iPad 5 Rear Shell Leaks, Shows Off iPad Mini-Like Design

Apple has been unusually silent over the past several months—we haven’t seen any big announcements since the iPhone 5, which was back in September of last year. We’re quickly skipping over the company’s annual iPad announcement, and that vow of silence may tell us a lot about what to expect when a reveal does finally come. We’ve heard a lot about the likelihood of a redesigned full-size iPad—we’ve seen pictures as proof—and today’s leak further backs up rumors we’ll see a bigger iPad mini-esque for form factor.

Just last week reports suggested Apple would introduce an iPad that’s “25 percent lighter and 15 percent thinner than the fourth generation iPad.” That’s all hearsay based on an analyst note. But there was also a case leak based around the rumored thinner design, while another report said the iPad 5 would slim down because of a more efficient LEDs. There’s plenty of talk right now, but obviously we have no way of verifying anything until Apple decides to address the world about its next generation iPad.

We’re expecting Apple to send out event invites any day now, but the more likely scenario will be to wait until WWDC. If that’s the case, will Apple use the conference to announce multiple hardware devices in addition to new software? Will it now just hold one big event mid-way through the year instead of several events throughout the year? We’ll have to wait and see. It’s not typical Apple form, but nothing has been quite typical for awhile now.

MacRumors highlights another possible leak in the same iPad 5 report having to do with the iPhone 5S’s SIM try. They look identical, which is no surprise given the fact that many expect the 5S to keep the iPhone 5’s same form factor.

[Source: TechnoBuffalo]