iPad leaks suggest no home button, USB-C and a new Pencil

Following their iPhone event, this month we’re bound to see the reveal of Apple’s upcoming products, like the new iPad Pro models and some updated Macs. Today, conveniently on the day Google is set to announce their new product lineup, we’ve seen leaks appear online offering insights into the iPad Pro 2018 and accompanying devices.

From the leaks, it’s evident that we will get four Wi-Fi-only models, as well as four cellular models — which translates to two of each type in two size options.

It’ll have a screen

The screens of all these devices will have the expected near edge-to-edge design seen on the iPhone X range (who wants bezels anyway?), and will likely be sans home button. That means that unlocking will occur via Apple’s Face ID feature that’s powered by the TrueDepth camera system. So we will see a bit of a bezel to house the front-facing cameras, sensors and other doohickeys Apple puts in its iPhone notches.

Face ID on the new iPad Pro will work in both portrait and landscape orientations, though it won’t work upside down, so you’re going to have to figure out which way is up without a home button.

It’ll have… USB-C?

Apple is likely launching its first tablet/smartphone with a USB-C port. This will make the device easier to connect/charge with Android fan-favourite cables. But the main reasoning behind this is exporting video, because the iPad is a media creation and consumption device in essence.

The new iPad Pro will be able to output 4K HDR video to external displays via this new addition. There will be a panel in the settings app for users to control output resolution, HDR, brightness and other settings for connected external displays.

It’ll get its own Pencil

We’ll likely see Apple launch an updated Pencil (not that there’s anything wrong with the old one) for the new iPad models. But now you’ll be able to connect your Pencil to the iPad through proximity, like the AirPods, rather than plugging it into the iPad.

There’s no indication whether the first-gen Pencil will be compatible with the new iPads, but we’re not quite sure whether the new iterations will include both a Lightning port and a USB-C port? Seeing as the original Pencil charges by plugging it into the Lightning port maybe the new iPads will ship with a USB-C-to-Lightning adapter… only for Apple to make it an optional $9 extra a device or two down the line?

We saw leaked renders of the upcoming iPad just before Apple’s iPhone event. These renders may turn out to be fake, but if the iPads this year turn out to be nearly as good looking as we’re being led to believe, we’ll take two please.

Source: 9to5Mac