Apple is well known for testing all sorts of prototypes, well ahead of a possible launch of any. We’ve been seeing the design of the iPhone 6 leaked all over the place since the time of the iPhone 4s launch, even though it took the company 3 generations to make it possible. In the same fashion, we’ve been hearing about a possible 12.9-inch iPad in the works for a more professional crowd, and new rumors point to how Apple plans to pull it off.
Supply chain sources claim that Apple is testing two 12.9-inch iPad models, both running different operating systems. On one, we have one iPad running the typical iOS that we currently know, and on the other it seems to run a “2-in-1 combo” of iOS and OS X being integrated. Notice that we use the word integrated and not hybrid, as the report claims that even though the integrated OS uses elements of each, it’s not really a hybrid product.
We have seen how Apple is working significantly on integrating iOS and OS X through features like Continuity and Hand-off, but we also know that Apple doesn’t want to mix these two together. That said, Apple is famous for doing things it would never said it would do, like the iPad mini for example, so let’s see where this story leads. The source claims that this product won’t be ready for mass production until 2015.