Apple delays larger iPad production

Apple Inc. suppliers have been told to start production of a larger-screen iPad in the second half of this year as the U.S. tech giant wrestles with new designs and features for the enterprise market, people familiar with the matter say, according to reports.

Production of the devices is now scheduled for around September, according to Bloomberg, which said the change was because of delays in connection with the supply of display panels.

Apple's most recent models are the iPad Air 2 with a 9.7-inch screen and the iPad mini 3, which has a 7.9-inch display. The company hasn't discussed plans for a larger-screen iPad so far.

Among the redesign issues that are the delaying the company is a decision over the addition of USB ports compliant with the new and faster USB 3.0 specification, the Wall Street Journal said.

The new iPad will likely aim to boost Apple's flagging fortunes in the tablet market. It said it sold 21.4 million iPads in the quarter ended Dec. 27, a year-over-year drop of 18 percent by units and 22 percent by revenue. Its market share dropped to about 28 percent in the fourth quarter of 2014 from around 33 percent in the same quarter a year earlier, amid a 3.2 percent global drop in the number of tablets shipped, research firm IDC reported.