iPad 5 Rumors: Device To Come With Wireless Charging and Lighter Build?

Many were hoping that among the many new products, software and features announced at Apple's World Wide Developer's Conference earlier this week, the next tablet device, the iPad 5, would have been in the lineup.

No suck luck Apple fans.

Insiders weren't surprised, especially after Apple Inc. CEO Tim Cook publicly announced that no new devices were likely to be unveiled before September in a few interviews leading up to the WWDC. The lack of concrete news has only led to more rumors and speculation.

AppleInsider reported a patent Apple recently applied for that hints that they plan to design a cover for the iPad capable of charging the device wirelessly. This would mean a person could charge their device as well as their cover. When the device power gets low, they can simply cover it and it will charge wirelessly whenever it is asleep or closed.

The new iPad is expected to be thinner and weigh less than previous incarnations. According to DigitalTimes, the new device will be 25 to 33 percent lighter as a result of the new iPad only sporting one LED light bar for backlighting as opposed to the current iPad 4's two LED back light bar.

9to5Mac released a possible picture of the iPad 5 prototype back in January. There's no word yet as to whether or not the company plans to release the device with a rear facing microphone like it has with the iPhone 5 but, it would not surprise many insiders if that feature was in development for the next tablet. Rumors indicate the feature was supposed to be rolled out on the iPad Mini but was scrapped just before the product's final release. Many also believe the new iPad will come in a variety of color options similar to the iPod Touch.

The Taiwanese blog DigiTimes cites insiders who say the iPad 5 will go into production in the next couple of months in order to meet the expected demand that will likely come with its announcement according to Gadgetgestures. The timing of this production line, if true, would put the tablet's announcement sometime in September, as expected.