – the reversible, universal cable used to sync and charge all iOS devices since its introduction with the iPhone 5 – in favour of USB-C.
Rumours of a move away from Lightning surfaced earlier this week courtesy of iOS software developer Guilherme Rambo, who unearthed a slew of references to the USB Type-C port inside the latest iOS 12.1 beta.
According to the unreleased software, the USB-C port will be used to output 4K HDR video footage to external displays. That's a significant upgrade compared to previous versions of the tablet, which were only able to push 1080p HD video to external displays using the £49 ($49) Lightning Digital AV Adapter accessory.
Elsewhere, it looks like the dual-camera set-up found on the flagship iPhone models will not make the jump to the high-end iPad range.
According to iOS developer Rambo, a new version of the Apple Pencil with AirPods-style proximity-based pairing will launch alongside the updated iPads.
One of the references unearthed in the iOS 12.1 beta referred to an as-yet unannounced device labelled "iPad2018Fall device", which seems to suggest an official reveal from Apple can't be too far off. From time to time, Apple holds a hardware event in October to refresh its iPad and MacBook line before the holidays.
