Apple iPad 2 Rumour Roundup

Literally months and months of rumours havecome about when it comes to the upcoming iPad 2. While there are many claims, only a fewof themwe feel thatare plausible and we have taken the libertyto feature them here.

iPad 2 body: thinner and lighter?

Through many leaked cases made for the upcoming iPad 2, as well as mockups seen at Macworld, we can conclude that the successor will feature a thinner shell than the first born. On top of shedding weight in that slimmer shell, it should feature a flat back with sides tappering in. While the general consensus is that it will be made of aluminium, there is a rumour out there that the device will be covered in carbon fibertoreduce the weightand offers scratch resistant.

One of the most recent rumour is thatthe tablet may feature a white face as seen in the leaked front bezel found in China. If Apple do drop the whitey on us, it would not be surpising for Apple to launch it alongside a black version.

No Retina but better screen?

Since the introduction of the Retina screen on the iPhone 4, many have expected Apple to incorporate that into the next iPad. But this myth was debunked by analysts and manufacturers as it would require more juice and raw power to drive the tablet. Instead, we believe thatscreen will have the same size and resolution, but thinner design (which gives the iPad 2 a thinner shell too). Quality of the screen could be improved too.

The insides

Whats the point of including the same power graphics, CPU andRAM in the newer version? Thats why many speculated that Apple will be using a faster ARM Cortex A9-based unit with dual cores. Some have called that A5,and some A8. Guess we will only find out when it is officially out.

Cameras

Many other tablet makers have included cameras in their own versions and Apple has been criticised for not including any. With reference to FaceTime in the iOS 4.3 betas for iPad, and leaked iPad 2 cases with camera holes on the back, we are extremely certain that Apple will include a front and rear camera for video-taking, photography and FaceTime (for video conferencing). The front camera is said to be of thesame resolutionto those found on the iPhone 4 (VGA-resolution). The back, on the other hand, should feature a 3.2-megapixel camera that is capable of recording HD videos.

Storage

It is sort of Apples tradition to bump up their products internal storage. But judgingfrom the sizes of current iPad and flash RAM prices, it would be unlikely. We go with the guess that Apple would stick to their offering of 16GB, 32GB and 64GB. Internal storage size will be somewhat irrevelant if Apple really launch their cloud-based iTunes and MobileMe.

Holes

With closer analysis of the holes of the leaked iPad 2 cases, it can be said that Apple will still retain its 30-pin iPod connector. Some might argue that Apple is scrapping that due to recent EU rulings. But we expect Apple to just go around that issue with a 30-pin to micro-USB adaptor.

The large hole at the bottom left of the iPad is expected to be a much superior speaker. But the hole that raises more questions is the "new" hole on the top of the iPad 2 cases. Some say it is a mini DisplayPort, for easier connectivity to HDTV screens. But it might be a hybrid port featuring the recently released Thunderbolt. It is unlikely to be a USB port.

In a nutshell...

There are other rumours that circles around the next iPad, but these are the ones which we feel might actually come true for iPad 2. To find out the truth, remember to stay tuned to our coverage of Apples media event tomorrow.