Speculation mounted about the next generation of Apple’s iPad tablets, ahead of a launch event scheduled to take place next week.

The update, coming shortly after the introduction of the vendor’s latest iPhone line, will also be an important one in terms of the company’s tablet strategy.

In the company’s most recent results call, Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO, acknowledged that iPad sales had been constrained partly by a reduction in inventory – probably ahead of the portfolio update – and “market softness in certain parts of the world”.

With iPads not having the same natural replacement cycle as the iPhone – which is often tied to mobile service contracts – the company is facing a model more similar to PCs, where devices are replaced when they wear-out or break.

This will impact iPad sales unless Apple is able to come up with a product which is able to drive new growth in this category, or by broadening its appeal in markets such as the enterprise, where there is still room for growth.

iPad Pro
Re/code suggested that the event will see the debut of a previously-mooted, large screen iPad with a 12.9-inch screen.

This unit, called iPad Pro, is likely to target a similar enterprise market to Microsoft’s Surface line. Some reports have also suggested that, like Surface, keyboard peripherals will feature prominently, making it more of a hybrid device.

With Apple having inked a deal with IBM, a more enterprise-oriented iPad certainly seems a real possibility. But with Surface Pro 3 running the full version of Microsoft’s Windows, a device powered by Apple’s iOS rather than its desktop OS may face some uphill challenges when it comes to the laptop-substitute role.

And there also been some suggestion that the device could be called iPad Plus, to reflect the branding used in the new iPhone – the larger device is known as the iPhone 6 Plus. But with the existing iPad Air using a brand from the company’s laptop computer line, then iPad Pro would be the logical choice for its sibling, again using a name from the Mac business.

Other suggested specifications include a 4K-resolution screen, in order to keep the pixel density at a high level on the larger display.

Unlike the other iPads, which would become available shortly after the unveiling, iPad Pro is set for a 2015 debut.

iPad Air
The iPad Air, introduced last year, is expected to see a specification bump and, based on Apple’s previous update strategy, this is likely to see it aligned with the most recently announced iPhones.

It is widely believed that the design of the 9.7-inch screen device will remain the same, with the changes instead focused on the internals.

It is likely to shift to a version of Apple’s latest processor, called A8X, with a doubling of RAM to 2GB and improved graphics capabilities. This will enable the device to run a split-screen display with two different applications.

It will also gain a fingerprint reader and support for Apple’s Touch ID security technology.

Support for NFC is a possibility, as added in the latest iPhone update, although it is not clear if Apple’s new payment system (Apple Pay), which is enabled by the technology, would find a natural home in a tablet.

Integration with the Apple Watch is also an option.

And a gold version has been suggested, to join the silver and grey versions, giving the iPad the same colour range as the iPhone.

iPad Mini
The biggest question marks are over the iPad Mini. While it would make sense to migrate this device to the same processor as iPad Air – Apple does like commonality across its products – the introduction of the big-screen iPhone Plus phablet has raised the issue of cannibalisation.

And with an upgrade to the iPad Air and the iPad Pro in the works, the desire to update iPad Mini at the same time is likely to be reduced.

To this end, it is possible the iPad Mini will not see an upgrade with the current releases, until the larger iPhone has become more established in the market and its tablet siblings are also out the door.