iPad 3 Rumors Getting Out of Control

Typically where there's smoke you'll find fire, but as it relates to the rash of iPad 3 rumors the past few days, things are getting a little bit silly. Many of the rumors trace back to DigiTimes, which is reporting all kinds of news based on what it's hearing from sources behind the trenches in Apple's supply chain, one of them being that Apple plans to unveil not one, but TWO iPad models at the MacWorld expo next month. Not so fast, says Jim Dalrmple at Loop Insight.

"I checked with a number of my sources today and an iPad 3 is not planed for released at Macworld. In case you're wondering, an iPad 3 won't be released at CES either," Dalrmple stated in a blog post.

He also said Apple' won't be unveiling its much anticipated television line at either of those shows, which follows reports that Apple's working on 32-inch and 37-inch models.

A lot is riding on the iPad 3, the first Apple tablet from the post-Steve Jobs era and following the launch of Amazon's popular Kindle Fire.

Getting back to the iPad 3, there's a lot of information out there, none of which is confirmed by Apple, of course. But given the amount of leaked reports, there's a good chance the iPad 3 will ship with a much improved display, possibly one with a QXGA resolution (2048x1536).

Other possibilities include a 7.85-inch iPad model to compete with Amazon's Kindle Fire and Barnes & Noble's Nook Tablet, and a bigger, longer lasting battery with perhaps twice the capacity as found on the iPad 2.