There was a new iPad announced with the Pencil 3 launch, just not what anyone expected

Prior to Apple announcing its new, cheaper Apple Pencil, there was a lot of chatter around the possibility of new iPad models being launched in time for the holidays. A new iPad mini was touted, for example.

However, the Pencil unveiling came and went and no iPads emerged. Or so we thought. It seems that Apple did indeed refresh one iPad model, after all.

Apple introduced a tweaked version of its 10.9-inch standard iPad in China – which adds eSIM to the Wi-Fi + Cellular version of the tablet in the region.

Sadly, that's not exactly what we'd hoped for, nor expected, but it does make sense of why we were hearing speculation on a new iPad appearing on certification sites.

Will we get a new iPad before Christmas?

So the next question is whether or not there'll be more than this mostly disappointing revelation. Will Apple release a new iPad this year?

Reports continue to suggest that it could. And the concept of an iPad mini 7 appearing sometime soon is still alive. We certainly think there's an eager market for one (not least in the T3 offices).

Apple expert Mark Gurman has claimed that we won't see a new iPad or two this month, but he hasn't said anything about November. Considering the timing for the launch of the cheaper Pencil, it'd make a lot of sense to have new compatible devices to go with it.

Maybe Apple is waiting for the Black Friday sales to pass first. In which case, you should look out for deals on the iPad mini 6 – there could be some cracking bargains ahead.

What's most likely though is that we'll get a global iPad refresh early next year instead, maybe around spring time to help mark the 14th anniversary of the original device (3 April).

And hopefully we'll get to see some new Pro models next year too, which will reportedly come with the launch of the new M3 chip.