Moving away from numbers could be partly to do with future upgrades. Even Apple must be wondering just how they can improve on this one. There is a serious danger that perceived disappointment could affect sales.
Now if this time next year the press announcement is simply, for example "Apple adds (insert your wishlist here) to iPad", it will probably be received better than "New New iPad leaves customers wondering what the difference is."
The tablet market is settling down, tablets have become mainstream and Apple can afford to proceed with the brand in the same way as the MBA and the iMac. What's the betting the iPhone 5 gets released as "The iPhone"?
Sent from my iPad using iPF