Alleged iPad 3 parts stick with standard 30-pin connector
updated 01:45 pm EST, Thu December 29, 2011
No new connection type planned, images suggest
Japanese website Macotakara says it has managed to obtain more parts allegedly built for the iPad 3. These include a microphone flex cable ribbon, a power on/off flex cable, and a dock connector port. The parts were ordered from a site called TVC-Mall.com, which earlier in December was discovered selling the mic cable.
The dock connector, notably, continues to use the 30-pin format shared between current iPods, iPhones, and iPads. In October a Macotakara report suggested that the iPad 3 might switch to a new connector, still using 30 pins but substantially smaller. The new part tested by the site still accepts standard Apple cables, the only difference being that the connector is shorter, and cables press in slightly more shallowly.
The power cable incorporates on/off, rotation lock, and volume buttons. The mic cable, meanwhile, has been redesigned from its iPad 2 counterpart.
The origin of the parts is unclear, since Apple is likely months away from shipping an iPad 3. Some components may already be in production though, and parts and designs have regularly leaked out of Apple's manufacturing partners.
