An Apple logo hangs above the entrance to the Apple store on 5th Avenue in the Manhattan borough of New York City, U.S., December 5, 2016.

An Apple logo hangs above the entrance to the Apple store on 5th Avenue in the Manhattan borough of New York City, U.S., December 5, 2016. Reuters/Brendan McDermid

Fans have been waiting for the upcoming iPad models for a long while now, but Apple may apparently announce a new set of its premium tablets before March ends. The Cupertino, California-based company is reportedly set on launching four iPad variants, which means that a new model could be joining the revamped versions of the current line-up that consists of the iPad Air, iPad Mini and iPad Pro.

Previous reports indicate that the 2017 iPad models could furnish an assortment of sizes, including 7.9-inch, 10.5-inch, 10.9-inch and 12.9-inch proportions. New chipsets are also expected inside Apple’s new devices, specifically the A10X processor. Fans should also keep their fingers crossed as the new iPads will supposedly retain the 3.5 mm headphone jack that Apple removed from the current iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus.

Apple has been mum about its upcoming products, but the new generation iPads will reportedly include an entry-level tablet that will be aimed at the education sector, which seem to consider the 12.9-inch iPad Pro as too expensive. Forbes reports that the cost-effective iPad may go for as low as US$299 (AU$395), which makes it much more affordable than the current iPad Air 2 that starts at US$399 (AU$527).

According to analysts, some – if not all – of the next generation iPads could feature edge-to-edge designs. But in order to achieve that goal, Apple would have to get rid of the Home button for its new devices to be near borderless. All four upcoming iPads could also reportedly include quad microphones instead of the current dual setup. Other potential features that round out the list for the upcoming iPad 2017 line-up include 12 MP iSight main cameras with True Tone flash, quad speakers, True Tone displays and the successor to the Apple Pencil stylus.

Apple is also reportedly going to launch a new iPhone along with the new iPad models at the said March event. It is not known yet if the Mac maker is going to announce the iPhone 7s, the iPhone 8 or a special tenth year anniversary iPhone (which has been unofficially called the iPhone X).

It has been speculated as of late that Apple will be treating fans to a special edition anniversary iPhone as a way to celebrate its decade-long dominance of the mobile phone industry. And speaking of “special edition,” there’s also the buzz about the iPhone SE’s successor potentially hitting stores this year. Check out the related stories below.

RELATED STORIES:

Apple iPhone 8 reportedly matching Samsung Galaxy S8's display

iPhone SE 2017 model could launch this month; Apple’s ‘special edition’ handset is an affordable alternative