Rumors now pointing to March 22 for iPhone and iPad event
It’s been widely rumored that Apple is planning an event on March 15 to unveil the “iPhone 5se” and a new iPad Air. In recent news reported by South Korean website UnderKG, that date might be shifting to March 22 instead.
The rumored spring 2016 event
We've been told for a while now that the 4-inch iPhone was coming in March
Various sources have been suggesting a March release for the new 4-inch iPhone. It’s interesting, because it marks the first time Apple has released a new handset in the spring instead of autumn. The rumored date of March 15 first came from 9to5Mac, but the latest sources suggest that Apple is having its employees clear their schedule around the time of March 22, instead.
Apple allegedly have sent notifications to leave the schedule available from the 21st to 23rd, making us guess that the event will occur a week after the original known date.
- UnderKGWhat will the event have in store for us?
UnderKG doesn’t have an extensive track record of predicting Apple’s product happenings, but the site did get its hands on the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus ahead of the handsets’ launch. If UnderKG is correct, that means we’ll have to wait an extra week to find out exactly what Apple has in store for us at the spring event. Of course, we’ve got rumors, so let’s rehash what we think we know.
The 4-inch iPhone 5se
Courtesy of Twitter user OnLeaks
The latest schematic leaks show a device that looks remarkably similar to the iPhone 6, just smaller. This contradicts earlier reports that the new handset would resemble the iPhone 5s, except for possibly curved glass like on the current iPhone 6s. The internals are expected to be very similar to the chips found within the iPhone 6s.
To wit, we’re expecting to find the following within the new handset.
- The same 8 megapixel rear camera and 1.2 megapixel front camera systems from the iPhone 6
- Support for larger panoramas and autofocus for video recording
- Barometer for tracking elevation in the Health app
- An NFC chip for Apple Pay
- The A8 and M8 chips from the iPhone 6
- Bluetooth 4.2, VoLTE, and 802.11ac WiFi chips from the iPhone 6s
- Live Photos from the iPhone 6s
- Same Silver, Space Gray, Silver, & Rose Gold color options as the 6s line
Earlier rumors give us some insight about the internals of the next 4-inch iPhone
The next iteration of the iPad Pro
Initial rumors pointed to an iPad Air 3 being revealed at the March event. Lately, though, the speculations have pointed to a device much more akin to the iPad Pro than the iPad Air, just smaller. According to 9to5Mac, it’s the 9.7-inch iPad Pro, but I’d rather they call it the iPad Pro mini, to be honest.
Here’s what we think we know about the upcoming 9.7-inch iPad Pro.
- It will have the same A9X processor and memory upgrades as the 12.4-inch iPad Pro.
- The device will feature the upgraded display technology to support Apple Pencil.
- The 9.7-inch iPad Pro will include a Smart Connector, and Apple is designed a smaller Smart Keyboard to go along with the tablet.
- The tablet will include quad stereo speakers.
- Color and storage capacity options will mirror the larger iPad Pro.
- Pricing will be closer in line with the iPad Air the device will succeed.
My take on it all
I have a love/hate relationship with reporting on rumors. It’s fascinating to see what people begin speculating about upcoming products, but it can also be frustrating to uncover which rumors are true and which are false. We’re getting close to the time for this event, though, so I’ll leave you with a quote from our own Bryan Wolfe: “Late Apple product rumors are usually true.”