Apple will refresh all of its product lines in 2012 and is expected to have completed the process of choosing components for the next-generation iPad by the end of this year, a report claims.
Digitimes reports that sources in the upstream supply chain have confirmed that Apple will update the MacBook Air, iPad, iMac and iPhone product lines in 2012. We’ve already heard that the MacBook Pro is likely to be overhauled as well and there could be a new, larger MacBook Air on the scene next year as well. Apple issued slightly modified configurations for the MacBook Pro last week, upgrading processors and hard disks while keeping the price tag the same.
The report also states that Apple will have enough inventory to produce two million next-generation iPads by the end of December 2011. There are apparently two iPad prototypes – known as J1 and J2 – Apple has asked manufacturers including TPK Holdings and Wintek to develop flat panel modules and LED light bars for both.
The next-generation iPhone and iMac are unlikely to be revealed until the second half of 2012, the report also says.
Meanwhile, the future of the Mac Pro is seemingly in doubt, with inside sources apparently claiming that sales figures for Apple’s high-end workstation are low and that Thunderbolt capabilities mean that the iMac is now a suitable alternative for customers.