How confident are we that the iPad 3 is coming soon?

[Imp]

Can't really see why I'd get an iPad 3 over a 2 except for beefier specs... Show me what I'm missing?

Personally, I'd be more impressed by a successful Windows tablet that would work well with my windows desktop and laptop.

 

[deathBOB]

Pretty darn sure that it's within q1 or q2 of this year? Basically i just inherited a refurbished iPad 2 less than 2 weeks old. Can't return it so I'm wondering if I should flip it and hold out a bit for the 3?

I'm perfectly fine sitting on my touchpad for a while but if I can get an iOS device soon it would be nice. I think objectively that after using webos android and iOS for tablets that even an iPad 1 will far surpass my tablet experience on my touchpad. So iPad 3 or not? Just hoping this doesn't turn into the bust that the ipod touch gen 3 was....

OP, consider the cost of not having a tablet to use while you wait for a release.

 

[runawayprisoner]

I would bet that A6 is a quad core A9 like the rumors have stated but that it keeps the SGX543MP2 like the iPad 2 and iPhone 4s. In the past Apple has been content to reuse the same gpu for two generations and it gives them less hardware changes to have to deal with.

That's possible if it's an A9 design.

But if it's an A15 design, which is also likely, then they might include a new GPU. Whichever the case, they still have pretty much the fastest mobile GPU on the market right now. The only concern is whether it's fast enough for 2048 x 1536 with 3D games...

 

[Aikouka]

I would bet that A6 is a quad core A9 like the rumors have stated but that it keeps the SGX543MP2 like the iPad 2 and iPhone 4s. In the past Apple has been content to reuse the same gpu for two generations and it gives them less hardware changes to have to deal with.

I think the reason why people have been suggesting a new GPU is because it shouldn't be that difficult to go from a SGX543MP2 to a SGX543MP4. Although, how badly would it affect the battery life in the tablet? It'd be interesting if they could gate the MP4 down to a MP2 (turn off 2 cores) and only turn them on when an app requests it or based on GPU usage.

 

[Fire&Blood]

A6 is likely a 28nm part, implementing MP4 is a good possibility since the ipad would have lower power draw and higher battery capacity than Vita. Can't speculate about another display resolution bump but will say that a redesigned ipad2 with the new chip on a die shrink is good enough, little incentive for Apple to do more since ipad holds firmly the lead at it's price point.

 

[Aikouka]

A6 is likely a 28nm part, implementing MP4 is a good possibility since the ipad would have lower power draw and higher battery capacity than Vita. Can't speculate about another display resolution bump but will say that a redesigned ipad2 with the new chip on a die shrink is good enough, little incentive for Apple to do more since ipad holds firmly the lead at it's price point.

Although, you can't forget that they can't just think of the A6 as an iPad part as it will most likely be used in the next iPhone as well.

 

[runawayprisoner]

Although, you can't forget that they can't just think of the A6 as an iPad part as it will most likely be used in the next iPhone as well.

They can just scale the clock speed down, and voila... Happened with the iPhone 4 and 4S. Even though it's the same part, it's not exactly the very same.