Update 11:00AM ET: Apple has released a new Apple TV 4K with an A15 chip and a lower price, M2 iPad Pro, and completely redesign iPad starting at a higher $449 price. Stay tuned to Macworld.com for details.
As the days tick by in October, we’re all wondering the same thing: When is all that new rumored Apple hardware coming out? We may have our answer as Mark Gurman of Bloomberg claims that the first releases could arrive “in a matter of days.” In a follow-up tweet on Monday, he reported that they will arrive on Tuesday morning.
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At 8:30am ET, the Apple Store went offline, which is usually a sure sign that new products are on the way. Additionally a somewhat cryptic tweet shared by Tim Cook used the phrase “The possibilities are endless,” and the hashflag “TakeNote,” which shows a colorful Apple logo when used. The tweet is accompanied by a colorful animated image of someone repeatedly pinching a screen to zoom through rainbow-colored doodles. It features the song “Go On” by Panda Bear & Sonic Boom, which includes the phrase, “Something’s comin’ ’round the bend, something’s buried in the text.”
It’s almost certainly a reference to the iPad and Apple Pencil. The 10th-generation iPad is rumored to finally include support for the 2nd-gen Apple Pencil, which has a matte finish and a flatter design with magnetic charging. The 1st-gen Pencil still changed with a Lightning port.
In his weekly Power On newsletter, Gurman reports Apple is first planning to launch refreshes to its iPad Pro and entry-level iPad lines. The iPad Pro will look like the current models that haven’t changed since 2018 but bring more performance with an M2 chip. There are also rumors that the new iPad Pros could feature wireless and MagSafe charging, but the screen sizes and other specs are expected to remain the same, including the screen differences between the 11-inch and 12.9-inch models, as confirmed in a tweet by Ross Young of Display Supply Chain Consultants.
The 10th-generation iPad will reportedly see a much bigger change, with a larger 10.5-inch display, flat edges, and USB-C. There are conflicting rumors on how dramatic the redesign will be—it may lose the Home button altogether—and Gurman only says the new model will be “the most significant update to that line in several years.” A Twitter user spotted a new case for the 2022 iPad in Target that shows the new tablet will support the 2nd generation Apple Pencil.
Gurman’s follow-up tweet confirmed that “days” actually meant days and the iPads will arrive on Tuesday morning, likely at 8:30am ET. Gurman also says that iPadOS 16.1 won’t arrive until the week of October 24, so the new iPads likely won’t ship until next Friday, October 28.
Apple also reportedly has a flurry of new Macs ready to launch this month, including an M2 refreshes of the Mac mini and 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pros. They could arrive next week with macOS Monterey or land in early November.
Author: Michael Simon, Executive Editor, Macworld
Michael Simon has been covering Apple for more than 20 years. He started covering rumors with Spymac when the iPod was the iWalk, and has owned nearly every iPhone Apple has ever made. He lives in Connecticut with his wife, son, and far too many gadgets.