Apple’s new iOS 9 mobile operating system showcased at the WWDC 2015 earlier this month has a number of new features that hint at the upcoming 12.9-inch iPad Pro. For instance, the Slide Over, Split View and Picture in Picture would work better on a bigger screen. The split-screen multitasking would benefit from the upcoming tablet’s increased processing power and screen space.
Apple preparing iOS 9 to support the iPad Pro
Rumors about the iPad Pro have been doing rounds for over a year. Recently, KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said that the iPad Pro was delayed due to difficulty in display production issues. Now the iOS app developer Steven Troughton-Smith has discovered that the iOS 9 beta keyboard for iPads can scale to a larger size by rearranging keys and adding symbols at bigger screen resolutions.
Also new in iOS 9 – UIKeyboard seems to scale to a much larger heretofore unseen iPad screen size ? #ipadproconfirmed pic.twitter.com/Q9eN9CLCKQ
— Steve Troughton-Smith (Archived) (@stroughtonsmith) June 15, 2015
Apple seems to be already preparing its mobile OS to support the bigger iPad. Troughton-Smith’s finding lends credibility to previous rumors and leaks. He found that the UIKeyboard view automatically adjusts at a higher resolution by repositioning keys to fill the extra space available. It adds a row of keys on top to give users quick access to symbols like exclamation marks and parentheses.
The iOS 9 beta keyboard linked to a much larger iPad
The extra row of symbols has enough room to fit all characters and symbols on a single page. It also supports a shortcut bar, Tab and Caps Lock keys. Troughton-Smith said that the new iOS 9 beta keyboard is linked to “a much larger heretofore unseen iPad screen size,” pointing to the 12.9-inch iPad Pro, which is expected to ship later this year.
The iPad Pro is rumored to sport a 12-inch display with increased pressure sensitivity, USB Type-C port, an Apple-made Bluetooth stylus, a built-in NFC chip for Apple Pay, and the Force Touch technology that debuted with Apple Watch. The larger tablet is expected to be powered by 2GB RAM and A9 processor.
The iOS 9 beta build also mentions Apple TV in its GameKit and UIKit.
