Apple says the imminent iPad launch will be a ‘different kind of Apple event’

A teaser for the May 7 Apple event
(Image credit: Apple)

We’re just days away from Apple’s May 7 ‘Let Loose’ event, and as you can imagine the company has started teasing it, but the way in which it’s being teased raises some questions.

You see – as spotted by The Apple Post – the company has described it as “a different kind of Apple event” in social media adverts. So what does it mean by that? Well, there are a few possibilities.

For one thing, the event will be held earlier in the day than is typical for Apple, kicking off at 7am PT / 10am ET / 3pm BST, which is May 8 at 12am AEST in Australia. Typically Apple’s events are a few hours later than that. But that seems like a fairly minor point, and not worth highlighting as “different.”

A screenshot of an Apple event teaser

(Image credit: The Apple Post / Apple / Facebook)

Perhaps then it’s what will be announced that’s different, though with leaks pointing to the iPad Pro 2024 and iPad Air 6, along with a new Apple Pencil and Magic Keyboard, it doesn’t seem like there’s going to be anything too unusual on show – though it’s always possible that Apple has kept something under wraps.

Or perhaps the way the event – which will be viewable online – is filmed will be different, with 9to5Mac guessing that perhaps it will be shot and edited on an iPad. That’s certainly a possibility, but we won’t know for sure until the event itself on Tuesday.

If you’d like to tune in, check out our guide covering how to watch Apple's May 2024 iPad launch event. Though we’ll be covering all the announcements in detail, so you can also head back to TechRadar to read all about it.

Either way, it should be an interesting event, with rumored highlights including a powerful new M4 chipset and the best OLED screen on a tablet for the iPad Pro 2024, and a new larger 12.9-inch iPad Air model – plus of course whatever’s “different” this time around.

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James is a freelance phones, tablets and wearables writer and sub-editor at TechRadar. He has a love for everything ‘smart’, from watches to lights, and can often be found arguing with AI assistants or drowning in the latest apps. James also contributes to 3G.co.uk, 4G.co.uk and 5G.co.uk and has written for T3, Digital Camera World, Clarity Media and others, with work on the web, in print and on TV.

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