2013 iPad will be lighter and thinner

Apple generally release their new iPad model around March/April, but due to the late refresh last year, it would appear the company won't be refreshing their tablet until later this year. KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo says that he doesn't feel the next generation iPad will hit until ‘the fall'.

Chi Kuo says that production should ramp up around August time for release in the coming months. But what is going to change with the new release?

Apple have received some criticism for their last iPad, due to the thickness compared with competing product from Samsung. Kuo says that he thinks the upcoming release will be 15% thinner than the iPad 4. The iPad 3 measures 9.4mm thick, so the size would drop to 7.5mm-8.0mm.

He also says the weight will drop by 25%. The iPad 4 weighs 652 grams. A drop to 500 grams would certainly redress some of the current concerns. The iPad mini for instance weighs only 308 grams.

Kuo said the iPad 5 will ‘run on an A7X processor, and sport cameras with similar specs to the iPad 4's (front HD, rear 5MP). The casing shape and color (silver and black) and narrow bezel design will be similar to the iPad Mini's.'

Apple are planning to use new screen technology, which will be thinner than the current generation and the iPad 5 will have a smaller battery. The new panel technology will demand less power however, so battery reduction size shouldn't mean significantly reduced battery life. Additionally the A7X processor is built on the Samsung 28nm process, so again, it should be more power efficient.

Kuo said “We therefore think that iPad 5's battery capacity will be 25-30% smaller, at 8,500-9,000mAh, than iPad 4's, and the battery's thickness will be 15-20% smaller, and the number of cells will be reduced to two from three”

Kitguru says: Apple, as always, have remained silent on new products this year, but we expect more news to leak soon on the upcoming products.

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