A photo of what is supposedly a next-generation iPad 3 display has surfaced on a Korean forum. The pic in question was tipped to MacRumors and has been making the rounds this afternoon.
The alleged iPad 3 display doesn’t tell us much of anything at all, other than the slight difference in cabling arrangement at the bottom of the panel.
Not only can the authenticity of this photo not be confirmed, but we also don’t think that it reveals anything interesting about Apple’s future tablet. The display is the same 9.7-inch size as the current iPad models.
MacRumors has done some comparing with help from iFixit and a look at the iPad 2’s display connector. When looking at the ‘leaked’ iPad 3 photo and the disassembled iPad 2 display, the iPad 3 connector has 3 possible ribbon cables for data transfers. The iPad 2 uses two ribbon cables for data and one for power. MacRumors suggests that this difference could be related to the next-generation iPad’s increased need for data bandwidth. It’s been rumored that the iPad 3 will feature a Retina-like display that would likely require a beefed-up connection.
It’s also possible that this display is not finished or a prototype.
The latest rumor from this morning is that Sharp is tapped to provide thinner, hi-res IGZO displays for the iPad 3. Another rumor about Apple unveiling two new iPads at Macworld in 2012 was also debunked recently.
