Rumor: Apple working on new iPad case to cover both screen & aluminum back
Claims of a new official iPad case from Apple first surfaced on Monday in a report at iLounge credited to a "repeatedly reliable source." It was said that the new case will be similar to the Incase Magazine Jacket.
"This new case has a folding magnetized Smart Cover on the front, and a rear shell made from fiberglass covered with PU/bicast leather," the report said. "It's unclear whether this case will be solely for the thicker new iPad or include backwards compatibility for the iPad 2."
The iPad 2 Smart Cover was released last March along with Apple's second-generation tablet. Its unique design features a total of 21 magnets that allow it to automatically properly attach to an iPad 2, pairing up with 10 magnets found in the tablet itself.
Apple boasted that the iPad 2 was designed with its magnetic Smart Cover in mind. The iPad 2 even features a software setting that automatically locks and unlocks the device's screen when the cover is placed on or removed from the screen. Microfibers on the screen cover also clean the iPad 2 display.
Beyond the iPad, Monday's report also featured a claim about Apple's next-generation iPhone, suggesting that the company is "continuing to experiment with glass and ceramic rear shells." It was said that the next iPhone could look much like the current iPhone 4 but be thinner, thanks, in part, to Corning's new Gorilla Glass 2, which is just 0.8 millimeters thick with the same level of strength and durability.
"Our source suggests that the 30-pin Dock Connector is likely on the way out in the near future, and that a larger screen remains in the cards," the report said.
Claims that the back of the next iPhone will be made of glass, like the iPhone 4S and iPhone 4, are in opposition to reports from last year that suggested Apple planned to release a new handset with an aluminum back. Though rumors and case designs suggested Apple could release a redesigned iPhone last year, which proved to be false.
Still, last year's abundance of third-party cases that showed a redesigned iPhone have led to speculation that a new iPhone released in 2012 could feature a drastically redesigned exterior, with tapered edges and a slightly larger edge-to-edge screen.
54 Comments
It will be interesting to see what they might come up with for an updated Smart Cover. Personally, I am keeping my Smart Cover from my iPad 2, and am going to use it with a Wrapsol back protector film. I did this with my iPad 2 and it kept it in perfect condition and added no bulk whatsoever!
... Beyond the iPad, Monday's report also featured a claim about Apple's next-generation iPhone, suggesting that the company is "continuing to experiment with glass and ceramic rear shells." It was said that the next iPhone could look much like the current iPhone 4 but be thinner ... Claims that the back of the next iPhone will be made of glass, like the iPhone 4S and iPhone 4, are in opposition to reports from last year that suggested Apple planned to release a new handset with an aluminum back. ...
The aluminium back rumour keeps going and going and going, when it makes almost no sense at all beyond the simple visual similarity such a device would have to iPad. It's a popular misconception based on the failure of most people to see design as concerned with anything other than physical appearance.
Beyond the major problems it would have with signals and antennas, it would leave the iPhone much harder to service. It will never happen.
It's a bad design for a phone and moving the antennas back inside would pretty much take away any space savings they get with the next generation iPhone. Why shrink all the components by 20% and then throw away that 20% smaller iPhone by moving the antenna back inside?
I'm thinking we will see a smaller, slimmer iPhone next time, possibly smoother finish, but still with the steel antenna band on the outside where it belongs.
The aluminium back rumour keeps going and going and going, when it makes almost no sense at all beyond the simple visual similarity such a device would have to iPad. It's a popular misconception based on the failure of most people to see design as concerned with anything other than physical appearance.
Beyond the major problems it would have with signals and antennas, it would leave the iPhone much harder to service. It will never happen.
It's a bad design for a phone and moving the antennas back inside would pretty much take away any space savings they get with the next generation iPhone. Why shrink all the components by 20% and then throw away that 20% smaller iPhone by moving the antenna back inside?
I'm thinking we will see a smaller, slimmer iPhone next time, possibly smoother finish, but still with the steel antenna band on the outside where it belongs.
I agree about the aluminum back. I don't think it will be smaller though. The question on everyone's mind is whether it will have a bigger screen. I don't know how that can be done while maintaining the same pixel density as the iPhone 4.
The design of the iPhone 4 is superb. Hard to improve upon. Knowing Apple, they will somehow do it.
I really don't see Apple going back to a case that covers the entire iPad; the whole point of the Smart Covers was to get away from that. Per Steve Jobs himself when he unveiled Smart Covers:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZJkUUum6Q0Y
For the original iPad, we did a case. Case was pretty cool, it can prop the iPad up for typing or for watching movies. Worked pretty well except that we went to all this trouble to make a beautiful design and we covered it up with this case. Right? But more than that, we added thickness and weight to the product and we made it more difficult to use with some of the accessories. So we thought we could do better than this for iPad 2.
That would be like releasing a 3G iPad with an aluminum back, it'd never work. Oops.