Speculation is rife that Apple may be holding a launch event this week to announce the new iPad Air 4 and Apple Watch Series 6. This comes after a post on Reddit by “u/Kasti0” showed protective accessory cases for the “iPad Air 4 2020” up on sale on Amazon Germany by manufacturers ZtotopCase and TiMOVO.
Given the popularity of the iPad, it is not uncommon for accessory producers to jump the gun and put new cases up on sale on Amazon before Apple announces the latest models.
It is worth noting that the render of the iPad Air 4 in the listing features many of the rumoured design changes coming to the tablet like a full-screen design that is similar to the iPad Pro. This has led to the removal of the iPad Air’s Touch ID/ Home button, which is now integrated with the power button, that is supposedly longer to accommodate the sensor.
The rumoured iPad Air 4 is also expected to use the second-generation Apple Pencil and will use a USB-C port instead of Apple’s proprietary Lightning port. We could also see a tablet with 10.8” display, powered by Apple’s A13 Bionic chipset. Apart from that, Apple might equip the device with the same 3GB of memory found in the previous generation model or give it a bump to 4GB.
Tipster Jon Prosser tweeted that he expects the Apple Watch Series 6 will be the second device to be showcased by Apple. The latest wearable device from Apple is said to come with native sleep tracking on watchOS 7.
The Apple Watch Series 6 is rumoured to include models that come in 40mm and 44mm case sizes, similar to those employed in the previous generation. It is also hinted that the new Series 6 may get a longer-lasting battery, something that most Apple Watch users are sure to look forward to.
There are a few new health features that are expected to be included in the new Apple Watch like a glucometer to help diabetics measure their blood sugar level and determine the amount of insulin they need to take.
Other rumours point to the Series 6 potentially gaining a pulse oximeter that measures the saturation of oxygen in a user’s red blood cells, providing early warning signs of any health issues including COVID-19. It certainly would be a useful feature given that wearable devices can monitor deviations from your normal heart rate and let you know if you know whether you are coming down with a disease.
Do take the rumours above with a grain of salt as Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman tweeted that he wouldn’t get too excited about a possible announcement from Apple this week. He instead expects the virtual event to happen later this month for the new iPhone 12 series and the Apple Watch Series 6.
