In a report by Pulsestacks on April 3, it's indicated that Apple is gearing up to unveil new iterations of iPad Pro and iPad Air tablets. Concurrently, there are murmurs suggesting the company is also developing fresh accessories for these tablets. 9to5Mac has stumbled upon evidence corroborating Apple's development of a new Apple Pencil 3, which is set to introduce a novel "squeeze" gesture functionality.
In the recent iPadOS 17.5 developer beta code uncovered by 9to5Mac, traces of what could be the next-generation Apple Pencil have surfaced. Mentioned in the beta is a new gesture dubbed "squeeze," which might be used to swiftly add elements such as drawings, signatures, stickers, or text boxes, speculating that this gesture could be activated by squeezing the body of the Apple Pencil.
According to pulsestacks, the current Apple Pencil 2 only supports toggling between different tools by double-tapping in certain specific applications, with the body of the stylus lacking pressure sensitivity, which is only present in the tip. This further suggests that the "squeeze" gesture mentioned in the iPadOS 17.5 beta is designed for the yet-to-be-released Apple Pencil 3.
Interestingly, Apple has also updated the interface for pairing the Apple Pencil for the first time to support unreleased hardware. Earlier this year, signs of Apple Pencil support were added to the Find My app, but so far, there hasn't been any Apple Pencil hardware that can be tracked via the Find My network.
Furthermore, iPadOS 17.4 introduced a new version of the PencilKit API, allowing developers to make their apps compatible with the Apple Pencil. However, Apple has not yet revealed what new features PencilKit 3 brings to users, with some rumors suggesting that the Apple Pencil 3 will support interchangeable magnetic tips.
Recent reports from Bloomberg suggest that Apple plans to unveil a new lineup of iPads in early May. In addition to the new iPads, the company will also launch the Apple Pencil 3 and a redesigned Magic Keyboard, making the iPad resemble more like a traditional laptop.
It is rumored that the new iPad Pro will feature a thinner design and will be equipped with an OLED display and an M3 chip for the first time. The new iPad Air may retain the existing design but will be upgraded to the M2 chip. Additionally, Apple may also introduce a larger 12.9-inch iPad Air.
