Data from Appsee claims to have identified information regarding the as-yet-unannounced larger iPad Pro, expected to feature a display ranging between 12.3 and 12.9 inches. The app analytics firm says an iPad with identifier ‘iPad6,8’ appeared in its logs with a reported screen resolution of 2732×2048. Internally, the larger iPad models are referred to as J98 and J99. The resolution is especially notable as it was previously spotted within code for iOS 9. For comparison, the current iPad Air 2 has a screen resolution of 2048×1536 with a ‘iPad5,1’ model identifier.
The jump in pixels for both axis is substantial although somewhat expected given the screen will also be increasing in area by about 80%. AppSee says its logs indicate the device has been used to open several apps from the App Store. The company has also identified ‘iPhone 8,1’ and ‘iPhone8,2’ devices corresponding to the iPhone 6S and iPhone 6S Plus.
Assuming a 12.9 inch display, an iPad screen with a 2732×2048 resolution would have a PPI of 263, which is the same as the pixel-per-inch rating of current Retina iPads. This resolution has been suggested before in previous rumors about the iPad Pro so it seems plausible.
Earlier this year, the iOS 9 beta was hacked to run at 1366 points wide, revealing extra keyboard keys and rows. If you do the math to convert between pixels and points, 2 * 1366 is exactly 2732. Some have speculated that the side-by-side multitasking is primarily targeted at the iPad Pro … making good use out of the additional horizontal resolution.
According to a KGI report from earlier today, the iPad Pro is entering mass production by October and will support an optional ‘Force Touch stylus’ for pressure sensitive drawing. In addition to benefits when sketching, we detailed how Apple plans to use Force Touch across iOS 9. In terms of announcements, it currently seems like the larger iPad Pro would be unveiled at an Apple media event in October. The September event will be reserved for the iPhone 6S announcement and a new Apple TV, although it is possible the iPad Pro could feature too as a ‘wildcard’. The iPhone 6S event is reported to be happening on September 9th.
