Apple's silence on the release of several favorite devices is worrying fans, but the iPad Mini's next iteration is still rumored to be coming very soon.
There are several rumors surrounding the iPad Mini 4, and most of them are positive. Most importantly, some experts are speculating that we may see the iPad Mini 4 as early as next month, but Apple has yet to make any hints or announcements.
The iPad Mini 4 is expected to make up for the weak reception from the iPad Mini 3, which did poorly in sales after many realized that it didn't improve much over the iPad Mini 2. The A7 processor used in the Mini 3 was quite old by the time it landed in the device last October, but the good news is that the Mini 4 is expected to feature the much more efficient and higher-powered A8 chip that's already in the iPhone 6. Or if the A9 is out by launch, that's also a good possibility.
Other spec rumors include 2 GB of RAM as found in the iPad Air 2, 802.11ac wireless connectivity, and possibly even more storage capacity. This is the reason GottaBeMobile is telling its readers to skip the iPad Mini 3 and just wait a bit longer for the Mini 4.
"The iPad mini 3 release back in October was a major disappointment, mostly because Apple didn't update it nearly asmuch as it did with the iPad Air 2. In fact, the only upgrades that the iPad mini 3 received over its iPad mini 2 predecessor was Touch ID and a gold color option," the site points out. "Other than that, the iPad mini 3 remains largely unchanged from the iPad mini 2 - same processor, same RAM, same screen, and everything in between."
Last week's Spring Forward event was hosted by Apple to showcase the new Apple Watch, and it turns out that the Cupertino-based company was also working on a new MacBook that seemingly took the place of both the MacBook Air and the MacBook Pro, but now we wonder if rumors about the iPad Mini line going away could also be true.
Apple seems to be consolidating its product lines with a possible disappearance of the iPod Touch in favor of the iPhone 6, but some believe that the increase in iPhone display size with the iPhone 6 Plus means the phasing out of the closely related iPad Mini.
After all, the most recent financial report from Apple shows that the iPad is now the company's "weakest link" as the iPad's share of the market continues to decline and the iPhone's share continues to rise.
"iPad momentum fell flat in the fourth quarter as overall tablet market growth continues to decline," according to The Motley Fool. "iPad sales have declined for four consecutive quarters, and Apple CEO Tim Cook and CFO Luca Maestri cautioned investors during its latest earnings call that iPad sales are unlikely to see a dramatic year-over-year improvement in the near future. Nevertheless, it is rumored that Apple could have two new iPad in the works in an attempt to reinvigorate tablet sales."
This would mean a serious slimming-down of the iPad line, including a possible nixxing of the rumored iPad Pro, as well. But whether or not we actually see the next generation of iPad Mini coming out this year, many don't agree with the April rumor, instead pinpointing the traditional September or Fall time frame.
