iPad Pro 2 release date, specs & features rumors: Tablet replacing iPad Air, mini?

It looks like the iPad Pro 2 will mark the end of the Pad Air and iPad mini era, at least according to the latest information to come to light about the second-generation tablet.

According to reports, the iPad Pro 2 will have versions with the same size as the Air and mini iPads. That makes for a 9.7-inch variant and a 7.9-inch model.

The news about the former comes from KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, who claimed that there will be a "low-cost" iPad Pro with the same display size. He also made mention of an iPad Pro 2 version with an all-new 10.5-inch display. Interestingly, Mac Otakara is reporting that a model with a 10.9-inch screen will have the same footprint as the 9.7-inch iPad Pro.

This new iPad Pro 2 will have little to no bezels except on the top, where they will be retained to accommodate the FaceTime camera there.

It is unclear if the low-cost 9.7-inch iPad Pro is still a go with this 10.9-inch version (with 9.7-inch footprint) in the works. Either way, it will be strange for Apple to release a new iPad Air 3.

The Cupertino-based giant will end up eclipsing its own products if it did so and will be redundant, risking possible revenue loss or low sales of one or the other.

As for the iPad Pro 2's purported version of the iPad mini 5, Macrumors said that Apple is also looking to release a new iPad Pro with 7.9-inch display although this is yet to be confirmed.

This tablet is expected to share the same dimensions as the iPad mini 4, making it practically a follow-up to the small tablet, but with a different name instead of iPad mini 5.

The first time the iPad Pro was introduced, the iPad Air 3 was nowhere to be seen. This is believed to be the case from here on out as Apple is reportedly going full-on Pro on its iPad lines.

As for the release date of the iPad Pro 2 models, Apple is expected to unveil them early next year.