Leaker casts doubt on 12.9-inch iPad Air 6 rumors as launch looms

The sixth-generation iPad Air may not be as much of an upgrade as expected, as a leaker claims there are few design changes and that a larger variant may not see a release.

Rumors over recent months have claimed a number of changes will be happening to the iPad Air in its early 2024 update. In a Monday tweet, one prominent leaker has poured water on some of those expectations.

In X posts on Monday morning, "ShrimpApplePro" writes that the iPad Air 6 doesn't "seem to have a significant redesign," with the exception of a landscape front-facing camera.

The 10.9-inch model may also be the only model that sees the light of day, as the leaker says "only one size has been seen," making the larger 12.9-inch model unlikely in their eyes.

This claim runs counter to that of other rumors, such as the forecast of TF Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, who previously declared two iPad Air models were on the way, including the 12.9-inch variant. Other analysts have also chimed in, saying in December than 12.9-inch iPad Air display panel shipments had started.

For colors, Shrimp admits their source doesn't have "concrete information," but says that either blue or pink face elimination from the existing five-color range of the iPad Air 5. A new chip is also on the way, in one of the more obvious statements of the tweet storm.

Shrimp goes on to say they haven't got much information about the iPad Pro models, but that they will be the "biggest upgrade" for the series.

The leaker does have a decent history for product leaks, such as revealing the Apple Watch Series 8 wouldn't have a redesign, as well as accurate dimensions of the iPhone 14 Pro. However, they do sometimes miss, such as claims about USB-C certified accessories.

We've ranked this as an "unlikely" mostly because of the conflict between a more accurate leaker in Ming-Chi Kuo, as well as the leaker's own statements about taking it with a grain of MSG, in this case.

Consumers may not have long to wait to find out if Shrimp is correct. Rumors point to Apple launching new iPad models on March 26.