Tweaked iPad and New 'iPad Mini' Said to Closely Follow Next-Generation iPhone Launch

In addition to coverage of all-new iPod touch and iPod nano models in his report released earlier today, KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo also offered more predictions about Apple's iOS device plans for the September-October timeframe. According to Kuo, Apple is looking to launch the next-generation iPhone in September, perhaps closer to the beginning of the month. But with component shortages and limited on-sale time during the quarter following an expected pullback from consumers in expectation of the launch, he predicts only a modest bump in unit sales over the second quarter's numbers.

iPhone 5 to debut in September. But due to in-cell touch panel and casing yield rate limits, ability to offset older models' shipments decrease will be moderate.

On the iPad front, Kuo is expecting the iPad mini to debut later in September following component ramping in August. He predicts sales of just 1.8 million units during the short time the device will be on sale during the third quarter, exploding to overtake the full-size iPad in the fourth quarter with an estimate of over 13 million units.

ipad mini mockup iphone
Mockup of 7.85-inch "iPad mini" next to an iPhone (courtesy of CiccareseDesign)

Interestingly, Kuo also claims that Apple will be tweaking the internals of the current full-size iPad around the same time, making changes to address thermal issues and reduce costs. Digitimes had previously claimed that Apple would be revamping the third-generation iPad later this year with a thinner enclosure, IGZO display, and new heat dissipation capabilities, but Kuo's sources indicate that the changes will be invisible to users.

Though shipments of iPad mini’s components will start in August, the new iPad line will end production, ready for transition to a modified New iPad line. As such, component shipments will drop in August as iPad mini’s components shipments growth will be offset. On a side note, the modified New iPad shares the same exterior as the original model, but contains modifications to correct its thermal dissipation problem and lower-cost components.

Overall, Kuo is predicting massive iPhone and iPad sales for the fourth quarter of 2012 once the new models have full quarters of sales to build upon. His estimates put total iPhone sales at over 55 million and iPad sales at nearly 24 million during the quarter, spurred in large part by momentum from the iPhone and iPad mini launches.

Related Roundups: iPad, iPad mini
Related Forums: iPad, iPhone

Popular Stories

Generic iOS 19 Feature Mock Light

iOS 19 Leak Reveals All-New Design

Friday January 17, 2025 2:42 pm PST by
iOS 19 is still around six months away from being announced, but a new leak has allegedly revealed a completely redesigned Camera app. Based on footage it obtained, YouTube channel Front Page Tech shared a video showing what the new Camera app will apparently look like, with the key change being translucent menus for camera controls. Overall, the design of these menus looks similar to...
2024 iPhone Boxes Feature

Apple Changes Trade-In Values for iPhones, iPads, Macs, and More

Thursday January 16, 2025 6:45 am PST by
Apple today adjusted estimated trade-in values for select iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple Watch models in the U.S., according to its website. Some values increased, while others decreased. The changes were not too significant, with most values rising or dropping by $5 to $50. We have outlined some examples below: Device New Value Old Value iPhone 15 Pro Max Up to $630 U ...
2024 App Store Awards

Apple Explains Why It Removed TikTok From the App Store in the U.S.

Sunday January 19, 2025 6:58 am PST by
Apple on late Saturday removed TikTok from the App Store in the U.S., and it has now explained why it was required to take this action. Last year, the U.S. passed a law that required Chinese company ByteDance to divest its ownership of TikTok due to potential national security risks, or else the platform would be banned. That law went into effect today, and companies like Apple and Google...
Generic iOS 18

Everything New in iOS 18.3 Beta 3

Thursday January 16, 2025 12:39 pm PST by
Apple provided the third beta of iOS 18.3 to developers today, and while the betas have so far been light on new features, the third beta makes some major changes to Notification Summaries and also tweaks a few other features. Notification Summary Changes Apple made multiple changes to Notification Summaries in response to complaints about inaccurate summaries of news headlines. For...
iOS 19 Roundup Feature

iOS 19 Rumored to Be Compatible With These iPhones

Saturday January 18, 2025 10:28 am PST by
iOS 19 will not drop support for any iPhone models, according to French website iPhoneSoft.fr. The report cited a source who said iOS 19 will be compatible with any iPhone that can run iOS 18, which would mean the following models: iPhone 16 iPhone 16 Plus iPhone 16 Pro iPhone 16 Pro Max iPhone 15 iPhone 15 Plus iPhone 15 Pro iPhone 15 Pro Max iPhone 14 iPhon...
iPad Pro vs iPhone 17 Air Feature

Here's How Thin the iPhone 17 Air Might Be

Friday January 17, 2025 3:38 pm PST by
For the last several months, we've been hearing rumors about a redesigned version of the iPhone 17 that Apple might call the iPhone 17 "Air," or something along those lines. It's going to replace the iPhone 17 Plus as Apple's fourth iPhone option, and it will be offered alongside the iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro, and iPhone 17 Pro Max. We know the iPhone 17 Air is going to be super slim, but...
mail categories macos

Apple's Redesigned Mail App is Expanding to the Mac — Here's When

Sunday January 19, 2025 6:02 am PST by
Apple plans to expand the iPhone's redesigned Mail app to the Mac starting with macOS 15.4, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. The first macOS 15.4 beta should be made available in the coming weeks, and Apple has previously suggested that the iOS 18.4, iPadOS 18.4, and macOS 15.4 series of software updates will be released to the public in April. The revamped Mail app debuted on all...
apple power beats pro 2

Powerbeats Pro 2 Coming Soon: Apple to Announce Them 'Imminently'

Sunday January 19, 2025 8:25 am PST by
In September, Apple said that it would be launching Powerbeats Pro 2 in 2025, and it appears the wireless earbuds are coming very soon. Powerbeats Pro 2 images found in iOS 18 code In his Power On newsletter today, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said the Powerbeats Pro 2 are "due imminently." In addition to Apple filing the Powerbeats Pro 2 in regulatory databases last month, Gurman said Apple is...

Top Rated Comments

arn Avatar
163 months ago
Accurate or not, they're still only predictions. I could predict a new iPhone this fall and I would likely be correct. But that doesn't grant me any credibility as a reliable source.
He's gotten very specific details correct in the past. So yes, if you could regularly offer accurate predictions with specifics, then yes, you would be considered a reliable source.

here are some that were on target:

https://www.macrumors.com/2012/06/08/apple-to-introduce-third-macbook-line-with-retina-display-at-wwdc/
https://www.macrumors.com/2012/04/23/apple-predicted-to-discontinue-17-inch-macbook-pro/
https://www.macrumors.com/2011/09/12/apple-sending-ios-5-to-iphone-assemblers-at-end-of-september-no-sign-of-redesigned-iphone-5/
https://www.macrumors.com/2011/07/22/apple-planning-to-introduce-white-ipod-touch-later-this-year/
https://www.macrumors.com/2011/07/19/apple-phasing-out-white-macbook-in-favor-of-entry-level-macbook-air/

Were they just lucky guesses? Well, if so, he guesses well. So, we should still listen to him. :)

arn
Score: 20 Votes (Like | Disagree)
nick_elt Avatar
163 months ago
Why do people keep referring to the 6th iPhone as the iPhone 5?

Thread ruined. By this guy ^^^^^^^
Score: 14 Votes (Like | Disagree)
arn Avatar
163 months ago
I stopped reading at "analyst".

except he's been regularly accurate in the past.

arn
Score: 14 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Reaktor5 Avatar
163 months ago
Why are iPad bezels so disproportionately large compared to the bezel on the iPhone? Is it just to increase size in order to accommodate a bigger battery? How many of you would prefer smaller width & height dimensions and a little more thickness, to achieve the same mass of battery?

My argument: Shrink the bezel and the frontal area. It's not thickness that determines whether a device will fit in a pocket, at least not where thin iPads are involved; it's width & height.
I think it's so you can hold it in a comfortable way without touching the screen causing sporadic movements from your fingers.
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Caliber26 Avatar
163 months ago
Why are iPad bezels so disproportionately large compared to the bezel on the iPhone? Is it just to increase size in order to accommodate a bigger battery? How many of you would prefer smaller width & height dimensions and a little more thickness, to achieve the same mass of battery?

My argument: Shrink the bezel and the frontal area. It's not thickness that determines whether a device will fit in a pocket, at least not where thin iPads are involved; it's width & height.
The way you hold an iPhone is very different than how you hold an iPad. If the bezel were thinner, your fingers would provide unwanted input.

Accurate or not, they're still only predictions. I could predict a new iPhone this fall and I would likely be correct. But that doesn't grant me any credibility as a reliable source.

(Yes, I realize these posts are more generated for [s]discussion[/s] site clicks than actual news. But reiterating the same few predictions from analysts gets tiresome after a while)
Fixed. ;)
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Reaktor5 Avatar
163 months ago
Apple is not going to tweak the new iPad until next year.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)