New iPad Line Expected On Tuesday - Printer Friendly version without Comments

Apple is expected to update its iPad line on Tuesday at an event being held in San Francisco, as the tablet market heats up with competition from Android and WIdows devices.

The lines betwen traditional tablets and latest touch-screen notebook computers have been blurred, as Windows-based devices with detachable screens are priced between $350 and $500.

Apple is also under pressure to offer a premium Mini tablet that would compete with the seven- to eight-inch range tablets with high-quality screens offered by other companies, such as the new seven-inch Kindle Fire HDX tablets ($229) and the latest Nexus 7 tablet powered by Android.

Unconfirmed reports are that Apple will show off a new version of its full-size (10 inches)iPad that will be thinner than its predecessor and boast improved camera capabilities. The full-size iPads may get a fingerprint recognition security feature that has been a hit in the iPhone 5S.

An upgraded version of the iPad mini (8 inches) with an improved screen is also expected.

If the 'previews' of the new iPads around the internet are correct, the standard-sized model will be even thinner and lighter than its predecessor. Apple is also expected to introduce new versions of its smart covers, which will be detached and folded into a stand for the device.

Both sizes of iPad almost certainly will come with iOS 7, Apple's latest mobile operating system, already installed.

It is not clear whether the new iPad models will have 64-bit processors.

Apple was also expected to discuss its computer operating system and its MacBook laptop line at the event.

In related news, Apple will probably start selling ultra-high definition televisions with 65- and 55-inch screens during the fourth quarter of next year, according to a Tokyo-based analyst at Advanced Research Japan Co.

The Cupertino, California-based company is deciding on specifications, and the models likely will have a frameless design, Masahiko Ishino, an analyst at Advanced Research, said in an interview Oct. 18, Bloomberg reported.

LG Display, Samsung and Corning may be among the suppliers for Apple's TVs, which may be priced at about $1,500 to $2,500, Ishino said.