Rumor Mill Spins Out of Control, Claims iPad 3 in March and iPad 4 in October 2012

You shouldn't take the latest iPad rumors with a grain of salt, you should take them with seven seas full of salt, and then some. The idea that Apple will release an iPad 3 and a supercharged iPad 4 both in the same year is beyond ludicrous -- either that, or this editor will eat a giant sized crow in nine months -- yet that's what news and rumor site DigiTimes is reporting.

What's more likely is that the folks in Taiwan figured it's both fun and easy to mess with DigiTimes, and we can hardly blame them. According to DigiTimes, "industry sources" overseas indicate Apple will ship an iPad 3 with a Full HD display in March, which is actually likely, followed by an iPad 4 (named by Apple's component suppliers) in October. Say what?


Don't bet the farm. Apple didn't build a consumer empire by foolishly churning out products at a breakneck pace, and dropping major iPad releases just seven months apart is a little too quick, even for Apple's unofficial planned obsolescence model.

That said, we have heard rumors of Apple releasing multiple iPad versions this time around, but unless the Cupertino outfit is planning a smaller size iPad device to go along with its full-sized slate in order to compete with lower cost tablets like the Kindle Fire, Nook Tablet, and Iconia Tab A200, we don't see 2012 being a two-iPad year.

What's your take? Do you think Apple will release multiple iPads in 2012?