It all started with iOS 9 after the Apple operating system allegedly left an Easter egg in its beta version that strongly suggests support for a forthcoming super-sized iPad.
After the initial information spread, Chance Miller of 9to5Mac reported that the iPad Pro, as many now call it, will likely have a resolution of "2732×2048, which at 12.9-inches, comes out to 263 pixels-per-inch."
At this size, Horace Dediu of Asymco tweets, "the biggest iPad will be bigger than the smallest Mac." Yes, the lines are crossing!
The source of this speculation is an Irish developer named Steve Troughton Smith. He tweeted this discovery a few days ago: "Also new in iOS 9 – UIKeyboard seems to scale to a much larger heretofore unseen iPad screen size." The larger built-in keyboard only makes sense in the context of a larger iPad.
The pixel width of this new device would be equal to the height of an existing iPad Air 2. It seems logical that it could run two full-size iPad apps in split screen mode in iOS9. The cramped keyboard experience of the iPad (on-screen or as an add-on) limits its capabilities in terms of business or academic productivity.
However, the required feature for the iPad Pro to be a workable solution for businesses and schools may not be part of the major iOS9 release in September 2015. Multi-user support, the ability for different workers or students to share a device and securely load their unique data at login, is apparently "still in the works," according to 9to5Mac.
Another feature that iOS9 appears to support is a stylus. Steve Jobs famously hated the idea, but Microsoft and Adobe have shown the utility of pen devices in the touch environment. iOS9 has "predictive touch" built-in that would make gesture recognition faster and more accurate for pen devices. Microsoft’s Surface tablets have had better pen support than the iPad since the beginning.
Pricing for the iPad Pro will need to be competitive with the Surface Pro 3 and a premium over the iPad Air 2. The Surface Pro 3 starts at US$ 799 for the 64GB model, which is a US$ 200 premium over the 64GB iPad Air 2. Bracketing on the other side is the new 512GB MacBook at US$ 1,599, which comes in US$ 200 under the high-end of the Surface Pro 3 line. Could the price fall within this bracket: US$ 799 - US$ 1,599? In this case, the devices would then be roughly double the cost of the current high-end iPads and probably range in memory from 64GB to 512GB like the Surface Pro 3.
The question everyone will be asking about the iPad Pro is if it can reverse the slowing of iPad sales. Certainly the iPad has been a disappointment in education (just ask the Los Angeles Unified School District). And a very high-profile collaboration with IBM on apps for business verticals has yet to move the needle visibly. The issue is whether larger tablets like the Surface Pro 3 and the iPad Pro will define a new category that competes successfully with svelte laptops like the MacBook. If so, there will be a horse race and Apple may well be able to be very competitive with Microsoft.
The proof will be with the Pros.
After the initial information spread, Chance Miller of 9to5Mac reported that the iPad Pro, as many now call it, will likely have a resolution of "2732×2048, which at 12.9-inches, comes out to 263 pixels-per-inch."
At this size, Horace Dediu of Asymco tweets, "the biggest iPad will be bigger than the smallest Mac." Yes, the lines are crossing!
The source of this speculation is an Irish developer named Steve Troughton Smith. He tweeted this discovery a few days ago: "Also new in iOS 9 – UIKeyboard seems to scale to a much larger heretofore unseen iPad screen size." The larger built-in keyboard only makes sense in the context of a larger iPad.
The pixel width of this new device would be equal to the height of an existing iPad Air 2. It seems logical that it could run two full-size iPad apps in split screen mode in iOS9. The cramped keyboard experience of the iPad (on-screen or as an add-on) limits its capabilities in terms of business or academic productivity.
However, the required feature for the iPad Pro to be a workable solution for businesses and schools may not be part of the major iOS9 release in September 2015. Multi-user support, the ability for different workers or students to share a device and securely load their unique data at login, is apparently "still in the works," according to 9to5Mac.
Another feature that iOS9 appears to support is a stylus. Steve Jobs famously hated the idea, but Microsoft and Adobe have shown the utility of pen devices in the touch environment. iOS9 has "predictive touch" built-in that would make gesture recognition faster and more accurate for pen devices. Microsoft’s Surface tablets have had better pen support than the iPad since the beginning.
Pricing for the iPad Pro will need to be competitive with the Surface Pro 3 and a premium over the iPad Air 2. The Surface Pro 3 starts at US$ 799 for the 64GB model, which is a US$ 200 premium over the 64GB iPad Air 2. Bracketing on the other side is the new 512GB MacBook at US$ 1,599, which comes in US$ 200 under the high-end of the Surface Pro 3 line. Could the price fall within this bracket: US$ 799 - US$ 1,599? In this case, the devices would then be roughly double the cost of the current high-end iPads and probably range in memory from 64GB to 512GB like the Surface Pro 3.
The question everyone will be asking about the iPad Pro is if it can reverse the slowing of iPad sales. Certainly the iPad has been a disappointment in education (just ask the Los Angeles Unified School District). And a very high-profile collaboration with IBM on apps for business verticals has yet to move the needle visibly. The issue is whether larger tablets like the Surface Pro 3 and the iPad Pro will define a new category that competes successfully with svelte laptops like the MacBook. If so, there will be a horse race and Apple may well be able to be very competitive with Microsoft.
The proof will be with the Pros.
Comments
Post a Comment