iPad with Face ID, Animoji now seems all but confirmed

The groundbreaking facial recognition and tracking that debuted on the iPhone X should make its way to Apple’s iPad line sooner rather than later. An entirely new iPad will be necessary, but that also seems very likely. Apple may have held off on announcing fresh iPad Pro models at WWDC 2018 since the technology wouldn’t be ready until the fall.

In iOS 12, developer Steve Troughton-Smith discovered that AvatarKit landed on the iPad despite the tablets lacking the TrueDepth camera system.

The code is there, but no one can do anything significant with it yet. Apple’s iPad models don’t have any form of facial recognition. So a new iPad Pro is absolutely needed (and now all but confirmed). Troughton-Smith was able to show is that AvatarKit has been tailored for a large-screen device like the iPad.

Check out what’s been going on behind the scenes in iOS 12 lately:

Users are able to take advantage of Face ID and Animoji due to the TrueDepth camera system. The collection of cameras, sensors, and lasers follow an individual’s face at various locations to track real-time movement.

Other companies have tried replicating the TrueDepth camera system with less expensive components, but nothing compares to Apple’s array.

There’s no indication as to whether or not Apple would do away with the fingerprint scanner on the iPad Pro if these features arrive, but it does feel likely. The iPhone X doesn’t ship with a fingerprint scanner because the Cupertino-based company wants to make facial recognition popular around the world. Because a tablet needs to be grasped by the edges, any iPad with the TrueDepth camera system could still have visible bezels.

Apple might announce its new iPad Pro models, or whatever these new iPad models are named, in early September. The trio of new iPhone models is expected to launch then. During this event, it’s usually all about the iPhone but 2018 could turn out to be different with the iPad getting some attention as well.