A third-party case for the rumored 10th-generation iPad appears to have hit the shelves early at a Target store in the United States.
Twitter user @roeeban today shared photos of a folio for an unreleased 2022 version of the entry-level iPad. The folio is designed by popular accessory maker Speck, which has been making cases for Apple products for well over a decade and likely has sources within Apple's supply chain in order to obtain design details about upcoming devices.
Notably, the case has a holder for the second-generation Apple Pencil, suggesting that the 10th-generation iPad will support the newer version of the Apple Pencil. The ninth-generation iPad is only compatible with the original Apple Pencil.
Here's a closer look at the mention of second-generation Apple Pencil support on the box:
Rumors suggest the 10th-generation iPad will feature a new design with a larger 10.5-inch display, a USB-C port, flat edges like the iPad Pro, and a landscape FaceTime camera, while the headphone jack is expected to be removed. The device is also expected to feature an A14 Bionic chip and 5G support on cellular models. It's not entirely clear if the device will have a Touch ID home button or a Touch ID power button.
The new iPad could be announced alongside the new iPad Pro this month. iPadOS 16 is expected to be released to the public next week.
Apple last updated the entry-level iPad in September 2021, with key features at the time including a 10.2-inch display, an A13 Bionic chip, an upgraded 12-megapixel front camera with support for the Center Stage feature, True Tone, and double the base storage. In the U.S., the 10.2-inch iPad starts at $329 with 64GB of storage.
