Developer Steven Troughton-Smith on Monday shared new evidence found in iOS 12 that indicates Apple will soon debut a new iPad featuring Face ID. Steven Troughton-Smith found an iPad-related implementation of AvatarKit, the framework used to operate Apple’s so far iPhone X-only Animoji feature.
Currently, only the iPhone X includes the hardware – a front-facing TrueDepth camera – to perform real-time face tracking. So iPad-related AvatarLit Framework code in iOS 12 indicates an iPad with similar hardware could be released in the near future.
Rumors have been floating that Apple is working on a new high-end iPad Pro model that will include many of the design elements included in the current iPhone X. Rumors indicate the new device will feature slimmer bezels, a swifter processor, a custom GPU, the TrueDepth camera which would enable Face ID facial recognition and Animoji, and more.
Reports from Bloomberg, as well as predictions from well-connected analyst Ming-Chi Kuo indicate a September 2018 release for the new tablet.