A component claimed to be the back panel for Apple's anticipated third-generation iPad shows room for a larger battery, and also implies the display will be mounted differently.
The purported "iPad 3" component was obtained by the Repair Labs at Fix-iPhones.com. In a side-by-side comparison of the new component with the iPad 2 back panel, the repair site found four key differences:
- The alleged third-generation iPad back panel has "very different" mounts for the logic board, implying that the shape of the logic board in the next iPad will also be a major change.
- This would allow for a larger battery within the iPad 3, because the width of where the logic board sits is much smaller on the new component.
- The component also reveals that the camera on the new iPad will be "different," though any changes from the current iPad 2 cannot be deciphered from the panel.
- Finally, the site also declared that the LCD display will also be "different" than the current iPad 2, based on different mounting in the new back panel. Apple is rumored to utilize a new, high-resolution Retina Display for its next iPad.
Citing an anonymous source, the repair site said that the housing for the iPad 3 does not appear to be any thicker than the iPad 2. Various rumors have suggested the next iPad will be slightly thicker than the current iPad 2, perhaps to accommodate for dual LED light bars for a Retina Display.
Apple is widely expected to launch a new third-generation iPad in March, one year after the iPad 2 debuted. Other claims of an event this month, however, have been declared false.