Last week, repair firm iLab Factory posted a photo of a Sharp display that was said to carry a resolution of 2048x1536 in a 9.7-inch size and be targeted for the iPad 3.
The company now reports (via 9to5Mac) that it has obtained the rear shell and dock connector cable parts that have also been circulating and matched all three together, increasing the likelihood that the leaks are genuine parts. The parts do show that the iPad 3 is marginally thicker than the iPad 2, which has been rumored by a number of sources as Apple has sought to increase battery capacity to drive the higher-resolution display and tweak other components.
First of all, in comparison to a back plate of iPad2, the iPad3 one(?) is a little bit thicker; less than 1mm, and equal-sized length and breadth.
The report goes on to show in a series of photos that mounting holes on both the display and the dock connector/ribbon cable line up exactly with those on the rear shell.
The report also examines the rear camera mounting points on the claimed iPad 3 shell, noting that they are indeed different than on the iPad 2 although the hole in the rear shell does appear to be essentially the same size as in the iPad 2. The difference in camera mounting had previously been noted in other leaked photos.
Apple is expected to introduce the iPad 3 in the first week of March, with the first round of launches set to follow soon after.
Monday October 27, 2025 7:55 am PDT by Joe Rossignol
The upcoming iOS 26.1 update includes a handful of new features and changes for iPhones, including a toggle for changing the appearance of the Liquid Glass design, "slide to stop" for alarms in the Clock app, and more.
Below, we outline key details about iOS 26.1.
Release Date
Given that Apple has yet to seed an iOS 26.1 Release Candidate, which is typically the final beta version, the...
Wednesday October 29, 2025 4:22 am PDT by Tim Hardwick
Apple is about to drop iOS 26.1, the first major point release since iOS 26 was rolled out in September, and there are at least six notable changes and improvements to look forward to. We've rounded them up below.
Apple has already provided developers and public beta testers with the release candidate version of iOS 26.1, which means Apple will likely roll out the update to all compatible...
Monday October 27, 2025 4:51 pm PDT by Juli Clover
Apple is designing an updated version of the Apple TV 4K, and rumors suggest that it could come out sometime in the next couple of months. We're not expecting a major overhaul with design changes, but even a simple chip upgrade will bring major improvements to Apple's set-top box.
Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos.
We've rounded up all the latest Apple TV rumors.
...
Tuesday October 28, 2025 1:07 pm PDT by Juli Clover
Apple today provided developers and public beta testers with the release candidate versions of upcoming iOS 26.1, iPadOS 26.1, macOS Tahoe 26.1, tvOS 26.1, watchOS 26.1, and visionOS 26.1 updates for testing purposes. The RCs betas come a week after Apple released the fourth betas.
The new betas can be downloaded from the Settings app on a compatible device by going to General > Software...
Monday October 27, 2025 9:15 am PDT by Tim Hardwick
Apple this month refreshed the 14-inch MacBook Pro base model with its new M5 chip, and higher-end 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models with M5 Pro and M5 Max chips are expected to follow in early 2026. However, these machines will represent the final update to the current design, with Apple reportedly developing a completely new version of the MacBook Pro packed with next-generation hardware...
Thursday October 30, 2025 4:42 am PDT by Tim Hardwick
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...
Tuesday October 28, 2025 1:21 pm PDT by Juli Clover
Apple today provided developers and public beta testers with the release candidate version of macOS Tahoe 26.1, which means the update will likely see a public launch next week.
The release candidate includes notes on what's in the update, so we have a full picture of the new features that Apple has included.
macOS Tahoe 26.1 adds AutoMix support over AirPlay, improved FaceTime audio...
Wednesday October 29, 2025 7:13 am PDT by Tim Hardwick
Rumors are stoking excitement for the next-generation iPad mini that Apple is reportedly close to launching. So what should we expect from the successor to the iPad mini 7 that Apple released over a year ago? Read on to find out.
Processor and Performance
Apple is working on a next-generation version of the iPad mini (codename J510/J511) that features the A19 Pro chip, according to...
Tuesday October 28, 2025 5:27 am PDT by Tim Hardwick
Apple is preparing to bring support for its digital car key feature to Jetour vehicles, according to evidence uncovered on Apple's backend by MacRumors contributor Aaron Perris.
Introduced in 2022, Car Keys allows an iPhone or Apple Watch to unlock a vehicle through the Wallet app. A digital version of a car key is stored in Wallet, and unlocking can be done by holding an Apple Watch or...
First of all, in comparison to a back plate of iPad2, the iPad3 one(?) is a little bit thicker; less than 1mm, and equal-sized length and breadth.
I know that 1mm is a huge span in terms of engineering and sci-geekery, but in the real world of human hands and what we hold to read, 1mm is invisible.
Reading about the thicker iPad3 always makes it seem bulkier. A descriptive like "barely thicker" is apt.
I know that 1mm is a huge span in terms of engineering and sci-geekery, but in the real world of human hands and what we hold to read, 1mm is invisible.
Reading about the thicker iPad3 always makes it seem bulkier. A descriptive like "barely thicker" is apt.
Yes. And it would still be about 1/4 thinner than the original iPad. The key "human factors" spec is weight. The biggest flaw of the original iPad was it's weight. The iPad 2 is almost the perfect heft; just a tad too heavy still. So, I would hope Apple would not backtrack here.
