Evidence is piling up that Apple is planning another virtual event for the spring, and we’re starting to get a strong idea of what to expect.
The Korean website Economic Daily News, citing two leakers on Twitter, reports that Apple plans to hold a virtual keynote on 16 March. The two Twitter users, FrontTron and LeaksApplePro, give the same date for the event and did so within an hour of one another; it’s not clear at this time whether they base these predictions on the same source.
As evidence goes this is fairly thin stuff, but comparable rumours, albeit mostly without a specific date, have been circulating since the beginning of January. Macotakara for one claimed that Apple was planning a March keynote with iPads as the focus.
One pundit who did venture a date a while ago is Jon Prosser, who indeed plumped for 16 March as long ago as October. Admittedly he did so in a tweet that claimed said event would be headlined by the AirPods Studio, which it turns out a) are not called that and b) were launched at the end of 2020, but it’s otherwise impressive prescience from Prosstradamus.
Okay, how about “One More Thing” ?
After this November ARM Mac event, the next Apple Event (currently a digital event) will happen on Tuesday, March 16, 2021 🗓
Event headliner will be AirPods Studio (B515) https://t.co/UxqQr6je1c pic.twitter.com/oCxVhg3owb
— Jon Prosser (@jon_prosser)
October 16, 2020
The current consensus is that Apple plans to introduce two iPads next month: updated versions of the iPad Pro and iPad mini. The iPad Pro is likely to be equipped with a souped-up variant of the A14 processor installed in the iPhone 12 series, while 5G is almost certain to be added to the cellular models, after the latest smartphones from Apple have made the leap to the latest standard.
The new iPad mini should be even more interesting: Apple reportedly wants to narrow the bezels and enlarge the display, producing a screen diagonal of 8.4in instead of 7.9in. Most likely, Apple will repeat the chassis design from the iPad Pro and iPhone 12, so the device will have squarer, more angular edges.
Economic Daily News also speculates that Touch ID will disappear from the front and that a new fingerprint sensor will be installed under the screen.
In addition to the two iPads, according to rumours, Apple also wants to introduce its AirTags Bluetooth trackers and, probably as a side note, expand the reach of Apple Card.
Catch up on the latest rumours in our What to expect at Apple’s spring 2021 event news hub.
This article originally appeared on Macwelt. Translation by David Price.
