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iPad Pro concept imagines an edge-to-edge 12.9-inch display in new renders [Gallery]

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Earlier this month we posted a concept from Curved.de that showed its take on what new Apple TV hardware might look like accompanied by a touchscreen iPod-like remote. Today the site is back with another concept, this time for the much rumored larger iPad sporting a 12.9-inch display.

The site didn’t just pull the idea out of thin air, as there have been a few rumors in recent months suggesting that Apple could truly be gearing up to launch such a device. Rumors of a 12.9-inch display on a new iPad model started to get serious when The Wall Street Journal reported back in July that Apple was indeed testing larger screens for both its iPhones and tablets. The rumors continued with other sources of varying credibility reporting that a 12.9-inch model will arrive sooner rather than later and possibly as early as the first half of this year.

Apple is also rumored to introduce larger screen iPhones this year somewhere in the range of 4.5 to 5.5-inches.

A description of the concept from the publication is below:

  • The iPad Pro design is pretty close to its siblings, the iPad mini Retina and iPad Air. Curved corners and a flat back. Sound is provided from speakers that are placed left and right from the Lightning connector.
  • Touch ID is integrated in the saphire glass protected home button, which was introduced for iPhone 5s.
  • The screen is 12.9 inch wide and has a 4K-solution with 3,072×2,304 pixels (298 ppi), using LED-backlights and IPS-technology.
  • Even though it’s wider, it’s still as thin as the iPad Air: 7.5 mm.
  • The bigger screen with more pixels requires an A8 chipset with 64-bit-architecture.
  • Apps for the iPad Air are shown optimized by the iPad Pro. Dedicated apps – labelled with “Pro” – use the higher resolution and performance of the all new iPad Pro.
  • New pencils may fully employ all the features like pressure sensitivity. But don’t hold your breath for a multi button pen made by Apple.

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Comments

  1. This is idiotic.

    Imagine actually using that. You couldn’t even use it with 2 hands, because the hand holding it would always interfere with whatever you’re doing.

    • PMZanetti - 10 years ago

      Why is that, because of the lack of bezel? So say the bezel isn’t that small, would it be idiotic then?

      As it is, the iPad mini and iPad Air have thin bezels and do a great job of ignoring unintended touch at the edges. I can’t imagine that a 12.9″ iPad would suddenly introduce these problems.

      • jrox16 - 10 years ago

        It’s a silly idea because at that size and assumed cost, one can get a full computer in a MacBook Air. The point of tablets is ease of use, easy to hold and carry, light weight, etc. What does having such a huge screen solve which currently is a problem? Is 9.7″ a real problem for anyone? Making an iPad this large would be solving a problem that doesn’t exist for anyone.

      • o0smoothies0o - 10 years ago

        Its one of the stupidest ideas ever. Apple has smart people working for them, they haven’t ever even considered 12.9″ iPad. Look at the concept images, it honestly looks 100% awful. I wouldn’t use it if I were given one. In fact I would gladly smash it to pieces if I were given one (that is if I could lift it, since it will weigh a ridiculous amount which they would never allow).

      • PMZanetti - 10 years ago

        What does size or cost have to do with wanting an iPad instead of a MacBook Air? That’s not the point. They are altogether different devices. As it is a 128 GB 9.7″ iPad with Cellular is as much as you can get an Air for. That has no relevance whatsoever.

        The screen size at 9.7″ is not a “problem” either….but they introduced one at 7.9″ to address a different market. At 12.9″ and with a Pro moniker, they open to yet another market. Many creative professionals have opted for iPad and in some cases the bigger the better…as long as it’s reasonably wieldy….which Apple will make it so. This model could also feature some amazing specs like a 256 GB flash drive, 2 GB of RAM, quad core everything, 15 hr battery, etc.

        As the iPad gets bigger, there is room for more battery, which means more power hungry components are acceptable.

      • Tallest Skil - 10 years ago

        Sorry, PMZ; WordPress doesn’t allow further nesting unless you use their top bar interface to reply. So YOU could copy this and reply directly to him, but whatever.

        @jrox16

        You don’t seem to comprehend where the future is going. The iPad will replace laptops entirely. “Full computer”? You also don’t seem to comprehend what the 13” iPad would imply.

        @o0smoothies0o

        Thanks for all the proof that Apple hasn’t considered one, despite these rumors existing only because they’re explicitly considering one.

    • Badal Patel - 10 years ago

      Thats actually a very valid point, although it would be great landscape mode

    • Tallest Skil - 10 years ago

      I’ve never been a fan of small bezels. You’re right on that count.

      But I want a 13” iPad, and have since 2007.

  2. robertvarga79 - 10 years ago

    If that will be reality, i am def. buying

  3. sardonick - 10 years ago

    I can see business applications for this. I can also see the rift between those who like it and those who don’t. I’m not against having a choice as long as it doesn’t push any major fragmentation between the devices. I’m sure devs aren’t thrilled right away though.

    • rahhbriley - 10 years ago

      Apple’s been pushing for flexible design for awhile. The more it’s used, the less of an issue it’ll be.

    • PMZanetti - 10 years ago

      Devs aren’t thrilled to have yet another iPad device that is different enough to probably have its own class of Apps written for it?

      I believe thats what the devs live and breath by. Its what puts food on the table.

      • sardonick - 10 years ago

        I was referring strictly to resolution issues that most stories cover when interviewing devs regarding screen changes. Not that they won’t want a new device to spread their apps.

  4. Nick Bull - 10 years ago

    Too big, too unwieldy. Apple has some nice patents for a second display on a smart cover, I’d much prefer such a solution. http://goo.gl/W5RnA7

    • Tallest Skil - 10 years ago

      So you’d prefer a worthless and unusable solution to one that is simpler and the herald of the next generation of computing?

  5. Earlier this week this site reported that the 12.9 inch iPad pro was a non-starter. Now you post a link to what the non-starter would look like if it was an edge-to-edge design, which Apple has not been able to do with any of the products yet.

    I don’t get these wouldn’t it be pretty if….stories – showing designs that clearly aren’t from Apple and probably won’t have a lot in common with the real product – which again, you reported that Apple has shelved.

  6. Tim Jr. - 10 years ago

    The Bezel is the reason a screen doesn’t break.. the lightest tap on the right or left and it’s toast.. no bezel designs are nothing but gimics .. until the glass can take that kind of hit, bezels are here to stay.. and this is just click bait..

  7. Badal Patel - 10 years ago

    It would be great if it actually looked like that!

  8. ctyrider (@ctyrider) - 10 years ago

    Starting to get tired of these endless mockups. Just because someone with Photoshop and free time to waste did another ridiculous mockup – that does’t need to become news.

  9. I can see it living as something that’s held elbow-to-palm and then being attached to some keyboard/mouse for that extra bit of usability.

    Yet for me that would be more of an OSX device than an iOS one. Somehow all that real estate would call for more office-related / creativity / business apps and very likely being able to have more than one app visible at a time.

    So, unless Apple has something up their sleeves for iOS8 on that front (don’t think so, with ATV and other devices around the corner), and ASSUMING such a device CAN hold some life to it, I call it an OSX device. More like a mini-iMac with a touch screen and surprises in the next OSX release. OSX is about ripe for such a move, so I wouldn’t be surprised.

  10. Howie Isaacks - 10 years ago

    Meh. What’s the point?

    • Tallest Skil - 10 years ago

      For example, unlike a larger iPhone, a larger iPad would be usable in more than zero use cases.

      A larger iPad will replace laptops as the portable offering from Apple (and eventually other companies). With 13” and eventually 15” of touchscreen, that opens up future OS’ to a wider range of simultaneous input. It’ll be great.

      • Howie Isaacks - 10 years ago

        No. It will be pointless. I can’t do all of the things that I do on a daily basis on a touch screen. I love iPads, but I don’t see it as becoming a replacement for for Apple’s laptops.

      • Tallest Skil - 10 years ago

        >> I can’t do all of the things that I do on a daily basis on a touch screen.

        Nor could you with a keyboard and mouse in 1984.

      • Howie Isaacks - 10 years ago

        That’s a dumb example. Things were very different 30 years ago. My whole point is that a larger iPad would be very cumbersome to hold. I wouldn’t want one if I can’t hold it easily while I work. I would not want to attach a keyboard either. If I had to do that, why not just buy a laptop? Apple may very well release a larger iPad, and it will probably sell well. I just think that this would be a step backwards for Apple. Devices should be focused toward what they do best instead of trying to be all things to all people.

      • Tallest Skil - 10 years ago

        >>My whole point is that a larger iPad would be very cumbersome to hold.

        Your point is wrong.

        >>I would not want to attach a keyboard either.

        Exactly. Nor would you have to.

        >>Apple may very well release a larger iPad, and it will probably sell well. I just think that this would be a step backwards for Apple.

        I think the same thing about a larger iPhone. The difference here is that your complaints for the larger iPad are actually VALID for the larger iPhone.

        >>Devices should be focused toward what they do best instead of trying to be all things to all people.

        If ever there was an argument against a larger iPhone and for a larger iPad, this is it, distilled.

      • Howie Isaacks - 10 years ago

        We’re done now. Move along. You’re not going to change my mind, and I won’t change yours, so why not spend your time doing something productive?

      • Tallest Skil - 10 years ago

        Grow up, kid. I’m not going anywhere. You’ll just be proven horribly wrong.

      • Howie Isaacks - 10 years ago

        Kid? I haven’t been a “kid” for over 20 years.

  11. scumbolt2014 - 10 years ago

    I for one think this has a lot of potential. I imagine this being used as an iPad and an extra screen for my desktop or laptop Mac. Connect the iPad your computer via Airdrop (or some other better new method) and then be able to immediately pick-up where you left off on another computer when the iPad is connected to another computer. It could be used as an extension for the desktop, or be set to use secondary controls for the computer it is currently linked to (something kind of like having Photoshop pallets on another monitor). Or just use it as a “plain” big badass iPad. Who knows if this is even being developed by Apple.

Author

Avatar for Jordan Kahn Jordan Kahn

Jordan writes about all things Apple as Senior Editor of 9to5Mac, & contributes to 9to5Google, 9to5Toys, & Electrek.co. He also co-authors 9to5Mac’s Logic Pros series.