As rumors of a larger iPad Air model have been circulating, 91Mobiles has shared several new CAD renders of what the upcoming 12.9-inch iPad Air could look like.
As you can see from the renders, this upcoming model will look largely similar to the fourth- and fifth-generation iPad Air, but with a larger size to accommodate the larger display. What you’ll also notice in the renders is that the camera cutout is pill-shaped. However, I believe that the pill-shaped cutout will serve as a design schematic for case/folio manufacturers as opposed to being a redesign of the camera system. Remember those previous CAD renders for the 10th generation iPad from 2022? We saw the pill-shaped cutout for the camera; however, the final design for the iPad 10 has a round camera bump with a microphone underneath it, the same layout as on the current iPad Air.
Speaking of the camera layout, the iPad lineup is a bit inconsistent when it comes to the camera system. The iPad mini has an LED flash; however, the current iPad Air, which is priced higher than the mini, lacks one. If you step up to the iPad Pro, you’ll also find an LED flash. So we may see an LED flash underneath the camera for the next iPad Air to keep the line consistent, similar to the camera layouts on the current iPad mini and the 2018 iPad Pro.
Other features that we may see based on these CAD renders are Touch ID on the top button, the same portrait front-facing camera as before, the Smart Connector on the back, the magnetic charger on the right side for charging the Apple Pencil 2, and landscape stereo speakers. You also may notice the thicker bezels on the renders, so we may see a slightly smaller display that’s less than 12.9 inches (diagonal) to allow the device to maintain the same dimensions as the existing 12.9-inch iPad Pro so that it will still work with the existing Magic Keyboard for that iPad Pro.
It will be great to see Apple offering an additional larger size for another mainstream product to give customers more options, especially for those who prefer a larger screen without spending the extra money for features they won’t need. We’ve seen it with the iPhone 14 Plus, the iPhone 15 Plus, and more recently the 15-inch MacBook Air.
The upcoming 13-inch iPad Air, along with the existing 10.9-inch Air, will feature the M2 chip that’s used in both the current iPad Pro as well as the upcoming Vision Pro, which preorders start yesterday and will be out February 2. The next iPad Pro, which is expected to have a dramatic redesign, is also expected to pack the M3 chip that’s found in the latest iMac and base MacBook Pro. We expect the next updates to the iPad Air and Pro to come out around March.
