Leaked Photo Sparks iPad 3 Rumours And Possible Release Date

A leaked picture purporting to be the back housing of the iPad 3 has triggered a wave of new rumours about the device, with speculation suggesting that it will launch on 9 March.

The image, obtained by Repair Labs Blog, has led to suggestions that the the iPad 3 will have a bigger battery due to the different shape of the logic board.

Wishful Thinking

Earlier reports by Bloomberg suggested that the next iPad will support Long-Term Evolution (LTE) 4G connectivity which has higher power requirements than 3G, meaning that a bigger battery makes sense.

One of the most anticipated features of the iPad 3 is the rumoured Retina Display, which could have a resolution of up to 2048×1536 pixels. Repair Labs confirms that the screen has been re-designed, but whether it will be capable of beyond-HD resolutions, remains to be seen. Earlier it was hinted that Sharp will be responsible for manufacturing displays for the upcoming tablet.

Although some rumours suggested that the new tablet will feature an A6 quad-core processor, it now looks likely that it will only contain a dual-core CPU, albeit a more powerful one. It is believed that the tablet will now launch on 9 March, the same day as the company is expected to release version 5.1 of iOS.

Any successor to the iPad 2 will have a tough act to follow as its predecessor sold out across the UK within just 24 hours when it was released in April 2011. A new iPad in 2012 has been described as a “dead certainty” and is also expected to feature Apple’s voice activated digital assistant, Siri.