X

iPad Mini 2 to sport Retina Display, analyst says

Apple will release a Retina Display iPad Mini and a thinner, lighter fifth-generation iPad in the third quarter, says KGI's Ming-Chi Kuo.

Lance Whitney Contributing Writer
Lance Whitney is a freelance technology writer and trainer and a former IT professional. He's written for Time, CNET, PCMag, and several other publications. He's the author of two tech books--one on Windows and another on LinkedIn.
Lance Whitney
2 min read
The iPad Mini may be up for a Retina Display this year.
The iPad Mini may be up for a Retina Display this year. CNET

Apple's next-generation iPad Mini will feature a high-resolution Retina Display, says KGI Securites analyst Ming-Chi Kuo.

In an investors note detailed last night by MacRumors, Kuo projects that the iPad Mini 2 will come with the same Retina Display already offered by its larger counterpart.

The upgrade will be beneficial not only to consumers but to developers who can then design the same high-resolution apps to fit both iPad models. The next version of the 9.7-inch iPad will also lose some weight, get much slimmer, and take on the same thin bezels used on the Mini, according to Kuo.

Both tablets are slated to debut in the third quarter, Kuo predicted.

What else does the analyst envision for Apple in 2013?

The company is expected to jettison its non-Retina MacBook Pros this year, focusing on all-Retina models but at lower prices than the current lineup. The design of the Retina MacBook Pros may also sport some changes.

The MacBook Air isn't likely to qualify for a Retina Display due to its thin design. Instead, the major change will be a jump to Intel's upcoming Haswell chipset, possibly late in the second quarter.

Demoed at CES last week, Haswell will open the door to thinner and lighter notebooks that slurp up less battery power.

Similarly, the iMac probably won't see a Retina Display this year, Kuo said. But it may join the Mac Mini in receiving an upgrade to the Haswell chip.

The iPod Touch could see a revamped fifth-generation model with 8GB of storage and no rear camera priced at $199. At the same time, Apple is expected to stop selling the fourth-gen model.

And finally, Apple TV may receive a small update this year, while the much-anticipated Apple television probably won't debut until sometime in 2014, the analyst said.

CNET contacted KGI Securities for a copy of Kuo's report and will update the story if we receive further information.