This year's new cheap iPad model could be much larger than its predecessors

iPad 10.2
iPad 10.2 (Image credit: Future)

Below the iPad Pro and iPad Air lines sits the 'basic' iPad, a cheap and cheerful entry-level device that recently has been getting yearly iterations with small tweaks. But it seems that this year one of those 'small' tweaks could actually be another increase in size.

According to an investor note written by Ming-Chi Kuo, an analyst with a great track record for Apple leaks, and published by Macrumors, the new 2020 iPad will have a 10.8-inch screen. That's quite a step up from the iPad 10.2 in 2019, which was itself a jump from the iPad 9.7 in 2018.

The new iPad 10.8 wasn't the only product Kuo mentioned, as he also claimed that there's a new iPad mini coming in the first half of 2021, which will supposedly have a screen measuring somewhere between 8.5 inches and 9 inches.

Again, that's much bigger than the iPad mini (2019), which has a 7.9-inch display - and if it turns out to be 9 inches then it would be a more dramatic size increase than the standard iPad is said to be getting.

Upsizing

If Kuo is correct, Apple is in the process of bolstering its iPad range with devices that are larger than before.

It's possible that this is indicative of a broader trend, and we'll see this size increase in the iPad Air and iPad Pro ranges too, although the latter is already so big that a size increase is arguably unlikely - the iPad Pro 12.9 would be bigger than some Apple laptops if it got a larger screen.

Kuo didn't mention any new iPad Pro models though, and it's possible he would have done if any were coming this year. That's worth noting, as elsewhere there have been rumors that there's a new iPad Pro coming later in 2020.

Either way, we'll find out if Kuo is correct in due course - the iPad 10.2 was released towards the end of 2019, and if we are indeed going to see an iPad 10.8 then it'll likely be out towards the end of this year.

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Tom Bedford
Contributor

Tom Bedford joined TechRadar in early 2019 as a staff writer, and left the team as deputy phones editor in late 2022 to work for entertainment site (and TR sister-site) What To Watch. He continues to contribute on a freelance basis for several sections including phones, audio and fitness.

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