iOS 9 iPad Keyboard Scales to Larger Size, Hinting Towards 'iPad Pro'

iPhone developer Steven Troughton-Smith has discovered that the new iPad keyboard on iOS 9 beta is capable of scaling to a larger size with rearranged keys, providing further evidence that Apple could be planning to release the much-rumored 12.9-inch "iPad Pro" in the future.

iOS 9 UIKeyboard iPad

UIKeyboard view on iOS 9 scales to a larger iPad size (Image: Twitter/Steve T-S)

At a larger resolution, the UIKeyboard view automatically adjusts with repositioned keys to fill the extra screen space available. Specifically, the new keyboard has wider keys, a new row of symbols at the top, Caps Lock and Tab keys on the far left and some other moved keys.

The secondary keyboard view has also gained the new chiclet-sized row of symbols and has enough room to fit all symbols and characters on one page, potentially eliminating the need for a tertiary keyboard view normally accessed by tapping the "#+=" button on the left or right.

iOS 9's new Slide Over, Split View and Picture in Picture features on iPad Air 2 further suggest that Apple may be working on a larger iPad, as the new split-screen multitasking views would be ideal for a larger screen and could benefit from the tablet's increased processing power.


The so-called "iPad Pro" is rumored to feature a 12.9-inch flexible display with increased pressure sensitivity, built-in NFC chip, Force Touch, USB-C port and possibly a pressure-sensitive Bluetooth stylus. The tablet would also likely have an A9 processor with 2GB of RAM and Touch ID.

Related Roundup: iPad Pro
Buyer's Guide: iPad Pro (Buy Now)
Related Forum: iOS 9

Popular Stories

iOS 26

15 New Things Your iPhone Can Do in iOS 26.2

Friday December 5, 2025 9:40 am PST by
Apple is about to release iOS 26.2, the second major point update for iPhones since iOS 26 was rolled out in September, and there are at least 15 notable changes and improvements worth checking out. We've rounded them up below. Apple is expected to roll out iOS 26.2 to compatible devices sometime between December 8 and December 16. When the update drops, you can check Apple's servers for the ...
Intel Inside iPhone Feature

Apple's Return to Intel Rumored to Extend to iPhone

Friday December 5, 2025 10:08 am PST by
Intel is expected to begin supplying some Mac and iPad chips in a few years, and the latest rumor claims the partnership might extend to the iPhone. In a research note with investment firm GF Securities this week, obtained by MacRumors, analyst Jeff Pu said he and his colleagues "now expect" Intel to reach a supply deal with Apple for at least some non-pro iPhone chips starting in 2028....
iPhone 14 Pro Dynamic Island

iPhone 18 Pro Leak Adds New Evidence for Under-Display Face ID

Monday December 8, 2025 4:54 am PST by
Apple is actively testing under-screen Face ID for next year's iPhone 18 Pro models using a special "spliced micro-transparent glass" window built into the display, claims a Chinese leaker. According to "Smart Pikachu," a Weibo account that has previously shared accurate supply-chain details on Chinese Android hardware, Apple is testing the special glass as a way to let the TrueDepth...
iOS 26

Apple Seeds Second iOS 26.2 Release Candidate to Developers and Public Beta Testers

Monday December 8, 2025 10:18 am PST by
Apple today seeded the second release candidate version of iOS 26.2 to developers and public beta testers, with the software coming one week after Apple seeded the first RC. The release candidate represents the final version iOS 26.2 that will be provided to the public if no further bugs are found. Registered developers and public beta testers can download the betas from the Settings app on...
iPhone 17 Pro Cosmic Orange

10 Reasons to Wait for Next Year's iPhone 18 Pro

Monday December 1, 2025 2:40 am PST by
Apple's iPhone development roadmap runs several years into the future and the company is continually working with suppliers on several successive iPhone models at the same time, which is why we often get rumored features months ahead of launch. The iPhone 18 series is no different, and we already have a good idea of what to expect for the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max. One thing worth...
Johny Srouji

Apple's Chipmaking Chief Johny Srouji Responds to Report About Him Potentially Leaving

Monday December 8, 2025 9:23 am PST by
Apple's chipmaking chief Johny Srouji has reportedly indicated that he plans to continue working for the company for the foreseeable future. "I love my team, and I love my job at Apple, and I don't plan on leaving anytime soon," said Srouji, in a memo obtained by Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Here is Srouji's full memo, as shared by Bloomberg:I know you've been reading all kind of rumors and...
Johny Srouji

Apple Chip Chief Johny Srouji Could Be Next to Go as Exodus Continues

Sunday December 7, 2025 10:41 am PST by
Apple's senior vice president of hardware technologies Johny Srouji could be the next leading executive to leave the company amid an alarming exodus of leading employees, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reports. Srouji apparently recently told CEO Tim Cook that he is "seriously considering leaving" in the near future. He intends to join another company if he departs. Srouji leads Apple's chip design ...
google pixel 10

Switching Between iPhone and Android Will Get Easier With New Apple and Google Collaboration

Monday December 8, 2025 11:10 am PST by
Apple and Google are teaming up to make it easier for users to switch between iPhone and Android smartphones, according to 9to5Google. There is a new Android Canary build available today that simplifies data transfer between two smartphones, and Apple is going to implement the functionality in an upcoming iOS 26 beta. Apple already has a Move to iOS app for transferring data from an Android...
Apple Fitness Plus expansion hero

Apple Fitness+ Coming to 28 New Regions With Digital Voice Dubbing

Monday December 8, 2025 6:19 am PST by
Apple today announced that Fitness+ is expanding to 28 new markets on December 15 in the service's largest international rollout since launch, accompanied by new language dubbing and a K-Pop music genre. Apple Fitness+ will become available in Chile, Hong Kong, India, the Netherlands, Singapore, Taiwan, and additional regions on December 15, with Japan scheduled to follow early next year....
maxresdefault

iPhone Fold: Launch, Pricing, and What to Expect From Apple's Foldable

Monday December 1, 2025 3:00 am PST by
Apple is expected to launch a new foldable iPhone next year, based on multiple rumors and credible sources. The long-awaited device has been rumored for years now, but signs increasingly suggest that 2026 could indeed be the year that Apple releases its first foldable device. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. Below, we've collated an updated set of key details that ...

Top Rated Comments

blackcrayon Avatar
137 months ago
No iOS device is competition for a Windows Surface Pro. It's like saying a rowboat is competition for a freighter.

I can visit a job site and run CAD on a Surface Pro or Wacom Cintiq Comp. I can draw new designs accurately with a proper stylus. I can edit promo films in a comfortable position in the living room. I can kill 2 hours stuck at the airport getting some work done while listening to podcasts.

Or, with an iOS device, if I'm very lucky, and I've exported hundreds of duplicates of my files in just the right formats, and the companion viewer app is working, I can... view them. Wow. Super. I can crudely fingerprint some blobby streaks where my lines should be. I can try to listen to podcasts, but they won't have updated because the autoupdate never works. But I can check my email. ...which can be done quicker over a phone. I can pull up a map & see my GPS marker, but since it can't save the maps it loads, as soon as I get off the highway for gas, it dumps all the maps and I'm driving across grey squares. I can plug it into my rental car, but it won't charge.

The iPad with iOS is a nearly completely useless toy.

Apple will make the large-size hardware people want, which will be less of a mobile device and more of a productivity device, and priced as high as a decent notebook, and then cripple it by putting the iPod OS on it, so teenagers can play games on it. And they'll sell a load of them anyway.
You can watch antivirus software and Windows updates and frequent reboots run on your thick, clunky, unwieldy, heavy tablet that's worse at a laptop at literally everything except for drawing on the screen. As a bonus you get a touch interface with very few apps that actually use it so you get to run desktop apps with a type cover with terrible keys and a barely usable trackpad. Try not to sneeze so it won't go flying off your lap as it leans on its kickstand. If you're lucky, the Surface won't overheat. And try not to run the battery down on your phone for tethering because the silly SP3 lacks a built in cellular option- of course you could plug a cell modem into USB but going along with the spirit of your nightmare iOS scenario, I'll assume you'd drop the heavy clunky Surface and snap the dongle off of at the port...

Give us a break :)
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
BCWorld Avatar
137 months ago
Whoopty doo! Not interested in a "larger ipad" until apple can figure out how to get the software optimized for the 10 inch version which has been on the market for 5 long years... :confused:
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
ThunderSkunk Avatar
137 months ago
I hope this can compete with the Surface Pro 3 which runs full windows. I hope there are more features in iOS 9 for the iPad Pro
No iOS device is competition for a Windows Surface Pro. It's like saying a rowboat is competition for a freighter.

I can visit a job site and run CAD on a Surface Pro or Wacom Cintiq Comp. I can draw new designs accurately with a proper stylus. I can edit promo films in a comfortable position in the living room. I can kill 2 hours stuck at the airport getting some work done while listening to podcasts.

Or, with an iOS device, if I'm very lucky, and I've exported hundreds of duplicates of my files in just the right formats, and the companion viewer app is working, I can... view them. Wow. Super. I can crudely fingerprint some blobby streaks where my lines should be. I can try to listen to podcasts, but they won't have updated because the autoupdate never works. But I can check my email. ...which can be done quicker over a phone. I can pull up a map & see my GPS marker, but since it can't save the maps it loads, as soon as I get off the highway for gas, it dumps all the maps and I'm driving across grey squares. I can plug it into my rental car, but it won't charge.

The iPad with iOS is a nearly completely useless toy.

Apple will make the large-size hardware people want, which will be less of a mobile device and more of a productivity device, and priced as high as a decent notebook, and then cripple it by putting the iPod OS on it, so teenagers can play games on it. And they'll sell a load of them anyway.
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
tomtendo Avatar
137 months ago
Numbers at the top. How quaint.
It would be nice if the numbers were apart of them regular QWERTY keyboard so you didn't have to hit the number key to input them.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
tentales Avatar
137 months ago
I really don't see the use of a bigger iPad, not for me anyway.

Although in saying that when Apple release it it will be a big hit like almost everything they do and I'll probably line up to get it anyway :rolleyes:
I've been waiting for a larger sized iPad to replace my sheet music. Lot's of musicians will probably buy one or two to have on stage or in the studio. Current iPad size is only good enough for set-lists, but not full notation. That and maybe Logic Pro for iPad ?
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
jayducharme Avatar
137 months ago
I don't see why this arrangement can't be at least an option on the standard iPad. I could deal with slightly smaller layout to have the greater range of keys.

Something that puzzles me is how I get the left and right cursor options on my iPhone's keyboard, but they don't appear on my iPad. Why would the larger screen of my iPad offer fewer editing options?
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)