MacRumors has today posted new photos of what is claimed to be the front panel of the next version of the iPad Air. The photos were first posted on Dutch site One More Thing, and show an integrated display panel, unlike the current iPad Air, which has a separate panel and display.
MacRumors notes that using an integrated panel could enable Apple to make the iPad Air 2 even thinner, or possibly make room for a bigger battery.
iFixit co-founder Kyle Wiens told MacRumors that the parts could be genuine, and were possibly manufactured in a similar way to the Retina MacBook Pro.
Wiens said that having an integrated display would make make the tablet more expensive to repair, but this should only be a very minor concern, to be fair, and has not been too much of a problem with the iPhone, which also has an integrated display.
The iPad Air 2, and a Retina iPad mini, are both due to launch some time in 2014, or in the third quarter, according to analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, who usually knows what he’s talking about on these matters. Kuo also says that both new tablets will have the iPhone 5s Touch ID system.
Source:
Alleged iPad Air 2 Front Panel with Integrated Display Shown in New Photos - Mac Rumors