Release date for the 9.7-inch iPad 5 has been reportedly set for the 2013 holiday quarter and global consumers can expect an iOS 7 big tablet that pretty much carries the same look and functions of the iPad Mini 2, reports said.

It appears that the only key difference between the two Apple slates is the screen size as the original iPad, according to The Wall Street Journal, will employ most of the winning formula used on the first iPad Mini.

While the bigger iPad will likely use a faster A-series CPU, then insides and outs will be largely similar. In particular, the iPad 5 will be fitted with a display screen that is fired up by the GF2 technology, which according to Apple Insider will be supplied by Nitto Denko Corporation.

"Following the iPad Mini's success, Apple plans to use the film-based touch panel in its next regular-size iPad," the WSJ report said.

By adopting the same screen, Apple engineers were able to slim down the whole regular iPad profile. As GF2 consumes less energy juice, a smaller battery size comes to the picture for the iPad 5, which allowed designers to encase its components in a thinner and lighter casing - still made of metal.

The redesign and the use of new materials also led to a major overhaul of the iPad 5's front face, which on release date is expected to sport slimmer bezel surrounding its screen, the size of which was left untouched.

So while Apple fans will get a radically smaller iPad 5, they will still enjoy the same 9.7-inch display seen from version one to four. Of course, Retina remains part of the entire package, likely maintaining the same screen resolution and pixel density seen in the iPad 4.

The WSJ report came following the leaks earlier this August of photos and videos of front panel, back cover and digitiser that allegedly are intended for use in the mass production of the fifth iPad build, MacRumors said in a report.

These indicators add up to the persistent rumours that for the 2013 make, Apple has opted to offer a more compact full-sized iPad. The move was made to keep the bigger iPad competitive against the Mini, which as of June 2013 has outpaced the original iOS tablet in terms of sales and popularity.

Build number five of the regular iPad and that of the iPad Mini 2 will be released on the fourth quarter of 2013, a Bloomberg report said, though its was not mentioned if Apple is staging a separate or simultaneous launch for the two slates.

Both tablets will run on iOS 7 and will show off more powerful components from last year's offerings, with Retina display panel headlining the loads of killer features stuffed with the devices.