iPad Pro: Apple could be planning big screen tablet with stylus

Apple could be planning a much bigger version of its iPad, which will use a stylus, according to reports.

Steve Jobs famously said that “if you see a stylus, they blew it”, but new reports suggest that the company is planning one. It is likely to be an optional addition for the also rumoured iPad Pro, which is said to have a 12.9-inch display to further bridge the gap between laptops and tablets.

The predictions were encouraged by Ming-chi Kuo, an analyst at KGI Securities with a strong track record, and reported by AppleInsider over the weekend. Kuo says that he expects the pen will arrive in the second quarter of this year, based on his own research and Apple patent filings — though Kuo tends to have close relationships with companies that make parts for Apple’s products, he did not cite them this time around.

Since most users won’t need the stylus, Apple is likely to sell it as an optional add-on rather than packaging it with the bigger iPad, Kuo said.

"Coupled with its unfavorable cost structure, high selling prices may turn consumers off if the 12.9-inch iPad is always bundled with it," he wrote. "We therefore expect the stylus to be an optional accessory before sufficient user feedback is received."

The stylus is likely to be fairly straightforward. Some stylus-makers offer built in gyroscopes and accelerometers so that the stylus can tell where it is in space, and those features might be added over time, Kuo said.