iPad 5 Release Date Rumors Say Apple Will Replace PC Desktops Next Week

iPad 5 release date rumors seem to indicate that Apple’s iPad 5 unveiling will occur next week on October 15.

As previously reported by The Inquisitr, we compared the Google Nexus 10 against iPad 5 rumors.

The short version is that Google Nexus 10 is likely to be cheaper but the iPad 5 should outperform one of the best Android tablets available on the market now.

Investors are already saying the iPad 5 release date will feature a push by Apple to overtake the PC desktop market:

“We… expect growing [desktop] virtualization and iPad deployments in the enterprise to pressure corporate PC sales through 2014-15.. We expect AAPL’s iPad refresh to include 64 bit architecture, which should enable a greater array of enterprise App development and facilitate greater enterprise penetration over time.”

Time will only tell, but for now let’s look at the latest iPad 5 rumors.

iPad 5 CPU And GPU

The Apple iPhone 5S A7 CPU is the first 64 bit smartphone processor to implement the ARMv8 instruction set. As such, the iPad 5 CPU is expected to be the A7X designed by Samsung (which has 64-bit plans for its own Galaxy S5 next year).

As such, the iPad 5 A7X CPU will likely be 64 bit as well and require the 64 bit version of iOS7, which will presumably be released for the iPad 5 since it’s already compatible with older iPads. But 64 bit won’t help too much since there’s not many 64 bit iOS7 apps yet. Considering some recent smartphones like the Samsung Note 3 have 3GB of system memory, it’s possible the iPad 5 memory size could be 4GB or beyond, which means 64 bit becomes necessary.

The rumored iPad 5 CPU performance is estimated to be in the double range compared to the iPad 4, but no details have been released for certain. The iPad 4 GeekBench 2 score was 1769 so if the iPad 5 CPU rumors are correct that should put the iPad 5 CPU score over 3000. The iPad 4 GPU boasted 39 frames per second (FPS), which is better than most Android tablets except those running the Nvidia Tegra 4.

iPad 5 Screen Size

One goal for the iPad 5 is to reduce the size and weight, so the iPad 5 screen size and shape will be a critical part of this plan. iPad 5 screen size rumors claim Apple will be reducing the size of the LED backlight by using more efficient LEDs. The weight of the new iPad 5 may also be lowered by using one LED light bar instead of the two used in the iPad 4 and 3.

Apple is likely to borrow the “GF DITO” (or GF2) touchscreen technology from the iPad mini to use in the iPad 5. GF2 in the iPad mini helped to make it 23 percent thinner and 53 percent lighter than iPad 4, so it’s possible the iPad 5 weight will be reduced by this further.

The biggest iPad 5 screen rumor is the idea that Apple might make the shift to a 16:9 widescreen aspect ratio, which is used by most HDTVs and many movies. This would mean the iPad 5 would be slightly taller than before, although some say that would make the iPad 5 awkward in portrait mode.

Otherwise, the iPad 5 screen size is expected to stay the same as the iPad 4 at 9.7 inches. But some iPad rumors claim the screen size could be bumped up to 12.9 inches, but that’s more likely for the iPad 6 release date in 2014.

iPad 5 Battery

One of Apple’s goals for the iPad 5 seem to be focused on making it thinner. It’s possible they could figure out a way to shrink other components and still allow a thicker battery but this seems unlikely.

The iPad 3 and iPad 4 both featured a 11,560 mAh battery which could last for days. All of the screen changes to the iPad 5 would consume less power and thus require a smaller iPad 5 battery. But otherwise Apple hasn’t released any specification about battery size. So if they keep the same battery and reduce the power requirements it should still last longer than the iPad 4.

iPad 5 Fingerprint Scanner

The Touch ID fingerprint scanner built into the iPhone 5S is the biggest innovation that Apple brought to the table this year. Will the iPad 5 feature it as well? iPad 5 rumors seem to say the answer is “yes” based upon leaked photos of an iPhone 5 home button connector.

iPad 5 Wireless Charging

One iPad 5 rumor claims Apple is looking into equipping its iPad Smart Covers with the ability to wirelessly charge the iPad 5. Rumors of iPad 5 wireless charging are fueled by an Apple patent which describes an “integrated inductive charging in protective cover” which works by “an inductive power transmitter arranged to wirelessly pass power to a corresponding inductive power receiver unit disposed within the tablet device.”

It’s uncertain whether iPad 5 wireless charging capability will require the iPad Smart Cover to be plugged into the wall to function or if it’ll have its own small battery, as well.

iPad 5 Camera

According to KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo the iPad 5 camera will be the same one featured in the iPhone 5S. This means the iPad 5 camera apps would come with similar features to supplement the 8 megapixels camera. As a comparison, the previous two generations of the iPad had a 5 MP camera.

iPad 5 Color Cases

Leaks from the iPad 5 and iPad Mini 2 manufacturer show that iPad 5 color cases are in store for us. So far, the known available colors are similar to the iPhone 5S colors: gold, space gray, and silver. There hasn’t been any word on whether either the iPad 5 or iPad Mini 2 will be graced with more color options like the iPhone 5C.

iPad 5 Release Date

So far, Apple iPad 5 release date rumors are indicating an official launch date of October 15. There’s multiple reason to believe this is true. Apple has been resembling a leaky boat lately in regards to keeping their plans secret, which meant there really weren’t any major surprises with the iPhone 5S and iPhone 5C. The last iPhone 5S release date rumors managed to predict the dates exactly (earlier rumors from 2012 were far off, though). In addition, Apple did launch the fourth generation iPad and iPad mini last October, which means the iPad 5 release date is likely to follow suit.

iPad 5 Price

When Apple introduces a new product it’s usually priced to replace the previous generation. This was the case with the iPhone 5S, but Apple broke the mold by directly replacing the existing iPhone 5 with the iPhone 5C. Considering this history, the likely iPad 5 price is $499 for the WiFi only 16GB iPad 5, $599 for the 32GB iPad 5, $699 for the 64GB iPad 5, and $799 for the Cadillac 128GB iPad 5. As a comparison, the Google Nexus 10 16GB starts at about $380.

But other iPad 5 pricing rumors claim it’s possible Apple will drop the price by $100 in order to compete with Samsung and the Microsoft Surface, which managed to grab a 7.5 percent market share. This would make the iPad 5 much more attractive to those who might be lured away.

Do the Apple iPad 5 release date rumors have you interested in upgrading to the new iPad?