iPad Air 2, iPad 6 Rumors Claim Walmart Deal Indicates Earlier Release Date

Apple iPad Air 2 rumors are being tied to a recent price drop in the older iPad 2 and some reports are claiming this means an upcoming announcement for an iPad Air 2 release date. Of course, it’s only a 30-day deal from Walmart so it’s likely the iPad 2 price drop is simply a marketing promotion and has nothing to do with Apple. After all, the iPad 2 was released in 2011 and is unlikely to affect the sales of a much newer iPad Air…

In a related report by The Inquisitr, rumors about an iPad Pro claim Apple will make a tablet/noteboard hybrid that runs Mac OS X. The idea is to break into the business market and compete against the Microsoft Surface 2.

So what do we actually know about the iPad Air 2? Apple has slowly been straying away from naming their iPad releases after numbers. For example, instead of releasing an iPad 5 they released an iPad Air. But naming the new iPad 6 the iPad Air 2 would make sense depending on how they position the tablet.

We do know the existing iPad Air is outselling the iPad Mini by a significant margin so that gives Apple incentive to produce a sequel despite a lawsuit targeting the display technology. We also know that the iPad Air is slower than a Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 so Apple needs to up their game by increasing the speed of the iPad Air CPU. Overall, most experts expect a new display with a faster response time and better battery efficiency, a slightly smaller/lighter chassis, an improved camera, and the implementation of the Touch ID fingerprint sensor that was made famous by the iPhone 5S.

Even though we shot down the Walmart rumor, it’s still possible the iPad Air 2 release date may be sooner than the likely announcement period of October of 2014. After all, the iPad 4 was launched seven months after the iPad so there is precedence for Apple making an announcement at their June 2014 WWDC event. Other rumors even point to April. But for those who can’t wait any longer, I suggest you check out our iPad Air contest:

Hey Guys, fancy winning an iPad Air? All you have to do is #Retweet and Follow us to #win! pic.twitter.com/zZtoc5NFjq

— Inquisitr News (@theinquisitr) February 10, 2014