Possible image of the iPad mini flex cable emerges

Over the past few months, there have been rumours surrounding the iPad, and a lot of mock-ups of what appear to be the upcoming tablet. However, there have been no images to visually appease us. Now, a report by French website NoWhereElse shows what appears to be the flex cable component of the iPad mini, which has not been officially announced yet.

First image of the flex cable surfaces

From the image we can see the cable component, supposed to be for the iPad mini. It features a smaller dock connector, headphone jack, and the connector for the home button.

In a related report by MacRumors, the website had contacted iFixit’s Kyle Weins and it notes, “It is indeed consistent with being an Apple component but that he is unable to confirm its authenticity. The part does bear a close resemblance to the part claimed to be for the next-generation iPhone, and it also carries a part number in the style of Apple's other iOS device flex cable components”.

There have been a lot of rumours indicating that the headphone jack of the iPad mini would be located at the top but this image indicates otherwise. The image shows the headphone jack at the bottom near the dock connector. The report by MacRumors states, “The most troublesome aspect of the part is the location of the headphone jack directly next to the dock connector. While evidence has accumulated suggesting that Apple will be moving the headphone jack to this location on the next-generation iPhone, case leaks, design drawings, and physical mockups have so far all suggested that the headphone jack will be located on the top edge of the iPad mini, as found on the full-size iPad”.

Flex cable snapped once more

After the image surfaced last week, images for the flex cable have popped up once more, this time courtesy of iResQ. The website states, “The interesting thing here is these assemblies come in either black or white, suggesting a change in design for the devices.  Another thing of note is the fact that the iPad Mini’s headphone jack is pretty close to the dock. This further hits on rumors that the iPad Mini will be more similar to the iPhone or iPod Touch than the current size iPad”.

There is no word on when the iPad mini will be announced but speculation is rife that this smaller iPad will be announced after the launch of the next iPhone. The upcoming flagship smartphone from Apple is believed to be slated for launch on 12 September, and Apple may hold a special event thereafter to unveil this mini tablet.

The iPad mini is expected to feature a display of 7.85 inches, and will compete with the Google Nexus 7, the 7-inch flagship Google tablet, which is doing very well on the market. This smaller iPad is also expected to feature a smaller dock connector and a microphone at the back. The microphone on the rear will assist the device in noise cancellation during video calls that can be done using Apple’s FaceTime or through Skype.