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Rumor Says Apple Will Launch The iPad Air 6 In October (Updated)

ByJim Miller

While the new iPad Air 6 from Apple had previously not been expected to launch before early 2024, a new rumor from Weibo says otherwise.

According to an Apple leaker with a good track record, Apple will launch one new iPad in 2023, with that being the iPad Air 6 in October, as noted by MacRumors.

It fits with the regular autumn launch schedule as well as the life cycle of of an iPad. When Apple typically unveils new iPhones in September, any iPad unveiling will usually take place just around 4 weeks later.

Apple iPad Air 5th Gen
The present Apple iPad Air 5th gen with Apple Pencil and Magic Keyboard

(UPDATE: Famed professional Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo took to Twitter the day after the rumor, to reiterate that “New iPad models are unlikely before the year's end.”

So as of mid-September, there are conflicting theories about the prospects for a new iPad Air this year.)

And the current iPad Air 5 was launched in March 2022, so with that in mind, it is coming due for a refresh.

A lot of iPad users finds that the present iPad Air is already powerful enough for work though, unless you are a developer with 20 tabs open. But I've been hearing that iPad Air sales have not met Apple's expectations.

So if that's true then Apple has all the more reason to refresh the iPad Air in October rather than wait until 2024. This might explain why the iPad Air is the iPad that's most often on sale with a solid discount, despite it's high user rating.

The main expectations is for an upgrade from the Apple M1 chipset to the M2 chipset, and some rumors have indicated an enlarged screen size from 10.9 inches to 11 inches, but these are just rumors, and we've seen no evidence that can confirm these rumors yet.

Though we'll make sure to post that once we have some evidence.

– Jim Miller