There were rumors before that the iPad Air 3 may be released in the fall of 2016, but it seems that Apple might be focusing on the launch of another variant of the iPad. There are speculations that because of this, the release date of the latest iPad Air may now be moved to early 2017.

According to reports, the iPad Air 3 was already being anticipated to be released in October or November of this year. However, some say that Apple might prioritize the latest model of the iPad Pro instead. The new device will reportedly be named the iPad Pro 12.9. With this in mind, fans of the iPad Air model should expect its launch date to be postponed. 

Based on the reports from Bloomberg, the company is planning to refresh the features of their Apple products. They are reportedly mostly focused on improving the iPad Pro and the MacBook Pro as well. The company is also expected to enhance the functionality of the Apple Pencil. Aside from the hardware, Apple is also upgrading the software of its devices.

However, there was no mention of improving the iPad Air 3, which indicates that it may come out on a much later date. There are speculations though that the iPad Air 3 will be made of more durable aluminum material. With this, the device will be allowed to have a slimmer design compared to the previous versions. The device will also reportedly be powered by an A10 chipset and its operating system will most likely be the iOS 10.

Moreover, the iPad Air 3 is expected to come out with three variants to choose from and those would be the 64 GB, 128 GB and 256 GB. The audio quality of the device will also be upgraded since it will reportedly have speakers similar to that of the iPad Pro.

There is no exact release date yet for the iPad Air 3, but it is expected to be launched early 2017.