iPad 5 And New iPad Mini Set For 22 October Debut

Apple is set to reveal new versions of the iPad Mini and iPad next week after sending out invitations for a product event in San Francisco on 22 October, stating “we still have a lot to cover.”

The Cupertino-based company is expected to show off an iPad Mini with a retina display, along with a new iteration of the full sized iPad, which could be thinner and boast the 64-bit A7 processor included in the recently launched iPhone 5S.

It is also likely that a new line of Macs will be present at the event, which kicks off at around 18:00 UK time, although it is unlikely there will be any news of the iWatch smartwatch that Apple is widely believed to be working on.

iPad 5 announcement

The iPad Mini debuted in October 2012, expanding Apple’s portfolio to reflect the trend towards smaller tablets, while the iPad has experienced a number of revisions in recent years. Observers suggest an iPad 5 with a 64-bit processor would be very attractive to enterprises, especially if coupled with a touch-friendly version of Microsoft Office.

Apple will hope the combination of a new iPad Mini and a more powerful iPad will help it fend off competition from cheap seven-inch Android-based tablets, while expanding its share of the business market, currently being courted by the Microsoft Surface and other Windows-based touchscreen devices.

The company’s most recent product launch saw the debut of the iPhone 5S and 5C last month, with Apple claiming to have sold more than nine million combined units, although the suspicion is it has sold more of the 5S, given the recent reduction in orders from suppliers for the cheaper 5S handset.

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