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Apple iPad Air 2 and Mini 3 leaked via iTunes ahead of today's event

by Mark Tyson on 16 October 2014, 12:20

Tags: Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL), iPad, PC

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Apple is holding a special event in Cupertino this evening. Usually an October event is used to unveil a new iPad(s) and the company has inadvertently let the cat out of the bag and confirmed, at least part of, the lineup already.

Thanks to the eagle eyed 9to5Mac website we have pictures and features of the iPad Air 2 and iPad Mini 3 plucked from Apple's own iTunes user guides which were published a bit too hastily. Conspiracy theorists please note: this 'leak' occurred within hours of the Google event launching the Nexus 6 and Nexus 9. However the offending iTunes page featuring the user guides has since been removed.

We previously reported on this Apple event and mused over industry sourced rumours that we would see new iPad Air and iPad Mini models. The possibility of a new 12.9-inch iPad 2-in-1 machine was also raised: a device which interestingly 'might' dual boost iOS and OS X… However the iTunes leak only offered up details on the new iPad Air and Mini but no further tablets or computers.

The screenshots captured by 9to5Mac confirm the naming of the new Apple iPads and their similar designs and incorporation of the Apple Touch ID sensor in their Home buttons – at last.

Another image from iTunes shows that 'Burst mode' photography is going to be built-in to the iPad Air 2, an Apple feature that debuted with the iPhone 5S (see above screencap). The new iPads are coming with Apple iOS 8.1 which we expect to become available to other iDevice users at the same time. Under the hood the new tablets should boast the updated A8X processor and better imaging hardware among their headlining improvements.

All will be (officially) revealed in a few hours in California. As mentioned above, we hope to see some new computers from Apple too.

HEXUS Forums :: 5 Comments

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Posted by The Hand - Thu 16 Oct 2014 13:36
It'll be interesting to see how these compare to the competition ie the Nexus 9 and Surface etc.
Posted by Jenny_Y8S - Thu 16 Oct 2014 15:00
The Hand;3395233
It'll be interesting to see how these compare to the competition ie the Nexus 9 and Surface etc.

Will it? Will it really?

As much as I love my iOS gadgets (I'm an iOS dev) comparing tablets with tablets is as dull as dishwater. These days they all have great screens, sufficient grunt to work and long lasting batteries. It's not the individual tablets people should be caring about but which ecosystem they want to buy into.

Apple : Great ecosystem (lots of compatible accessories), great App Store, good consistent experience, locked down so safe but not so hacktastic friendly.

Android: Okay ecosystem (depending on what you buy), great App Store, good (but not always consistent) experience. Great for tweaking at the expense of being ‘easier’ for malware to take root.

Windows : Poor ecosystem, poor (but improving) app store, good experience (if it will do what you want it to do). The only option if you need a tablet that will run full blown desktop apps on a form factor that isn't ideal for them.
Posted by Ulti - Thu 16 Oct 2014 18:50
From there it doesn't sound like there's much of a change. Just sold my iPad Mini Retina but I won't be buying the latest one. Going to get an Android tablet (Xiaomi MiPad - hurray for microSD!) and see how I get on with it.

I'm surprised at how much the iPad Mini Retina has dropped in value over less than a year.
Posted by Darth Sidious - Thu 16 Oct 2014 19:33
ipad air 2 for me
Posted by The Hand - Fri 17 Oct 2014 14:50
Jenny_Y8S
The Hand;3395233
It'll be interesting to see how these compare to the competition ie the Nexus 9 and Surface etc.

Will it? Will it really?

As much as I love my iOS gadgets (I'm an iOS dev) comparing tablets with tablets is as dull as dishwater. These days they all have great screens, sufficient grunt to work and long lasting batteries. It's not the individual tablets people should be caring about but which ecosystem they want to buy into.

Apple : Great ecosystem (lots of compatible accessories), great App Store, good consistent experience, locked down so safe but not so hacktastic friendly.

Android: Okay ecosystem (depending on what you buy), great App Store, good (but not always consistent) experience. Great for tweaking at the expense of being ‘easier’ for malware to take root.

Windows : Poor ecosystem, poor (but improving) app store, good experience (if it will do what you want it to do). The only option if you need a tablet that will run full blown desktop apps on a form factor that isn't ideal for them.

I was waiting for a shirty response from someone! ;) Always a given on Hexus forums nowadays. For me it's either the ipad mini 3 or Nexus 9 to be honest. Tweaking is always fun so the nexus might be logical but things such as better battery life and slick UI may give the iPad the edge (that's not saying android isn't slick). Colour/contrast is good with the ipad screen too.
There's build quality too, but it looks like a might be a dead heat or maybe a win for Google with HTC making the Nexus and they possibly have the best build quality out there with high end devices etc. Again ipad would be a very close second if this is the case.