WWDC is still over a month away, but Apple has gotten ahead of the curve and sneaked into another event. On Tuesday, May 7th at 7am PT/10am ET, the company is scheduled to announce the latest addition to his iPad product line. Rumor has it that the list includes the new iPad Pro, iPad Air, Apple Pencil, and keyboard cases.
Even more surprising, a little more than six months after the company unveiled three new M3 chips all at once, the event could also see the unveiling of a new M4 chip. Why refresh the silicon so quickly? First, word on the street is that because Apple launched his M3 later than expected (probably due to supply chain issues), the company is making all three of his chips the same. This meant that they had no choice but to release it at the event.
Image credit: Apple
Combine this with the fact that Microsoft is rumored to be announcing its own third-party silicon at Build at the end of May, and you begin to understand why the company chose not to wait. The announcement could be even more pressing given that the Microsoft/ARM chip is said to offer “industry-leading performance.” This clearly beats Apple. Will new chips mean new Macs? Shorter update cycles for the current crop, but not out of the realm of possibility.
But what's certain is a new iPad Pro with an OLED display, a 12.9-inch iPad Air, and new gestures for Apple Pencil. You can also expect lots of AI chatter. After all, it's 2024. You can watch live from the link below. Check out the latest news on TechCrunch.