(Image credit: Future)

Apple has already announced a number of devices this year – we saw the iPhone 16e back in March, a new standard iPad (A16), a new iPad Air (M3) and we've also seen a refresh to the MacBook Air.

More is expected to come in the next couple of months, with the iPhone 17 models and Apple Watch Series 11 both due. But even still, rumours are starting to point to early next year and the next iPad Pro instead.

What could the next iPad Pro bring to the table?

A report on Bloomberg claims that the next iPad Pro models could see two front-facing cameras. However, it reveals that they won't sit side by side.

One of them is rumoured to be positioned in the same landscape orientation as the current iPad Pro (M4), while the second is rumoured to be placed in the portrait orientation, at the top as with older models.

Bloomberg's Apple expert Mark Gurman wrote that the company is "adding a second, portrait-side front-facing camera to the upcoming M5 iPad Pro". This, he presumes, is so that those using FaceTime or taking selfies can do so no matter which way up their hold their iPads.

Apple's tablets traditionally placed the front camera in a portrait orientation until the standard iPad (2022). This tested the water for the landscape position, with all iPad models (except the iPad mini) now opting for a landscape front camera. On the whole, it is a better position for many, but for the times you might be hosting a video call and holding your iPad vertically, it's a little cumbersome to switch.

If Apple places a front camera in a portrait position too, it means those who prefer to use their iPad like this for FaceTime or video calls will be able to do so without switching positions.

It's not clear from the report whether the Face ID sensors on the iPad Pro would remain in the landscape position or switch back to portrait, though we would assume the former, with the secondary camera reserved for videos calls and selfies rather than unlocking the tablet.

There are currently no concrete details on when the next iPad Pro will launch but it is expected to be sometime next year. It's also expected to run on the Apple Silicon M5 chip.

It should run iPadOS 26 too, which was announced at WWDC in June and will likely be released in September to the current iPad models.