Apple is not at CES 2012, but in some ways they might be said to be running the show, as many of the products being touted there are trying to capture the magic of popular Apple devices like the iPad and the ultra-thin MacBook Air. PC World clearly sees it that way, reporting on the array of similar devices popping up:

From MacBook Air-inspired ultrabooks, to iPad-like tablets, smart TVs, and cloud computing technology, you will find clones of Apple’s product lineup at CES 2012 – and this is just a taste of what’s coming up at the show this week.

While others might be playing catch-up, Apple is busy further enhancing and extending their most successful products. Mac blogger Joe Aimonetti cites Digi Times that iPad maker Pegatron Technology has already begun filling orders for iPad 3 units that could show up in March and that 7 to 10 million iPad 4 units are slated for release in the fall. Is Apple likely to release two new iPads in 2012? Aimonetti is coming down on the side that there will be a spring iPad 3 release, followed by a fall iPhone event. Here’s his best guess as to what the iPad 3 will include:

So, we’ll probably be getting the iPad 3, in all its glory, this spring. It will have the Retina Display, the A6, Siri, more storage, and more RAM. We might get a bit of a redesign to accommodate some of the upgraded insides, but it’ll probably be hard to tell the difference from an iPad 2 at any sort of distance.

There are even reports that the iPad3 has been spotted at CES, according to Will Shanklin at Geek.com:

In a private meeting with an inside source, iLounge editor Jeremy Horowitz allegedly saw the iPad 3′s chassis the day before CES began. Horowitz has a good track record with Apple leaks, and had a similar encounter with the iPad 2′s external casing at this time last year (which turned out to be accurate).

Shanklin predicts that the iPad 3’s most important upgrades/changes would be in the area of display and an improved camera.

These latest rumors are in addition to chatter about different size options and discounted pricing to combat Amazon’s Kindle Fire (in the neighborhood of $299-$399).

What would you like to see and what do your expect to see in upcoming Apple product releases? Make your bold predictions below.

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