iPad Air 3 release imminent: Cases surface with cutouts for four speakers, rear flash and Smart Connector

The announcement of Apple iPad Air 3 release date seems imminent as images of what is believed to be iPad Air 3 cases have emerged recently. The new images carry cutouts for new features like quad speakers, flash for rear-facing camera and Smart Connector.

According to Mac Rumors, the iPad Air 3 case has been spotted on Alibaba, the popular online shopping site from China. The device appears quite similar to the Apple iPad Pro that features a 12.9-inch display. It appears the new iPad Air 3 is borrowing some features from the iPad Pro.

The cutout of the iPad Air 3 case show that it will be arriving with four speakers. The iPad Pro also features quad speakers. The iPad Air 3 also features a Smart Connector, another iPad Pro borrowed feature that enables users to connect an optional accessory, the Smart Keyboard to the tablet.

The iPad Air 3 case shows that it features a cutting for LED flash for the rear-facing camera. On the upper left corner, the iPad Air 3 will also feature a 3.5 mm audio jack.

The iPad Air 3 will be arriving to replace the iPad Air 2 that was launched in October 2014. The new iPad is expected to come with a 9.7-inch display. Like the iPad Pro, the iPad Air 2 successor will be coming with a 4 GB of RAM and Apple A9X chipset. Rumour have it that the iPad Air 3 will carry support for Apple Pencil stylus.

Even though Apple released the iPad Mini 4 and iPad Pro tablets last year, the Cupertino company did not release the iPad Air 2 successor in the previous year. In March, Apple is expected to announce several new products apart from iPad Air 3 such as second generation Apple Watch and 4-inch Apple iPhone 5se, Phone Arena reported.