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Rumors of larger iPad gaining currency in Asia

The supply chain in Asia is getting increasingly chatty about a larger iPad. Is Apple getting ready to take the plunge?

Brooke Crothers Former CNET contributor
Brooke Crothers writes about mobile computer systems, including laptops, tablets, smartphones: how they define the computing experience and the hardware that makes them tick. He has served as an editor at large at CNET News and a contributing reporter to The New York Times' Bits and Technology sections. His interest in things small began when living in Tokyo in a very small apartment for a very long time.
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Brooke Crothers
Is a larger iPad or iPad-like device in the works? The frequency of Asia-based Rumors is increasing.
Is a larger iPad or iPad-like device in the works? The frequency of Asia-based Rumors is increasing. Mockup based on Apple image.

Rumors about a larger iPad are gaining steam. The latest claim is that Taipei-based Quanta is working with Apple to develop a large iPad.

Quanta Computer, known primarily as a manufacturer of laptops, and Apple are eyeing what a Chinese-language udn.com calls a 12-inch class device.

Earlier reports in May had cited a 12.9-inch tablet.

News from the Asia-based supply chain of manufacturers is notoriously inconsistent, as companies frequently change plans before a product actually enters high-volume commercial production.

That said, it does appear that Apple is toying with the idea of a larger iPad-like device as demand for MacBooks shrinks and iPad sales soar.

This contraction-expansion, respectively, is sometimes referred to as the post-PC era.

Quanta would be a logical choice to make a laptop-sized product.

In the coming months, Apple is expected to announce a thinner, lighter 9.7-inch iPad that takes design cues from the Mini.

(Via AppleInsider.)