iPad Pro Release Date & Specs: OS X & iOS to Ship With Tablet?

One week before Apple's iPad Event, speculations in the global tech community are rife that the company will be unveiling its new line of iPads equipped with the OS X operating system, in addition to the iOS.

The iPad event is set to take place on October 16 at Apple's Cupertino headquarters in California.

Apple has not confirmed any of its latest iPad offerings but The Independent got wind of rumours that possible names shall include iPad Pro, iPad Air 2, and iPad 6.

Gold could also be a new color availability for the new line of iPads. The current line comes only in black, white, and space grey.

The new iPad rumor mill

Macworld noted that the iPad Pro, which could be known as iPad Plus or iPad 6 Plus, among other names, has a 12.9-inch screen, and is a larger version of the 9.7-inch iPad Air.

Because it is believed to be equipped with the combined power of the OS X and iOS operating systems, iPad Pro could actually function as a hybrid of a laptop and a tablet, an unprecedented move from Apple, Macworld added.

Macworld in fact describes iPad Pro as "a giant iPad or an iPad Air with a bigger screen. It is a hybrid tablet/laptop device."

The site also added the iPad Pro is currently a "rumour; a legend, and perhaps even a genuine Apple product in development right now. It's one of the most speculated-upon and hyped-up fantasy Apple product of the past few years, right up there with the Apple Watch."

Amid claims that an iPad Pro is in the works, Ming-Chi Kuo, an analyst from KGI Securities, reportedly told investors that he predicts that the only new product in the second half of 2014 will be the upgraded iPad Air, disclosed Macworld in another report.

Digitimes in its report culled from the upstream supply chain, has also said that Apple's rumoured 12-inch tablet may become the company's first device to feature an operating system that integrates Mac OS and iOS. The device is reportedly due for release in 2015.

"Sources in the supply chain (also) say that Apple has two 12.9-inch tablet prototypes in development. One is a 2-in-1 device and the other is a regular tablet. Whether Apple will release both to the market or just one, still remains unclear. The device is rumoured to go into mass production by early 2015," Digitimes detailed.

What we know so far

From these rumours, one could possibly theorize that the 12-inch tablet is the new and thinner iPad Air 2 and the two 12.9-inch tablet prototypes are the iPad Pro and possibly the iPad 6. As to how Apple would officially call the new iPad products, the details will be known next week.

The Independent shares the same "theory" when it stated in its report: "That means that Apple could be releasing a so-called iPad Pro with full desktop capabilities, as well as an iPad Air 2, an upgrade on its 2013 offering."

The other 12.9-inch tablet is also rumoured to be thinner and more lightweight. It is believed to include features such as Touch ID, more RAM, and Apple's iOS 8 software. It is to be called simply as iPad 6, according to The Independent.