After new iPad announcement, Apple fans think they might know where the iPhone is heading

APPLE has released new laptops and revamped its iPad - but does the new range hold a clue about the future of the iPhone?

THIS week Apple unveiled the biggest revamp to the iPad since its launch — with the screen covering the whole front of the gadget.

The iPad Pro also now has Face ID, so users can unlock it and approve purchases just by looking at it, instead of the fingerprint scanner.

Apple said new, bigger “brains” mean it is more powerful than nine in ten PCs — despite being in a super-slim case just 5.9mm thick.

Apple chief executive Tim Cook said the redesigned device would “push what you can do on a computer even further”.

Most interestingly, the firm has ditched the Lightning connector for a new type just six years after bringing it in. The new USB-C connector makes it faster to charge and easier to connect to other devices like TVs and cameras, and some think it provides a clue about the direction the iPhone is heading in.

A person takes a photo of the new iPad Pro with its accessory pencil during a pre-release showcase after an event announcing new products Tuesday Oct. 30, 2018, in the Brooklyn borough of New York. Picture: Bebeto Matthews

Plus the iPad Pro can be turned into a battery pack to charge your iPhone since the USB-C connector can send power both ways.

Experts said it makes it somewhat more likely Apple will do the same thing — ditching the Lightning port — on next year’s iPhone as rumoured in September.

It’s probably unlikely that the iPhone will adopt USB-C rather than going completely wireless in the future, but speculation is running rife — and many people want to see it happen.

With USB-C on the iPad and all the MacBooks, the iPhone is now the odd one out with a Lightning port. Beginning of the end?

— Dan Moren (@dmoren) October 30, 2018

If iPhone moves to a square edge design like iPad, I could see USB-C replacing lightning.

— Michael Kukielka (@DetroitBORG) October 31, 2018

The new iPad Pro has USB-C…one small step for Apple, one giant leap to not having to carry multiple, different cords everywhere. Now, waiting for you iPhone.

— SoldierKnowsBest (@SoldierKnowBest) October 30, 2018

The iPad Pro's USB-C port is great. It should be on my iPhone, too https://t.co/lLTVjb9JpJ pic.twitter.com/RKzb6fZoc5

— CNET (@CNET) November 1, 2018

Having a screen with almost none of the black border round the edge means the iPad Pro can be smaller and lighter.

The bigger 12.9inch version is now 25 per cent smaller in terms of volume. And the previous 10.5inch model now has a bigger 11 inch screen but he same size footprint.

The latest A12X Bionic processor chip, along with other internal upgrades, means the new Pro has a gaming graphics performance on a par with the Xbox X One games console, the company claims.

The Face ID will replace the fingerprint scanner as it did when Apple brought out the new iPhone X last year.

USB-C is a new version of USB that is smaller and can transfer data more quickly. Apple already uses it on its laptops and other smartphone makers use it too.

The Apple Pencil stylus introduced alongside the original iPad Pro has also been upgraded, magnetically attaching to the iPad for the first time.

The new 11in iPad Pro will go on sale on November 7.

This article originally appeared on The Sun and was reproduced with permission.

Originally published as After new iPad announcement, Apple fans think they might know where the iPhone is heading