KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo “who offered accurate Apple information before, multiple times” published a new research note outlining his expectations for Apple’s fifth-generation iPad. Kuo predicts that Apple will adopt the same GF2 touch technology used in the iPad mini, enabling Apple to design a thinner display for the new full-size iPad and the device will be roughly 15% thinner and 25% lighter than the current full-size iPad.

We think the tablet will, at 7.5-8.0mm, be 15% thinner than iPad 4. The new device will likely be about 500 grams, or some 25% lighter than iPad 4, run on an A7X processor, and sport cameras with similar specs to the iPad 4’s (front HD, rear 5MP). The casing shape and color (silver and black) and narrow bezel design will be similar to the iPad mini’s.

Kuo also predicts that more efficient display and chip technologies are expected to bring down the device’s overall power consumption, allowing for a smaller and thinner battery.

We therefore think that iPad 5’s battery capacity will be 25-30% smaller, at 8,500-9,000mAh, than iPad 4’s, and the battery’s thickness will be 15-20% smaller, at 7.5-8.0mm, and the number of cells will be reduced to two from three.

Kuo also believes that Apple will be sticking with Samsung for a new A7X chip that will take advantage of Samsung’s 28-nanometer process node.

Source [MacRumors]